§ 219 — Requirements and benefits under a defined benefit plan service award program

§ 219. Requirements and benefits under a defined benefit plan service\naward program. (a) An active volunteer firefighter's service award\nprogram that is a defined benefit plan shall be subject to minimum and\nmaximum retirement benefit requirements as set forth in subdivision (b)\nof this section. In determining whether such minimum and maximum benefit\nrequirements have been satisfied, all benefits provided under all\nservice award programs instituted by a sponsor shall be considered as\none program.\n (b) The minimum and maximum retirement benefit requirements for a\nservice award program that is a defined benefit plan shall be defined as\nfollows. Each participating active volunteer firefighter shall be\nentitled to a minimum service award benefit of five dollars per month\nfor each year of firefighting service completed after satisfying the\nprogram's eligibility requirement and after establishment of the\nprogram. The maximum benefit amount payable to a participating active\nvolunteer firefighter entitled to a benefit shall be determined on the\nbasis of an actuarial valuation. The valuation shall take into account\nthe age, and such other factors as the actuary deems appropriate, of the\neligible participating active volunteer firefighters and the amount of\navailable financing available per active covered volunteer firefighter.\nThe maximum service award under a service award program shall be a\nmonthly payment, payable for life, that does not exceed an amount equal\nto thirty dollars for each year of firefighting service credited under\nthe terms of the program to a maximum of forty years of firefighting\nservice. The governing board of a political subdivision may extend the\nmaximum number of years of service for which a participant may receive a\ncontribution for up to an additional ten years, to a maximum of fifty\nyears, and such increases in the number of years may be added in\nmultiple increments or in a single action, pursuant to the adoption of\nthe required resolution or resolutions of the governing board, receiving\nthe affirmative vote of at least sixty percent of the governing board of\nthe political subdivision, and the approval of any mandatory referendum\nor referenda authorizing the extension of benefits under the program by\neligible voters within such political subdivision.\n (c) No benefit payments may be made under any service award program\nthat is a defined benefit plan until the tenth anniversary of the\nestablishment of the service award program. The foregoing sentence shall\nnot preclude a service award program from providing for additional\nbenefit payments after the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the\nservice award program to reflect the fact that the payment of benefits\ncould not commence until that date.\n Notwithstanding the preceding paragraph, if a program sponsor has been\nauthorized pursuant to section two hundred sixteen or two hundred\nsixteen-a of this article to provide benefits prior to the tenth\nanniversary of the establishment of the service award program, it may\nprovide for the payment of service awards from the date of establishment\nof the service award program or from such other date as is set forth in\nthe authorization.\n (d) The governing board shall engage the services of an actuary for\nthe purpose of determining the annual amount required to be contributed\nto a defined benefit service award program, which amount shall be based\non the interest and mortality tables or other appropriate assumptions\nand methods selected by actuary. The sum so determined shall be\nappropriated annually by the political subdivision. The governing board\nmay also retain an actuary to provide advice with respect to any other\naspect of the program.\n (e) In the event that any active volunteer firefighter becomes\ndisabled and in the event that the disability prevents the active\nvolunteer firefighter from pursuing such volunteer's normal occupation\nand if the disability is total and of a permanent nature as certified by\nthe workers' compensation board or other competent authority as approved\nby the program sponsor, the volunteer firefighter is entitled to receive\nthe benefits described in this section, regardless of age or length of\nservice. Such benefits shall begin on the first day of the first month\nfollowing the establishment of such disability.\n At the option of the sponsor of the service award program, if the\nactive volunteer firefighter becomes disabled during the course of\nservice as a volunteer while actively engaged in providing line of duty\nservices as defined in subdivision one of section five of the volunteer\nfirefighters' benefit law, an additional disability benefit may be\nauthorized. Additional disability benefit shall be equal to the amount\nof additional benefits that the volunteer firefighter would have been\nentitled to had he continued to earn years of firefighting service\nthrough his entitlement age if the rate of benefits being provided under\nthe service award program at the time of disability continued to be\nprovided through the entitlement age.\n (f) A volunteer firefighter's retirement income plan may provide that,\nin the event of the death of an active volunteer firefighter who has a\nright to a nonforfeitable percentage of retirement income pursuant to\nsubdivision (b) of this section, the designated beneficiaries of such\nactive volunteer firefighter (or his estate if no beneficiary is so\ndesignated) shall be entitled to receive death benefits under the\nservice award plan. Such death benefits shall be payable in the form of\na lump sum amount designated by the sponsor as payable at death or a\npercentage of the retirement benefits otherwise payable. Such benefits\nshall be equal to the amount of benefits earned by the volunteer\nfirefighter under the plan at the date of death.\n At the option of the sponsor of the service award program, if the\nactive volunteer firefighter dies during the course of service as a\nvolunteer while actively engaged in providing line of duty services, as\ndefined in subdivision one of section five of the volunteer\nfirefighters' benefit law, additional death benefits may be provided.\n (g) In the case of a state-administered service award program, a\nservice award shall be paid only after an application is made to the\nprogram administrator and the administrator approves the application.\n