STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9100
IN SENATE
February 3, 2026
___________
Introduced by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
AN ACT in relation to authorizing Tina Russo to receive certain service
credit with the New York state teachers' retirement system
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, Tina
2 Russo, a member of the New York state teachers' retirement system, who
3 retired on February 1, 2025, after serving as a teacher for the state of
4 New York for thirty years and whose full-time service credit was calcu-
5 lated incorrectly, through no fault of her own, shall have her pension
6 with the New York state teachers' retirement system recalculated to
7 include the entirety of her full-time service credit of thirty years
8 pursuant to article fifteen of the retirement and social security law,
9 on or before one year after the effective date of this act, if she shall
10 file a written request to that effect with the New York state teachers'
11 retirement system. The increase in pension benefit shall be payable
12 retroactive to her date of retirement.
13 § 2. All costs associated with the implementation of this act shall be
14 borne by the employers of the members of the New York state teachers'
15 retirement system.
16 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
Bill Description:
This fiscal note is prepared for legislative bill draft #14501-03-6.
This bill would allow Tina Russo, a retired Tier 4 member of the New
York State Teachers' Retirement System, to recalculate her pension based
on thirty years of service credit. Ms. Russo rendered and is credited
with 29 years and 7 months of service. This bill would provide Ms. Russo
with additional service credit to get her to 30 years with recalculated
adjustments to payments made retroactive to her date of retirement of
February 1, 2025. Ms. Russo must file a written request with the head
of the New York State Teachers' Retirement System within one year of the
effective date of this bill.
Cost:
The cost of this benefit is estimated to be $286,000 which is equal to
the increase in the present value of liabilities. This cost is to be
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14501-04-6
S. 9100 2
borne by the participating employers of the New York State Teachers'
Retirement System.
This bill is inconsistent with NYSTRS policy of granting service cred-
it only for actual services rendered and number of eligible paid work or
leave days reported to the System by NYSTRS participating employers.
Data:
Member data as of June 30, 2025, prepared for the most recent actuari-
al valuation was used in determining this cost. The most recent data
distributions and statistics can be found in the System's Annual Report
for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2025. System assets are as reported
in the System's financial statements which can be found in the System's
Annual Report. This data will also be provided in the System's Actuarial
Valuation Report as of June 30, 2025.
Methods and Assumptions:
A summary of actuarial assumptions and methods will be provided in the
System's Actuarial Valuation Report as of June 30, 2025. Further details
can be found in the most recent Recommended Actuarial Assumptions 2025
Report.
Actuarial Certification:
We, the undersigned actuaries for the New York State Teachers' Retire-
ment System, certify the following:
1. The actuarial assumptions, methods, and data used are reasonable
for the purposes of this fiscal note, internally consistent and are in
accordance with standards of practice prescribed by the Actuarial Stand-
ards Board and generally accepted actuarial principles and procedures.
2. We relied on member data supplied by the participating employers of
the New York State Teachers' Retirement System and assets as supplied in
the annual Financial Statements by NYSTRS' Finance Department.
3. Results were prepared based on our current understanding of the
proposal as of the date of this fiscal note. If the language or our
understanding of the proposal changes, the results could change and
require the issuance of a new fiscal note. The next annual update of
the actuarial valuation could also produce different results. Results
should not be relied upon for any other purpose.
4. This fiscal note was prepared in accordance with New York State
Retirement and Social Security Law, New York State Education Law, appli-
cable Internal Revenue Code, and accepted actuarial standards of prac-
tice as of the date of this fiscal note. This fiscal note does not
constitute a legal opinion on the viability of this legislative
proposal.
5. We are members of the American Academy of Actuaries and the Society
of Actuaries, and we meet the Qualification Standards of the American
Academy of Actuaries to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
We are currently compliant with the Continuing Professional Development
Requirement of the Society of Actuaries.
Melody Prangley Heather Marks Thomas M. King
Chief Actuary Director - Actuarial Director - Actuarial
Valuation Risk
Fiscal Note Identification:
This Fiscal Note, 2026-12, dated January 29, 2026, was prepared by the
Office of the Actuary of the New York State Teachers' Retirement System
and is intended for use only during the 2026 Legislative Session.
