STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4872
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 13, 2025
___________
Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to providing
notice of health insurance contracts for retired officers, employees,
and their families
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 2 of section 92-a of the general municipal law,
2 as amended by chapter 805 of the laws of 1984 and as further amended by
3 section 104 of part A of chapter 62 of the laws of 2011, is amended and
4 a new subdivision 2-a is added to read as follows:
5 2. [A] Consistent with the provisions of subdivision two-a of this
6 section, a public corporation may contract with a non-profit membership
7 corporation, organized under article forty-three of the insurance law
8 and approved by the superintendent of financial services and the state
9 board of social welfare, or with any insurance company authorized to do
10 business in this state for the purpose of furnishing medical and surgi-
11 cal services and hospital service as defined in such article forty-
12 three, or medical and surgical and hospital insurance to persons who
13 contract with such non-profit membership corporation or insurance compa-
14 ny, or who subscribe to a plan or plans, as hereinafter provided. Any
15 such contract entered into by a public corporation shall permit any
16 officer or employee or group of officers or employees of an agency or
17 department of the public corporation voluntarily to subscribe to a plan
18 or plans providing for medical and surgical and hospital insurance for,
19 or medical and surgical services and hospital service to, such officers
20 or employees and their families. Any such contract entered into by a
21 public corporation may, if authorized by the governing board or body and
22 subject to such conditions, limitations and eligibility requirements as
23 may be fixed by such board or body, permit any retired officers and
24 employees or group of retired officers and employees of an agency or
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09483-01-5
S. 4872 2
1 department of the public corporation voluntarily to subscribe to such a
2 plan or plans to provide such insurance for or service to themselves and
3 their families. The comptroller or other disbursing officer of the
4 public corporation, or of any fund out of which officers or employees of
5 such public corporation are paid, is authorized to deduct from the wages
6 or salary of such contracting or subscribing officer or employee, with
7 [his] such officer or employee's prior consent, in writing, the sums
8 required to be paid by such officer or employee to such non-profit
9 membership corporation or insurance company. Such public corporation, if
10 such contract or plan provides that the employer shall contribute a
11 share of the cost of such medical and surgical services and hospital
12 service, or medical and surgical and hospital insurance, for its offi-
13 cers and employees or retired officers and employees, is authorized to
14 appropriate a sum required to be paid under such contract by the public
15 corporation as employer. The sum to be paid by it under such contract,
16 in the discretion of such public corporation, may be any percentage of
17 the total cost including the whole thereof. Where the compensation of
18 any officer or employee whose position is covered by medical and surgi-
19 cal services and hospital service or medical and surgical and hospital
20 insurance pursuant to this section is paid from a special or administra-
21 tive fund provided for by law, the contributions required to be paid by
22 the public corporation for such coverage shall be paid from such special
23 or administrative fund. The public corporation shall be authorized to
24 pay directly to such non-profit membership corporation or to such insur-
25 ance company, the total of such appropriation and of such officer and
26 employee deductions.
27 2-a. Forty-five days prior to the governing board of a public corpo-
28 ration authorizing or approving a contract or plan of health insurance,
29 or an amendment thereto, for retired officers, retired employees, or
30 their families pursuant to subdivision two of this section, the public
31 corporation shall give written notice of such proposed contract, plan or
32 amendment, to the retired officers, retired employees, or their families
33 who are covered under such contract or plan. Where the contract, plan or
34 amendment is contracted for as part of negotiations between a public
35 corporation and a recognized and certified employee organization pursu-
36 ant to article fourteen of the civil service law, such written notice
37 shall be given at the time such health insurance contract is binding on
38 the covered retired officers, retired employees, or their families. Such
39 written notice shall contain either: (a) the full text of such proposed
40 contract, plan or amendment and any relevant financial information
41 including, but not limited to the cost of the proposed contract, plan or
42 amendment to the public corporation and the cost to the covered retired
43 officers, retired employees, or their families; or (b) the general terms
44 of the proposed contract, plan or amendment along with the physical
45 location and web address to a secure website where the covered retired
46 officers, retired employees or their family members can obtain the full
47 text of such proposed contract, plan or amendment and any relevant
48 financial information including, but not limited to the cost of the
49 proposed contract, plan or amendment to the public corporation and the
50 cost to the covered retired officers, retired employees, or their fami-
51 lies.
52 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to any
53 health insurance contract or plan entered into, renewed, modified, or
54 amended on or after such effective date.
