Provides beneficiaries with the same allocation of retirement benefits if the member has the service retirement application, disability retirement applications or option election forms postmarked prior to his or her death.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6045B
SPONSOR: Abbate TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
providing beneficiaries with the same allocation of retirement benefits
if the member has the service retirement application, disability retire-
ment applications or option election forms postmarked prior to his or
her death
PURPOSE:
The purpose of the bill is direct the Retirement System to process
retirement applications with the same allocation of such benefits for
members of the system that filed their retirement paperwork, as if they
did not die during the 30 day processing time for the retirement system.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of this bill amends the Retirement and Social Security Law
by adding a new section 74-a authorizing a retirement system to promul-
gate a regulation creating a timely mailing rule. Such a rule would
provide that whenever a document needs to be filed or moneys need to be
paid in order for a member to be eligible for service credit or another
benefit from the retirement system, the document shall deemed to be
filed or the moneys shall be deemed to be paid on the date clearly
marked by the United States Postal Service postmark, provided that the
document or moneys were actually received by the retirement system.
Section two of this bill amends the Retirement and Social Security Law
by adding a new section 374-a that states if a member dies prior to the
Comptroller's receipt or the Retirement System's receipt of the applica-
tion for service retirement, disability retirement or a retirement
option election form and the application or form was mailed to the Comp-
troller or Retirement System by United States postal service first class
mail prior to the date of death, the application or form shall be deemed
filed on the date of mailing based on the legible postmark on the envel-
ope. The Comptroller would have the sole authority to determine whether
a postmark is legible, however, it cannot be deemed filed on the date of
mailing unless actually received by the retirement system as a result of
such mailing.
Section three of this bill provides that notwithstanding any provision
of law to the contrary, the appropriation provisions of Retirement and
Social Security Law section 25 shall not apply to this act.
Section four of this bill provides that this act shall take effect imme-
diately.
JUSTIFICATION:
Currently if a member files their retirement papers and subsequently
dies prior to the system processing the member's papers, the member is
afforded the in-service death benefit. This bill would allow the retire-
ment system to process a members paperwork, as if that member were still
alive, so that the initial retirement payment selection that that member
elects is payable to their beneficiary.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2014: S.4979-C - Passed the Assembly
2013: S.4979 - Referred to Civil Service and Pensions
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
See the Fiscal Note
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6045--B
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
March 11, 2015
___________
Introduced by M. of A. ABBATE, LAVINE, KAMINSKY, SKOUFIS, COLTON, McDO-
NOUGH -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental
Employees -- reported and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
-- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended
and recommitted to said committee -- again reported from said commit-
tee with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to
said committee
AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to
providing beneficiaries with the same allocation of retirement bene-
fits if the member has the service retirement application, disability
retirement applications or option election forms postmarked prior to
his or her death
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding
2 a new section 74-a to read as follows:
3 § 74-a. Applications and elections; issues due to death. Notwith-
4 standing any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, in the event
5 a member dies prior to receipt by the comptroller or the retirement
6 system of his or her application for service retirement, disability
7 retirement or a retirement option election form and such application or
8 form was mailed to the comptroller or retirement system by United States
9 postal service first class mail prior to date of death, the application
10 or form shall be deemed filed on the date of mailing, based upon the
11 legible postmark on the envelope. The comptroller shall have the sole
12 authority to determine whether a postmark is legible for the purpose of
13 this section. Provided, however, no such retirement application or
14 option election form shall be deemed filed with the retirement system on
15 the date of mailing unless actually received by the retirement system as
16 a result of such mailing.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00922-07-5
A. 6045--B 2
1 § 2. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding a new
2 section 374-a to read as follows:
3 § 374-a. Applications and elections; issues due to death. Notwith-
4 standing any other law, rule or regulation to the contrary, in the event
5 a member dies prior to receipt by the comptroller or the retirement
6 system of his or her application for service retirement, disability
7 retirement or a retirement option election form and such application or
8 form was mailed to the comptroller or retirement system by United States
9 postal service first class mail prior to date of death, the application
10 or form shall be deemed filed on the date of mailing, based upon the
11 legible postmark on the envelope. The comptroller shall have the sole
12 authority to determine whether a postmark is legible for the purpose of
13 this section. Provided, however, no such retirement application or
14 option election form shall be deemed filed with the retirement system on
15 the date of mailing unless actually received by the retirement system as
16 a result of such mailing.
17 § 3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, none
18 of the provisions of this act shall be subject to the appropriation
19 requirement of section 25 of the retirement and social security law.
20 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
FISCAL NOTE.-- Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
This bill would amend certain filing requirements of the New York
State and Local Employees' Retirement System (ERS) and the New York
State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System (PFRS) by setting the
date of filing as the date of postmark in the event a member dies prior
to receipt by the retirement system of an application for service
retirement, disability retirement or a retirement election form and such
application or form was mailed to the retirement system prior to the
date of death.
If this bill is enacted, we anticipate that there would be one or two
members per year who would receive additional benefits due to being
granted an ordinary disability benefit rather than an ordinary death
benefit. The average cost impact for each such case is estimated to be
less than $100,000.
ERS and PFRS costs would be shared by the State of New York and all
participating employers in the ERS and the PFRS.
Summary of relevant resources:
The membership data used in measuring the impact of the proposed
change was the same as that used in the March 31, 2014 actuarial valu-
ation. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2014
Report of the Actuary and the 2014 Comprehensive Annual Financial
Report.
The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in the 2010,
2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 Annual Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial
Assumptions, and the Codes Rules and Regulations of the State of New
York: Audit and Control.
The Market Assets and GASB Disclosures are found in the March 31, 2014
New York State and Local Retirement System Financial Statements and
Supplementary Information.
I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali-
fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
This estimate, dated May 28, 2015, and intended for use only during
the 2015 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2015-126, prepared by
the Actuary for the New York State and Local Employees' Retirement
System and the New York State and Local Police and Fire Retirement
System.
