Grants retroactive membership with Tier IV status in the New York state and local employees' retirement system to Christine Fernandez, formerly Christine Lennard, for her September 11, 1986 -- June 1989 employment with SUNY Buffalo.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9614
IN SENATE
March 30, 2026
___________
Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
AN ACT granting retroactive membership with Tier IV status in the New
York state and local employees' retirement system to Christine Fernan-
dez
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, Christine
2 Fernandez, formerly Christine Lennard, a member of the New York state
3 and local employees' retirement system, who was employed by the state
4 university of New York ("SUNY") at Buffalo from September 11, 1986
5 through June 1989, and who is currently employed by the New York state
6 thruway authority, who through no fault of her own was not given the
7 option to become a member of the New York state and local employees'
8 retirement system in 1986 when first employed by SUNY Buffalo, and did
9 not file a membership application in such system until April 2, 2020
10 when she began her employment with the New York State Police, which gave
11 her Tier VI status instead of Tier IV status, shall be deemed to have
12 been a member of the New York state and local employees' retirement
13 system on such date she commenced her employment with SUNY Buffalo in
14 September 11, 1986, and shall be granted Tier IV status, provided that
15 an application is filed with the head of the New York state and local
16 employees' retirement system within one year from the effective date of
17 this act. Upon the granting of such retroactive membership, Christine
18 Fernandez shall not be granted a refund of any employee contribution
19 made by her to the New York state and local employees' retirement
20 system.
21 § 2. All past service costs associated with the implementation of this
22 act shall be borne by the state of New York.
23 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
This bill would grant Tier 4 status in the New York State and Local
Employees' Retirement System (NYSLERS) to Christine Fernandez, a current
Tier 6 member employed by the New York state thruway authority, by
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09373-06-6
S. 9614 2
changing their date of membership to September 11, 1986, their date of
first employment with the state university of New York (SUNY) at
Buffalo.
There will be no refund of member contributions.
We estimate that annual contributions will increase $11,000 for the
New York state thruway authority beginning FYE 2027. Annual costs will
vary as the billing rates and salary of Christine Fernandez change.
In addition, there will be an immediate past service cost of $29,400,
borne by the state of New York as a one-time payment. This cost assumes
that payment will be made on March 1, 2027.
Summary of relevant resources:
Membership data as of March 31, 2025 was used to measure the impact of
the bill, the same data used in the Actuarial Valuations dated April 1,
2025. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2025 Report
of the Actuary and the 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report. The
actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2025 Annual
Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial Assumptions, and the Codes, Rules
and Regulations of the State of New York: Audit and Control. The fair
value of assets and GASB disclosures can be found in the 2025 Financial
Statements and Supplementary Information.
Assumptions, demographics, and other considerations may have been
modified to better reflect specific provisions of any proposed benefit
change(s).
This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the viability
of the bill, nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for the profes-
sional judgment of an attorney.
This estimate, dated March 27, 2026, and intended for use only during
the 2026 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note Number 2026-155. As Chief
Actuary of the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS), I,
Aaron Schottin Young, hereby certify that this analysis complies with
applicable Actuarial Standards of Practice as well as the Code of
Professional Conduct and Qualification Standards for Actuaries Issuing
Statements of Actuarial Opinion of the American Academy of Actuaries, of
which I am a member. I am a member of NYSLRS but do not believe it
impairs my objectivity.
