§ 607-c. Performance of duty disability benefit. a. Any sheriff,
deputy sheriff, undersheriff or correction officer as defined in
subdivision a of section sixty-three-b of this chapter, and who are
employed in a county which makes an election pursuant to subdivision d
of such section sixty-three-b, 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 any act of any
incarcerated individual or any person confined in an institution under
the jurisdiction of such county, 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
of an incarcerated individual or a person defined in subdivision a of
this section as a natural and proximate result of an act of any
incarcerated individual or person described in such subdivision a that
may have involved transmission of a specified transmissible disease from
an incarcerated individual or 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. 1. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter or of any
general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if any condition or impairment of health is
caused by a qualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in
section two of this chapter, it shall be presumptive evidence that it
was incurred in the performance and discharge of duty and the natural
and proximate result of an accident not caused by such member's own
willful negligence, unless the contrary be proved by competent evidence.

(b) The head of each retirement system is hereby authorized to
promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this
paragraph.

2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter or of any
general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a member who participated in World Trade
Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations, as defined in section two
of this chapter, and subsequently retired on a service retirement, an
ordinary disability retirement or a performance of duty disability
retirement and subsequent to such retirement is determined by the head
of the retirement system to have a qualifying World Trade Center
condition, as defined in section two of this chapter, upon such
determination by the head of the retirement system it shall be presumed
that such disability was incurred in the performance and discharge of
duty as the natural and proximate result of an accident not caused by
such member's own willful negligence, and that the member would have
been physically or mentally incapacitated for the performance and
discharge of duty of the position from which he or she retired had the
condition been known and fully developed at the time of the member's
retirement, unless the contrary is proven by competent evidence.

(b) The head of the retirement system shall consider a
reclassification of the member's retirement as an accidental disability
retirement effective as of the date of such reclassification.

(c) Such member's retirement option shall not be changed as a result
of such reclassification.

(d) The member's former employer at the time of the member's
retirement shall have an opportunity to be heard on the member's
application for reclassification by the head of the retirement system
according to procedures developed by the comptroller.

(e) The head of each retirement system is hereby authorized to
promulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this
paragraph.

d. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any
general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a retiree who: (1) has met the criteria
of subdivision c of this section and retired on a service or disability
retirement, or would have met the criteria if not already retired on an
accidental disability; and (2) has not been retired for more than
twenty-five years; and (3) dies from a qualifying World Trade Center
condition, as defined in section two of this chapter, as determined by
the applicable head of the retirement system or applicable medical
board, then unless the contrary be proven by competent evidence, such
retiree shall be deemed to have died as a natural and proximate result
of an accident sustained in the performance of duty and not as a result
of willful negligence on his or her part. Such retiree's eligible
beneficiary, as set forth in section six hundred one of this article,
shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit as provided by section
six hundred seven of this article, however, for the purposes of
determining the salary base upon which the accidental death benefit is
calculated, the retiree shall be deemed to have died on the date of his
or her retirement. Upon the retiree's death, the eligible beneficiary
shall make a written application to the head of the retirement system
within the time for filing an application for an accidental death
benefit as set forth in section six hundred seven of this article
requesting conversion of such retiree's service or disability retirement
benefit to an accidental death benefit. At the time of such conversion,
the eligible beneficiary shall relinquish all rights to the prospective
benefits payable under the service or disability retirement benefit,
including any post-retirement death benefits, since the retiree's death.
If the eligible beneficiary is not the only beneficiary receiving or
entitled to receive a benefit under the service or disability retirement
benefit (including, but not limited to, post-retirement death benefits
or benefits paid or payable pursuant to the retiree's option selection),
the accidental death benefit payments to the eligible beneficiary will
be reduced by any amounts paid or payable to any other beneficiary.

e. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any
general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a member who: (1) has met the criteria of
subdivision c of this section; and (2) dies in active service from a
qualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in section two of
this chapter, as determined by the applicable head of the retirement
system or applicable medical board, then unless the contrary be proven
by competent evidence, such member shall be deemed to have died as a
natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the performance
of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his or her part.
Such member's eligible beneficiary, as set forth in section six hundred
one of this article, shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit
provided he or she makes written application to the head of the
retirement system within the time for filing an application for an
accidental death benefit as set forth in section six hundred seven of
this article.

f. Any sheriff, deputy sheriff, undersheriff, or correction officer as
defined in subdivision a of section sixty-three-b of this chapter, and
who are employed in Westchester county, 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
intentional or reckless act of any civilian visiting, or otherwise
present at, an institution under the jurisdiction of such county, 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.

g. Any sheriff, deputy sheriff, undersheriff, or correction officer as
defined in subdivision a of section sixty-three-b of this chapter, and
who is employed in Nassau county, 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 intentional
or reckless act of any civilian visiting, or otherwise present at, an
institution under the jurisdiction of such county where such injury was
sustained and documented after the enactment of this section, 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. Notwithstanding any
other provision of law to the contrary, none of the provisions of this
subdivision shall be subject to section twenty-five of this chapter.