S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  6342--A
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                               April 5, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Governmental Employees -- recommitted to the Committee on
   Governmental Employees in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec.  2  --
   committee  discharged,  bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
   recommitted to said committee

 AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
   the disability retirement for safety and security officers
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 607-a of the retirement and social security law, as
 added by chapter 722 of the laws of 1996, subdivision b  as  amended  by
 chapter  322  of the laws of 2021, and subdivision c as added by chapter
 653 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
   § 607-a. Performance of duty disability retirement.  a.  Any  security
 hospital  treatment  assistant, as that term is defined in subdivision i
 of section eighty-nine of this chapter, OR  ANY  QUALIFYING  MEMBER,  AS
 SUCH TERM IS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH ONE OF SUBDIVISION A OF SECTION EIGHT-
 Y-NINE-T OF THIS CHAPTER, AS AMENDED BY CHAPTER FOUR HUNDRED SEVENTY-SIX
 OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND EIGHTEEN, who becomes physically or mentally
 incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural and proximate
 result,  of  an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge of his
 or her duties by, or as the natural and proximate result of, an  act  of
 any  person  confined  in  an  institution under the jurisdiction of the
 office of mental health, or by any person who has been committed to such
 institution by any court shall be paid a performance of duty  disability
 retirement  allowance  equal to that which is provided in section sixty-
 three of this chapter, subject to the provisions of  section  sixty-four
 of this chapter.
   b.  Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or of any general or
 special law to the contrary,  a  member  covered  by  this  section  who
 contracts  HIV  (where there may have been an exposure to a bodily fluid
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08429-03-4
              

 A. 6342--A                          2
 
 of an incarcerated individual or a person described in subdivision a  of
 this  section  as a natural and proximate result of an act of any incar-
 cerated individual or person described in such subdivision  a  that  may
 have  involved transmission of a specified transmissible disease from an
 incarcerated individual or such person described in such  subdivision  a
 to  the  retirement  system  member),  tuberculosis or hepatitis will be
 presumed to have contracted such disease in the performance or discharge
 of his or her duties, and will be  presumed  to  be  disabled  from  the
 performance  of  his  or  her  duties,  unless the contrary be proved by
 competent evidence.
   c. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or of any general  or
 special  law  to  the  contrary,  any  condition of impairment of health
 caused by diseases of the heart, resulting in disability or death  to  a
 member  covered  by  this section, presently employed and who shall have
 sustained such disability while so employed, who successfully  passed  a
 physical examination on entry into service as a security hospital treat-
 ment  assistant  OR  A  QUALIFYING  MEMBER AS SET FORTH IN THIS SECTION,
 which examination failed to disclose evidence of any  disease  or  other
 impairment  of  the  heart,  shall  be  presumptive evidence that it was
 incurred in the performance and discharge of duty, unless  the  contrary
 be proved by competent evidence.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   This  bill would allow members of the New York State and Local Employ-
 ees' Retirement System employed as safety officers to be eligible for  a
 performance  of duty (POD) disability benefit if they become disabled as
 a result of an injury inflicted by any person confined in an institution
 under the jurisdiction of the New York State Office  of  Mental  Health.
 The  benefit  will  be 75 percent of final average salary, less workers'
 compensation.  Currently, these affected members do not have a POD disa-
 bility benefit.
   If this bill is enacted during the 2024 Legislative Session, we antic-
 ipate that there will be an increase of approximately $1.10  million  in
 the  annual  contributions  of the State of New York for the fiscal year
 ending March 31, 2025. In future  years  this  cost  will  vary  but  is
 expected to average 1.7% of salary annually.
   In addition to the annual contributions discussed above, there will be
 an immediate past service cost of approximately $5.78 million which will
 be  borne  by the State of New York as a one-time payment. This estimate
 assumes that payment will be made on March 1, 2025.
   These estimated costs are based on 611 affected  members  employed  by
 the  State  of New York, with annual salary of approximately $54 million
 as of March 31, 2023.
   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.
 A. 6342--A                          3
 
   I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali-
 fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
   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  22,  2024,  and intended for use only
 during the  2024  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No.  2024-39,
 prepared  by  the  Actuary  for  the New York State and Local Retirement
 System.