Relates to allowing certain school districts and BOCES to establish a retirement contribution reserve fund for the purposes of the NYS teachers' retirement system.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
5759
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 15, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. BUCHWALD, BENEDETTO -- (at request of the New
York State Teachers' Retirement System) -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Education
AN ACT to amend the general municipal law, in relation to allowing
certain school districts and boards of cooperative educational
services to establish a retirement contribution reserve fund for the
purposes of 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. Paragraphs b and c of subdivision 1 of section 6-r of the
2 general municipal law, as added by chapter 260 of the laws of 2004, are
3 amended to read as follows:
4 b. "Participating employer" means: (i) a participating employer as
5 defined in subdivision twenty of section two of the retirement and
6 social security law or in subdivision twenty of section three hundred
7 two of such law; or (ii) a participating employer as defined in subdivi-
8 sion three of section five hundred one of the education law.
9 c. "Retirement contribution" shall mean all or any portion of the
10 amount payable by a municipal corporation to:(i) either the New York
11 state and local employees' retirement system or the New York state and
12 local police and fire retirement system pursuant to section seventeen or
13 three hundred seventeen of the retirement and social security law; or
14 (ii) the New York state teachers' retirement system pursuant to section
15 five hundred twenty-one of the education law.
16 § 2. Subdivision 2 of section 6-r of the general municipal law, as
17 added by chapter 260 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
18 2. The governing board of any municipal corporation which is also a
19 participating employer by resolution may establish a retirement contrib-
20 ution reserve fund for the purpose of (a) financing retirement contrib-
21 utions, and/or (b) in the case of a municipal corporation which is a
22 participating employer as defined in subdivision three of section five
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07916-03-9
A. 5759 2
1 hundred one of the education law, financing appropriations authorized by
2 law in order to offset all or a portion of the amount deducted from the
3 moneys apportioned to the municipal corporation from the state for the
4 support of common schools pursuant to section five hundred twenty-one of
5 the education law.
6 § 3. Section 6-r of the general municipal law is amended by adding a
7 new subdivision 2-a to read as follows:
8 2-a. With respect to a municipal corporation which is a participating
9 employer as defined in subdivision three of section five hundred one of
10 the education law, which elects to utilize a retirement contribution
11 reserve fund (a) to finance retirement contributions to the New York
12 state teachers' retirement system pursuant to section five hundred twen-
13 ty-one of the education law and/or (b) to offset all or a portion of the
14 amount deducted from the moneys apportioned to the municipal corporation
15 from the state for the support of common schools pursuant to section
16 five hundred twenty-one of the education law, such municipal corporation
17 shall establish a sub-fund within the retirement contribution reserve
18 fund, which shall be separately administered consistent with the
19 provisions of this section. Such municipal corporation may pay into such
20 sub-fund during any particular fiscal year an amount not to exceed two
21 per centum of the total compensation or salaries of all teachers in the
22 employ of said municipal corporation who are members of the New York
23 state teachers' retirement system paid during the immediately preceding
24 fiscal year. The balance of such sub-fund may not exceed ten per centum
25 of the total compensation or salaries of all teachers in the employ of
26 the municipal corporation who are members of the New York state teach-
27 ers' retirement system paid during the immediately preceding fiscal
28 year. For the purposes of this subdivision, the term "teacher" shall
29 have the same meaning as such term is defined under subdivision four of
30 section five hundred one of the education law.
31 § 4. Subdivision 5 of section 6-r of the general municipal law, as
32 added by chapter 260 of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
33 5. The governing board of such municipal corporation by resolution may
34 authorize expenditures from a retirement contribution reserve fund.
35 Except as otherwise provided by law, moneys in a retirement contribution
36 reserve fund may only be expended (a) to finance retirement contrib-
37 utions, and/or (b) in the case of a municipal corporation which is a
38 participating employer, as defined in subdivision three of section five
39 hundred one of the education law, for appropriations authorized by law
40 in order to offset all or a portion of the amount deducted from the
41 moneys apportioned to the participating employer from the state for the
42 support of common schools pursuant to section five hundred twenty-one of
43 the education law. With respect to a municipal corporation which is a
44 participating employer as defined in subdivision three of section five
45 hundred one of the education law, expenditures from the retirement
46 contribution reserve fund to finance retirement contributions to the New
47 York State teachers' retirement system pursuant to section five hundred
48 twenty-one of the education law and/or to offset all or a portion of the
49 amount deducted from the moneys apportioned to the municipal corporation
50 from the state for the support of common schools pursuant to section
51 five hundred twenty-one of the education law may only be made from the
52 sub-fund established pursuant to subdivision two-a of this section.
53 § 5. Section 6-r of the general municipal law is amended by adding a
54 new subdivision 11 to read as follows:
55 11. The governing board of a municipal corporation which is a partic-
56 ipating employer as defined in subdivision three of section five hundred
A. 5759 3
1 one of the education law by resolution may (a) authorize the transfer of
2 all or a portion of the monies in the separately administered sub-fund
3 as established under subdivision two-a of this section to the retirement
4 contribution reserve fund, and/or (b) authorize the transfer of all or a
5 portion of the monies in the retirement contribution reserve fund to the
6 separately administered sub-fund as provided in subdivision two-a of
7 this section, subject to the limits on annual payments into the sub-fund
8 and the balance of the sub-fund specified by the subdivision two-a of
9 this section.
10 § 6. This act shall take effect immediately.
FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
This bill would amend Section 6-r of the General Municipal Law to
allow eligible participating employers of the New York State Teachers'
Retirement System (NYSTRS) to establish a reserve sub-fund within the
retirement contribution reserve fund for the purpose of reserving money
to offset future required contributions to NYSTRS. An employer may pay
into such sub-fund during any particular fiscal year an amount not to
exceed two percent of the total compensation or salaries of all teachers
employed by the employer who are members of NYSTRS paid during the imme-
diately preceding fiscal year. Additionally, the total balance in the
the sub-fund shall not exceed ten percent of the total compensation or
salaries of all teachers employed by the employer who are members of
NYSTRS paid during the immediately preceding fiscal year.
The governing board of the employer may by resolution authorize
expenditures from the retirement contribution reserve fund. The govern-
ing board of the employer may also by resolution authorize the transfer
of money between the separately administered sub-fund and the retirement
contribution reserve fund subject to the limits on annual payments into
the sub-fund and the balance of the sub-fund as provided in this bill.
It is estimated that there will be no annual cost to the employers of
members of the New York State Teachers' Retirement System if this bill
is enacted.
Member data is from the System's most recent actuarial valuation
files, consisting of data provided by the employers to the Retirement
System. Data distributions and statistics can be found in the System's
Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR). System assets are as
reported in the System's financial statements, and can also be found in
the CAFR. Actuarial assumptions and methods are provided in the System's
Actuarial Valuation Report.
The source of this estimate is Fiscal Note 2019-2 dated October 5,
2018 prepared by the Actuary of the New York State Teachers' Retirement
System and is intended for use only during the 2019 Legislative Session.
I, Richard A. Young, am the Actuary for the New York State Teachers'
Retirement System. I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries
and I meet the Qualification Standards of the American Academy of Actu-
aries to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.