S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                 1200--A

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                             January 9, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by  Sens.  MARCHIONE, DeFRANCISCO, FUNKE, LARKIN, LATIMER --
  read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be  committed  to
  the  Committee  on Veterans, Homeland Security and Military Affairs --
  recommitted to the Committee on Veterans, Homeland Security and  Mili-
  tary  Affairs  in  accordance  with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee
  discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
  to said committee

AN ACT to amend the executive law,  in  relation  to  providing  for  an
  increase  in  the rates of annuities payable to veterans and surviving
  spouses of veterans

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Section 362 of the executive law, as amended by chapter 251
of the laws of 2004, is amended to read as follows:
  S 362. Creation  of annuity. 1. Payment to veterans. a. Any veteran as
defined in this article who has been or is hereafter classified  by  the
New York State commission for the visually handicapped as a blind person
as  defined in section three of chapter four hundred fifteen of the laws
of nineteen hundred thirteen, as amended, and continues to  be  a  blind
person  within  the  meaning of that section, shall, upon application to
the director of the division of veterans' affairs, be paid  out  of  the
treasury  of  the  state for such term as such veteran shall be entitled
thereto under the provisions of this article, the sum  of  one  thousand
FIVE HUNDRED dollars annually, plus any applicable annual adjustment, as
provided in this section.
  b.  The  entitlement  of  any  veteran  to  receive the annuity herein
provided shall terminate upon his or her ceasing to  continue  to  be  a
resident  of  and  domiciled  in  the state, but such entitlement may be
reinstated upon application to the director  of  veterans'  affairs,  if
such  veteran  shall thereafter resume his or her residence and domicile
in the state.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD02576-04-6
              

S. 1200--A                          2

  c. The effective date of an award of the annuity to a veteran shall be
the date of receipt of the  application  therefor  by  the  director  of
veterans'  affairs,  except  that  if  the  application is denied but is
granted at a later date upon an application  for  reconsideration  based
upon  new  evidence, the effective date of the award of the annuity to a
veteran shall be the date of receipt of the application for  reconsider-
ation by the director of veterans' affairs.
  2.  Payment  to widows and widowers of blind veterans. a. The unremar-
ried spouse of a veteran who heretofore  has  died  or  the  unremarried
spouse  of  a veteran dying hereafter, such veteran being at the time of
her or his death a recipient of, or eligible  for,  the  benefits  above
provided,  shall, upon application to the director of veterans' affairs,
also be paid out of the treasury of the state the sum  of  one  thousand
FIVE  HUNDRED  dollars  annually, plus any applicable annual adjustment,
for such term as such unremarried spouse shall be entitled thereto under
the provisions of this article.
  b. The entitlement of any widow or  widower  to  receive  the  annuity
herein  provided shall terminate upon her or his death or re-marriage or
upon her or his ceasing to continue to be a resident of and domiciled in
the state of New York, but  such  entitlement  may  be  reinstated  upon
application  to  the  director  of  veterans'  affairs, if such widow or
widower shall thereafter resume her or his residence and domicile in the
state.
  c. The effective date of an award of the annuity to a widow or widower
shall be the day after the date of death of the veteran if the  applica-
tion  therefor  is  received within one year from such date of death. If
the application is received after  the  expiration  of  the  first  year
following the date of the death of the veteran, the effective date of an
award  of the annuity to a widow or widower shall be the date of receipt
of the application by the director of veterans' affairs. If an  applica-
tion  is  denied  but is granted at a later date upon an application for
reconsideration based upon new evidence, the effective date of the award
of the annuity to a widow or widower shall be the date of receipt of the
application for reconsideration by the director of veterans' affairs.
  3. Annual adjustment. Commencing [in the year two  thousand  five]  ON
DECEMBER  FIRST, TWO THOUSAND SIXTEEN, and for each year thereafter, the
amount of any annuity payable under  this  section  shall  be  the  same
amount  as  the annuity payable in the preceding year [plus a percentage
adjustment equal to the annual percentage increase, if any, for  compen-
sation and pension benefits administered by the United States Department
of Veterans' Affairs in the previous year], INCREASED BY A PERCENTAGE TO
BE  DETERMINED  IN ACCORDANCE WITH A FORMULA ESTABLISHED BY THE DIVISION
OF VETERANS' AFFAIRS. THE FORMULA SHALL TAKE INTO  ACCOUNT  ALL  FACTORS
THE  DIVISION  OF  VETERANS' AFFAIRS DEEMS NECESSARY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT
LIMITED TO FACTORS SUCH AS THE PERCENTAGE BY WHICH BENEFIT AMOUNTS PAYA-
BLE UNDER TITLE II OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY ACT (42 USC 401 ET  SEQ.)  ARE
INCREASED  EFFECTIVE DECEMBER FIRST, TWO THOUSAND SIXTEEN. Such percent-
age increase shall be rounded up to the next highest  one-tenth  of  one
percent  and  shall  not  be  less  than  one percent nor more than four
percent. Commencing [in the year two thousand five] ON  DECEMBER  FIRST,
TWO  THOUSAND SIXTEEN, the director of veterans' affairs, not later than
February first of each year, shall publish by any reasonable  means  the
amount of the annuity as adjusted payable under this section.
  S 2. This act shall take effect immediately.