S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   6538
 
                        2023-2024 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              April 13, 2023
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  M.  of A. PHEFFER AMATO -- read once and referred to the
   Committee on Governmental Employees
 
 AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in relation to a
   child care leave credit for New York city uniformed  correction  offi-
   cers    who   are   members   of   the   New   York   city   uniformed
   correction/sanitation revised plan
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision h of section 513 of the retirement and social
 security law, as amended by chapter 18 of the laws of 2012,  is  amended
 to read as follows:
   h.  Notwithstanding  any  other provision of this section, any general
 member in the uniformed correction force of the New York city department
 of correction AND ANY MEMBER OF THE UNIFORMED FORCE OF THE NEW YORK CITY
 DEPARTMENT  OF  CORRECTION  WHO   IS   A   NEW   YORK   CITY   UNIFORMED
 CORRECTION/SANITATION REVISED PLAN MEMBER, who is absent without pay for
 a  child  care  leave of absence pursuant to regulations of the New York
 city department of correction shall be  eligible  for  credit  for  such
 period  of  child care leave provided such member files a claim for such
 service credit with the retirement system by December thirty-first,  two
 thousand five or within ninety days of the termination of the child care
 leave,  whichever  is later, and contributes to the retirement system an
 amount which such member would have contributed  during  the  period  of
 such  child  care  leave, together with interest thereon. Service credit
 provided pursuant to this subdivision shall not exceed one year of cred-
 it for each period of authorized child care leave. In the event there is
 a conflict between the provisions of this subdivision and the provisions
 of any other law or code to the contrary, the provisions of this  subdi-
 vision  shall  govern[,  provided,  however, that the provisions of this
 subdivision shall not apply to a member of the uniformed  force  of  the

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD08413-02-3
 A. 6538                             2
              

 New  York city department of correction who is a New York city uniformed
 correction/sanitation revised plan member].
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
   FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
   SUMMARY  OF BILL: This proposed legislation would amend Section 513 of
 the Retirement and Social  Security  Law  (RSSL)  to  permit  Correction
 members  in  the  Tier  3 Revised or Enhanced plans of the New York City
 Employees' Retirement System (NYCERS) to apply for and  purchase  up  to
 one  year  of  service credit for each period of authorized unpaid child
 care leave.
   Effective Date: Upon enactment.
   BACKGROUND: Currently, provisions  permitting  Correction  members  to
 purchase  service  credit  for the time spent while on authorized unpaid
 child care leave do not apply  to  Correction  members  in  the  Tier  3
 Revised or Enhanced plans of NYCERS.
   Under  the proposed legislation, if enacted, Correction members in the
 Tier 3 Revised or Enhanced plans of NYCERS who  take  authorized  unpaid
 child  care leave would be eligible to apply for the purchase of service
 credit for the period of leave within 90 days of the termination of such
 leave. To purchase such leave, members must  contribute  to  NYCERS  the
 amount  which  would  have  been  contributed  during  the leave period,
 including interest. The maximum service credit that can be purchased for
 each period of authorized child care leave is one year.
   FINANCIAL IMPACT - PRESENT VALUES: Based on the anticipated number  of
 members  purchasing  service  and  the  assumed  amount  of service they
 purchase each year, as well as the  actuarial  assumptions  and  methods
 described  herein,  the  enactment  of  this  proposed legislation would
 result in an increase in the present value of future  employer  contrib-
 utions of approximately $92,500 each year.
   This  net  increase is a result of an increase in the Present Value of
 Future Benefits  (PVFB)  of  approximately  $98,200  each  year  and  an
 increase  in  the present value of member contributions of approximately
 $5,700 which includes the member cost of the buyback.
   FINANCIAL IMPACT - ANNUAL EMPLOYER CONTRIBUTIONS:  Enactment  of  this
 proposed  legislation  would increase employer contributions, where such
 amount would depend on the number of years of eligible child care  leave
 service  credited  as  well  as other characteristics including the age,
 years of service, and  salary  history  of  the  member  purchasing  the
 service.
   Based  on  the actuarial assumptions and methods described herein, the
 enactment of this proposed legislation is estimated to  increase  annual
 employer contributions by approximately $10,900 each year.
   Since  employer  contributions  to  NYCERS generally do not anticipate
 future purchases of service by members, the financial  impact  would  be
 recognized  at  the  time  of event.   Consequently, changes in employer
 contributions have been estimated assuming  that  the  increase  in  the
 present  value of future employer contributions will be amortized over a
 closed 15-year period (14 payments under the One-Year  Lag  Methodology)
 using level dollar payments.
   With  respect to the timing, increases in employer contributions would
 depend upon when members apply for and purchase the service.  Generally,
 increased employer contributions will first occur the second fiscal year
 following processing and payment of the buyback application.
   CENSUS  DATA:  The  estimates presented herein are based on the census
 data used in the June 30, 2022 actuarial valuation of NYCERS  to  deter-
 mine the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2024 employer contributions.
 A. 6538                             3
 
   There  are  currently  3,045  Correction  members in Tier 3 Revised or
 Enhanced plans who could immediately benefit from  the  proposed  legis-
 lation. To better reflect the future impact of the proposed legislation,
 it  was  assumed  that  the population of the Correction workforce would
 eventually  consist  entirely  of  Tier 3 Enhanced members with the same
 characteristics as the current  population  of  Correction  members  who
 would  benefit from the proposed legislation.  There are currently 6,514
 (out of 6,711) Correction members who have less than 25 years of service
 and therefore could potentially benefit from the  proposed  legislation,
 with  an  average age of approximately 41.8 years, an average service of
 approximately  11.1  years,  and  an  average  salary  of  approximately
 $120,000.
   ACTUARIAL ASSUMPTIONS AND METHODS: The estimates presented herein have
 been  calculated based on the actuarial assumptions and methods used for
 the Preliminary Fiscal Year 2024 employer contributions of NYCERS.
   Supplemental data for child care leave service purchased by Correction
 Tiers 1, 2, and original Tier 3 members was provided by NYCERS. Based on
 this data, an average frequency of four purchases per year  was  assumed
 and  an  average of nine months of credited service was assumed for each
 purchase.
   RISK AND UNCERTAINTY: The costs presented in this Fiscal  Note  depend
 highly  on the realization of the actuarial assumptions used, demograph-
 ics of the impacted population and other  factors  such  as  investment,
 contribution,  and other risks. If actual experience deviates from actu-
 arial 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 costs.
   STATEMENT OF ACTUARIAL OPINION: I, Marek  Tyszkiewicz,  am  the  Chief
 Actuary  for,  and  independent of, the New York City Retirement Systems
 and Pension Funds. I am an Associate of the Society of Actuaries  and  a
 Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. I am a member of NYCERS but
 do  not  believe  it impairs my objectivity and 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 2023-26 dated  April  11,
 2023  was prepared by the Chief Actuary for the New York City Employees'
 Retirement System.  This estimate is intended for use  only  during  the
 2023 Legislative Session.