S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5719
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                              March 16, 2021
                                ___________
 
 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 granting Camille and Brian  Mulkeen,  the  parents  of  Detective
   Brian Mulkeen, special accidental death benefits
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of any  general  or  special
 law,  rule  or regulation to the contrary, Camille and Brian Mulkeen who
 were the parents of Detective Brian Mulkeen who was previously  employed
 by  the  New York City police department as a Detective and was a Tier 3
 member of the Police Pension Fund at the time of his death on  September
 29,  2019  shall  be  eligible  to file for any special accidental death
 benefits that would have been available to Brian Mulkeen or his widow or
 widower under section 208-f of the general municipal  law.  Any  amounts
 paid  under section 208-f of the general municipal law to Brian Mulkeen,
 his estate or Camille and Brian Mulkeen  prior  to  the  filing  of  the
 application for benefits pursuant to this act shall be deducted from the
 benefit payable thereafter.
   §  2. All costs pursuant to this act shall be borne by the city of New
 York.
   § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   SUMMARY OF BILL: This proposed legislation would provide  to  deceased
 Detective  Brian  Mulkeen's parents the Special Accidental Death Benefit
 (SADB) provided to surviving spouses pursuant to General  Municipal  Law
 (GML) section 208-f.
   Effective Date: Upon enactment.
   BACKGROUND:  Detective Mulkeen died as a Tier 3 Enhanced member of the
 New York City Police Pension Fund (POLICE) on September  29,  2019.  His
 surviving  parents,  Brian  and  Camille  Mulkeen, currently receive the
 annual accidental death retirement allowance equal to 50%  of  his  five
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD06349-02-1

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 year final average salary pursuant to Retirement and Social Security Law
 (RSSL) section 509.
   If  this  legislation  is passed, Detective Mulkeen's parents would be
 eligible for the SADB provided by under GML Section 208-f, entitling his
 parents to receive an annual benefit equal to 100% of his  final  year's
 compensation,  not  less  than  the next higher grade, retroactively and
 prospectively, less any accidental death benefit paid.
   Note that beginning in Fiscal Year 2018, the SADB, including 3% annual
 escalation, is included as a liability for  POLICE  notwithstanding  the
 State appropriation provision contained in GML section 208-f(e).
   FINANCIAL  IMPACT  - PRESENT VALUES: The estimated financial impact of
 this proposal has been calculated as the difference between the  present
 value of (1) and (2), where:
   (1)  is  Detective  Mulkeen's final year's compensation, not less than
 the next higher grade, his parents would receive (Gross Benefit) if  the
 proposed  legislation  were enacted (retroactive to the date of death on
 September 29, 2019), and
   (2) is the accidental death benefit currently being paid.
   Based on the actuarial assumptions and methods described  herein,  the
 enactment  of this proposed legislation would increase the Present Value
 of Future Benefits (PVFB) and the Unfunded Accrued  Liability  (UAL)  of
 POLICE  by approximately $2.3 million. This calculation does not reflect
 the offset for a Social Security death benefit, if any, payable to Brian
 and Camille Mulkeen.
   FINANCIAL IMPACT - ANNUAL EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS: In  accordance  with
 Section 13-638.2(k-2) of the Administrative Code of the City of New York
 (ACCNY),  new UAL attributable to benefit changes are to be amortized as
 determined by the Actuary, but are generally amortized over the  remain-
 ing working lifetime of those impacted by the benefit changes.
   For  the  purposes  of  this Fiscal Note, because Detective Mulkeen is
 deceased and has no remaining working lifetime, the entire  increase  in
 UAL would be recognized immediately.
   CONTRIBUTION  TIMING:  For  the  purposes  of  this Fiscal Note, it is
 assumed that the changes in the UAL and  annual  employer  contributions
 would  be  reflected  for  the first time in the June 30, 2021 actuarial
 valuation of POLICE. In accordance with  the  One-Year  Lag  Methodology
 (OYLM) used to determine employer contributions, the increase in employ-
 er contributions would be reflected in Fiscal Year 2023.
   CENSUS  DATA:  As  of June 30, 2021, Brian and Camille Mulkeen will be
 approximately age 65 and 66 respectively  and  will  receive  an  annual
 accidental  death  benefit.   Below is a summary of the benefits, calcu-
 lated as of the date of death, provided by POLICE:
   * Annual Accidental Death Benefit: $33,606
   * Annual SADB Benefit: $120,034
   * Annual Gross Benefit: $153,640
   ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The changes in the  PVFB  presented
 herein have been calculated based on the actuarial assumptions and meth-
 ods  in  effect  for the June 30, 2019 (Lag) actuarial valuation used to
 determine the Preliminary Fiscal Year  2021  employer  contributions  of
 POLICE.
   The Actuary is proposing a set of changes for use in the June 30, 2019
 (Lag)  actuarial valuations of POLICE to determine the Final Fiscal Year
 2021 Employer Contributions (2021 A&M). If the 2021 A&M is  enacted,  it
 is  estimated  that  it  would produce an 1% increase in PVFB that still
 rounds to the result shown above.

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   RISK AND UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal  Note  depend
 highly  on the realization of the actuarial assumptions used, as well as
 certain  demographic  characteristics  of  POLICE  and  other  exogenous
 factors  such  as  investment,  contribution, and other risks. If actual
 experience  deviates  from actuarial assumptions, the actual costs could
 differ from those presented herein. Costs  are  also  dependent  on  the
 actuarial  methods used, and therefore different actuarial methods could
 produce different results. Quantifying these risks is beyond  the  scope
 of this Fiscal Note.
   Not measured in this Fiscal Note are the following:
   *  The  initial,  additional  administrative  costs  to  implement the
 proposed legislation.
   * The impact of this  proposed  legislation  on  Other  Postemployment
 Benefit (OPEB) costs.
   STATEMENT  OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Sherry S. Chan, am the Chief Actu-
 ary for, and independent of, the New York City  Retirement  Systems  and
 Pension  Funds.  I  am a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, an Enrolled
 Actuary under the Employee Retirement Income and Security Act of 1974, a
 Member of the American Academy of Actuaries, and a Fellow of the Confer-
 ence of Consulting Actuaries. I meet the Qualification Standards of  the
 American  Academy of Actuaries to render the actuarial opinion contained
 herein. To the best of my knowledge, the results contained  herein  have
 been prepared in accordance with generally accepted actuarial principles
 and  procedures  and  with the Actuarial Standards of Practice issued by
 the Actuarial Standards Board.
   FISCAL NOTE IDENTIFICATION: This Fiscal Note 2021-10 dated  March  16,
 2021  was  prepared  by  the  Chief Actuary for the New York City Police
 Pension Fund. This estimate is intended for use  only  during  the  2021
 Legislative Session.