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S07078 Summary:

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S07078 Floor Votes:

S07078 Text:

 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          7078
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                     March 10, 2010
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sen.  SAVINO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions
 
        AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
          transfer  of  retirement  membership  for employees of SUNY within the
          professional, scientific and technical bargaining unit
 

          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 618 to read as follows:
     3    § 618. Transfer of membership into New York state and local employees'
     4  retirement system. a. Definitions. Whenever used in this section:
     5    1.  The  term  "eligible  employee"  shall mean a person who as of the
     6  effective date of this section is an employee of the state university of
     7  New York in a position within the professional, scientific and technical
     8  bargaining unit and who is as of said effective date  a  member  of  the
     9  optional  retirement  program  and  who  first became an employee of the

    10  state university of New York on a date between January  first,  nineteen
    11  hundred  ninety-four  and December thirty-first, two thousand and who is
    12  still employed by the state university of New York as of the  date  said
    13  employee files an application pursuant to subdivision b of this section;
    14    2.  The  term  "optional  retirement  program" shall mean the optional
    15  retirement program established pursuant to article eight-B of the educa-
    16  tion law.
    17    b. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,  an  eligible  employee
    18  shall  be  allowed  to  become  a member of the New York state and local
    19  employees' retirement system by filing an application with said  retire-
    20  ment system no later than December thirty-first, two thousand eleven.

    21    c. An eligible employee who files an application to become a member of
    22  the  New  York  state  and  local  employees' retirement system shall be
    23  deemed to be a member of that retirement system with a date  of  member-
    24  ship  as  of  the  date said eligible employee was first employed by the
    25  state university of New York. The eligible employee's membership in  the
    26  optional retirement program shall terminate as of the date said applica-
    27  tion is filed.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD16067-01-0
        S. 7078                             2
 

     1    d. An eligible employee who becomes a member of the New York state and
     2  local  employees'  retirement  system  pursuant to subdivision b of this
     3  section shall begin accruing service credit in said retirement system as
     4  of the date such application is filed, but said eligible employee  shall
     5  not be entitled to any previous service credit for any period of employ-
     6  ment  during  which  said eligible employee was a member of the optional
     7  retirement program, except as provided  in  this  section.  An  eligible
     8  employee who becomes a member of the New York state and local employees'
     9  retirement system pursuant to subdivision b of this section may elect to
    10  purchase  credit  for  previous service for any period during which said

    11  employee was a member of the optional retirement program  by  filing  an
    12  application  with  the  New  York  state  and local employees retirement
    13  system no later than December thirty-first, two thousand eleven  and  by
    14  paying  to  said  retirement system an amount as determined by the comp-
    15  troller  equal  to  the  full  cost  of  such  previous  service  credit
    16  purchased.  Said  payment  may  be  made by a transfer of funds from the
    17  employee's optional retirement program account to the New York state and
    18  local employees' retirement system. Said payment may also be made in one
    19  payment by the employee or by payroll deduction over  a  period  not  to
    20  exceed five years.
    21    § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.

          FISCAL NOTE: Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This  bill  will  allow  employees of the State University of New York
        (SUNY) in a position within the Professional, Scientific  and  Technical
        bargaining  unit, who first became employed with SUNY between January 1,
        1994 and December 31, 2000, and who enrolled in the Optional  Retirement
        Program to terminate their membership in the Optional Retirement Program
        and  to  apply to become members of the New York State and Local Employ-
        ees' Retirement  System  (NYSLERS)  as  of  such  date  of  application.
        Affected members will have to pay the entire past service cost as deter-
        mined  by  by  Comptroller in order to get retirement service credit for
        the service rendered before their dates of membership.
          If this bill is enacted, the number of employees who may  be  affected

        by this legislation cannot be readily determined. For every employee who
        does  so elect, there will be an annual cost to the State of New York of
        approximately 9.2% of salary for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2011.
          In addition to the annual cost above, for every member who elects this
        benefit, there will be a past service cost that will depend on the  age,
        service  and  salary  of  the member. The members will be able to offset
        this cost by the  transfer  of  funds  from  their  Optional  Retirement
        Program  balances.  For  an individual member, if the amount transferred
        from the Optional Retirement Program is less than the past service cost,
        the member will have to make up the  difference  either  as  a  one-time
        payment  or  by  making  a  series of payments over a period of five (5)
        years.
          This estimate, dated January 6, 2010 and intended for use only  during

        the 2010 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note No. 2010-9, prepared by the
        Actuary for the New York State and Local  Employees' Retirement System.