S08465 Summary:

BILL NOS08465
 
SAME ASNo Same As
 
SPONSORSKOUFIS
 
COSPNSR
 
MLTSPNSR
 
Amd §§31 & 609, R & SS L
 
Relates to limiting participation by certain public or quasi-public organizations in the retirement system.
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S08465 Actions:

BILL NOS08465
 
02/01/2024REFERRED TO CIVIL SERVICE AND PENSIONS
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S08465 Committee Votes:

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S08465 Floor Votes:

There are no votes for this bill in this legislative session.
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S08465 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                          8465
 
                    IN SENATE
 
                                    February 1, 2024
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- 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
          participation  by  public or quasi-public organizations in the retire-
          ment system
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.  Subdivision  a of section 31 of the retirement and social
     2  security law, as amended by chapter 379 of the laws of 1989, is  amended
     3  to read as follows:
     4    a. Any public or quasi-public organization created wholly or partly or
     5  deriving  its powers by the legislature of the state and which organiza-
     6  tion employs persons engaged in service to the public or any state agen-
     7  cy as defined in section fifty-three-a of the state finance law, or  the
     8  New  York state association of town superintendents of highways, inc. or
     9  any school board association,  by  resolution  legally  adopted  by  its
    10  governing  body  and  approved by the comptroller, may elect to have its
    11  officers and employees become eligible to participate in the  retirement
    12  system.    Acceptance  of the officers and employees of such an employer
    13  for membership in the retirement system shall be optional with the comp-
    14  troller. If he shall approve  their  participation,  such  organization,
    15  except  as  specifically provided in this article to the contrary, shall
    16  thereafter be treated as a participating  employer.  Any  election  made
    17  pursuant  to  this  subdivision  by  a school board association shall be
    18  applicable to current employees of such  association.    Notwithstanding
    19  the  foregoing provisions, any officer or employee of the New York state
    20  association of town superintendents of  highways,  inc.,  the  New  York
    21  state school boards association, the New York state association of coun-
    22  ties,  the  association  of towns of the state of New York, the New York
    23  conference of mayors and other municipal officials, or any school  board
    24  association,  first employed on or after the effective date of the chap-
    25  ter of the laws of two thousand twenty-four which amended this  subdivi-
    26  sion, shall not be eligible to participate and/or receive service credit
    27  in the retirement system based on such employment.
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD13944-02-4

        S. 8465                             2
 
     1    §  2. Section 609 of the retirement and social security law is amended
     2  by adding a new subdivision i to read as follows:
     3     i.  Notwithstanding  any other provision of this section or any other
     4  law, rule or regulation, an officer or employee of the  New  York  state
     5  association  of  town  superintendents  of  highways, inc., the New York
     6  state school boards association, the New York state association of coun-
     7  ties, the association of towns of the state of New York,  the  New  York
     8  conference  of mayors and other municipal officials, or any school board
     9  association, shall not receive service credit for employment  with  such
    10  organization on or after the effective date of this subdivision.
    11    § 3. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
    12  sion,  section  or  part  of  this act shall be adjudged by any court of
    13  competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment  shall  not  affect,
    14  impair,  or  invalidate  the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in
    15  its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph,  subdivision,  section
    16  or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
    17  ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
    18  the  legislature  that  this  act  would  have been enacted even if such
    19  invalid provisions had not been included herein.
    20    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This bill would deny eligibility for membership in the New York  State
        and  Local  Employees'  Retirement  System  (NYSLERS)  to  persons first
        employed by the following organizations on or after the effective date:
          1. The New York State Association of Town Superintendents of Highways,
        Inc.,
          2. The New York State School Boards Association,
          3. The New York State Association of Counties,
          4. The Association of Towns of the State of New York,
          5. The New York Conference of Mayors and  Other  Municipal  Officials,
        and
          6. any school board association.
          Further,   this  legislation  would  disallow  future  service  credit
        accruals for employment rendered on and  after  the  effective  date  by
        current  members  of  the NYSLERS employed by such organizations. There-
        fore, if enacted into law, this bill is likely to face a  constitutional
        challenge  based  upon the guarantee that a member's benefits may not be
        diminished.
          If this bill is enacted into  law,  there  will  be  no  cost  to  the
        NYSLERS.
          Summary of relevant resources:
          Membership  data as of March 31, 2023 was used in measuring the impact
        of the proposed change, the same data used in the April 1, 2023 actuari-
        al valuation. Distributions and other statistics can  be  found  in  the
        2023  Report  of the Actuary and the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial
        Report.
          The actuarial assumptions and methods used are described in  the  2023
        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, 2023
        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.

        S. 8465                             3
 
          This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the  viability
        of  the  proposed change nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for
        the professional judgment of an attorney.
          This  estimate,  dated  January  25,  2024,  and intended for use only
        during the  2024  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No.  2024-76,
        prepared  by  the  Actuary  for  the New York State and Local Retirement
        System.
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