§ 370. Superannuation retirement. a. Any member may retire if such
member shall have attained at least the minimum retirement age while in
service as a member, or while in federal service, or in the service of
the United Nations or other international organizations of which the
United States is a member, as a member continued pursuant to paragraph
one of subdivision f of section three hundred forty of this article or
while entitled to make application for a vested retirement allowance
pursuant to section three hundred seventy-six of this title. Any such
member desiring to retire shall execute and file with the comptroller an
application for retirement, which shall specify the effective date of
such member's retirement, which shall be not less than fifteen nor more
than ninety days subsequent to such date of filing. An application for
service retirement, filed hereunder in accordance with the provisions of
subdivision c of section sixty-two or subdivision f of section
sixty-three of this chapter, shall be processed in the regular manner,
provided that if the application filed simultaneously therewith under
either of such subdivisions is granted, then and in that event the
retirement allowance granted in accordance with the provisions of this
section shall be appropriately adjusted. Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, for any member who is eligible to retire, who has died
while in active service, and who has filed an application for service
retirement less than ninety days prior to death, the member's designated
option election beneficiary or beneficiaries, if an option election has
been filed prior to death, or the beneficiary or beneficiaries
designated for the death benefit, if no option election was filed prior
to death, shall have the option to choose the benefit provided by
service retirement rather than the death benefit, provided, however that
if the designated beneficiary elects the service retirement benefit such
person shall be required to choose an option as provided by law. If the
member's beneficiary or beneficiaries elect the service retirement
benefit, the member shall be deemed to have retired on the day before
the member's date of death. If there are multiple option beneficiaries
and such beneficiaries cannot agree on the choice between the death
benefit or the service retirement under an agreed upon option, the
service retirement benefit shall be payable under the option election
form filed by the member prior to such member's death. If there are
multiple death beneficiaries and such beneficiaries cannot agree on the
choice between the death benefit or the service retirement under an
agreed upon option, the death benefit shall be payable.

b. Any member who attains age seventy shall be retired on the first
day of the calendar month next succeeding such event. Such retirement
shall be on the basis of "Option One-half", unless the member files an
effective election pursuant to section three hundred ninety of this
article to retire on a different basis. If he shall have filed such an
election, his retirement allowance shall be computed in accordance with
the basis so selected by him. The provisions of this subdivision with
respect to mandatory retirement shall be inapplicable to a member of
this system who is an employee of the port of New York authority who was
a member of the state employees' retirement system prior to April first,
nineteen hundred sixty-seven.

c. Notwithstanding the provision of subdivision b of this section, the
state civil service commission may approve the continuance in service of
members who have attained age seventy. Such approvals shall be for
periods not to exceed two years each. No such approval shall be given
unless:

1. The head of the department in which the member is employed shall
file a written statement with the comptroller approving such
continuance, and

2. The medical board shall certify that such member is physically fit
to perform the duties of his position, and

3. The state civil service commission shall find that:

(a) Such member is less than seventy-eight years of age, and

(b) His continuance in service would be advantageous because of his
expert knowledge and special qualifications.
The service of any such member may, however, be terminated at any time
by the head of the department in which he is employed, upon sixty days
written notice of such member.