§ 445-D*2 — Optional twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program for Triborough bridge and tunnel members

* § 445-d. Optional twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement\nprogram for Triborough bridge and tunnel members. a. Definitions. The\nfollowing words and phrases as used in this section shall have the\nfollowing meanings unless a different meaning is plainly required by the\ncontext.\n 1. "Retirement system" shall mean the New York city employees'\nretirement system.\n 2. "Triborough bridge and tunnel member" shall mean a member of the\nretirement system who is subject to the provisions of this article, who\nis employed by the Triborough bridge and tunnel authority as a bridge\nand tunnel officer, sergeant, or lieutenant in a non-managerial position\nand who has elected to contribute to the retirement system on the basis\nof a minimum retirement period of twenty-year/age fifty of allowable\nservice rendered pursuant to the optional retirement provisions as set\nforth in paragraph eight of this subdivision.\n 3. "Twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program" shall\nmean all the terms and conditions of this section.\n 4. "Starting date of the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program" shall mean the date of enactment of the act which\nadded this section, as such date is certified pursuant to section\nforty-one of the legislative law.\n 5. "Participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program" shall mean any Triborough bridge and tunnel member\nwho, under the applicable provisions of subdivision b of this section,\nis entitled to the rights, benefits and privileges and is subject to the\nobligations of the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement\nprogram, as applicable to him or her.\n 6. "Administrative code" shall mean the administrative code of the\ncity of New York.\n 7. "Accumulated deductions" shall mean accumulated deductions as\ndefined in subdivision eleven of section 13-101 of the administrative\ncode.\n 8. "Optional retirement provisions" shall mean the right to receive a\nretirement allowance upon (a) the attainment of age fifty, and (b) the\ncompletion of twenty years of service.\n b. Election of twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement\nprogram. 1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph five of this\nsubdivision, any person who is a Triborough bridge and tunnel member on\nthe starting date of the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program may elect to become a participant in the\ntwenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program by filing,\nwithin one hundred eighty days after such starting date, a duly executed\napplication for such participation with the retirement system, provided\nhe or she is such a bridge and tunnel member on the date such\napplication is filed.\n 2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph five of this subdivision,\nany person who becomes a Triborough bridge and tunnel member after the\nstarting date of the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement\nprogram may elect to become a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty\nimproved benefit retirement program by filing, within one hundred eighty\ndays after becoming such a bridge and tunnel member, a duly executed\napplication for such participation with the retirement system, provided\nhe or she is such a bridge and tunnel member on the date such\napplication is filed.\n 3. Any election to be a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty\nimproved benefit retirement program shall be irrevocable.\n 4. Where any participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program shall cease to hold a position in the Triborough\nbridge and tunnel service, he or she shall cease to be such a\nparticipant and, during any period in which such a person does not hold\nsuch a bridge and tunnel position, he or she shall not be a participant\nin the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program and\nshall not be eligible for the benefits of subdivision c of this section.\n 5. Where any participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program terminates service in the Triborough bridge and\ntunnel service and returns to such service as a bridge and tunnel member\nat a later date, he or she shall again become such a participant on that\ndate.\n c. Service retirement benefits. Notwithstanding any other provision of\nlaw to the contrary, where a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty\nimprovement benefit retirement program, who is otherwise qualified for a\nretirement allowance pursuant to the optional retirement provisions set\nforth in subdivision a of this section, has made and/or paid, while he\nor she is a Triborough bridge and tunnel member, all additional member\ncontributions and interest (if any) required by subdivision d of this\nsection, then:\n 1. that participant, while he or she remains a participant, shall not\nbe subject to the provisions of subdivision a of section four hundred\nforty-five of this chapter; and\n 2. if that participant, while such a participant, retires from\nservice, he or she shall not be subject to the provisions of section\nfour hundred forty-four of this chapter; and\n 3. his or her retirement allowance shall be an amount, on account of\nthe required minimum period of service, equal to one-half of his or her\nfinal average salary, plus an amount for each additional year of\nallowable service, or fraction thereof, beyond such required minimum\nperiod of service equal to one and one-half percent of his or her final\naverage salary; and\n 4. the maximum retirement benefit computed without optional\nmodification payable to that participant upon his or her retirement for\nservice as such a participant shall equal that payable upon completion\nof thirty years of service.\n d. Additional member contributions. 1. In addition to the member\ncontributions required pursuant to section 13-162 of the administrative\ncode, each participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program in the rank of bridge and tunnel officer shall\ncontribute an additional five and fifty one-hundredths percent of his or\nher compensation and each participant in the twenty-year/age fifty\nretirement program in the rank of sergeant or lieutenant shall\ncontribute to the retirement system an additional six percent of his or\nher compensation earned from all allowable service as a Triborough\nbridge and tunnel member rendered on and after the date which is one\nhundred eighty days prior to the starting date of the twenty-year/age\nfifty improved benefit retirement program. A participant in the\ntwenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program shall\ncontribute additional member contributions until the latest of (i) the\ndate as of which he or she is eligible to retire with twenty years of\ncreditable service in the Triborough bridge and tunnel authority under\nsuch retirement program, (ii) the third anniversary of the starting date\nof the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement program, or\n(iii) the third anniversary of the date that he or she became a\nparticipant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit retirement\nprogram.\n 2. Commencing with the first full payroll period after each person\nbecomes a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program, additional member contributions at the rate\nspecified in paragraph one of this subdivision shall be deducted\n(subject to the applicable provisions of section 13-125.2 of the\nadministrative code of the city of New York) from the compensation of\nsuch participant on each and every payroll of such participant for each\nand every payroll period.\n 3. (i) Subject to the provisions of subparagraph (ii) of this\nparagraph, where any additional member contributions required by\nparagraph one of this subdivision are not paid by deductions from a\nparticipant's compensation pursuant to paragraph two of this\nsubdivision:\n (A) that participant shall be charged with a contribution deficiency\nconsisting of such unpaid amounts, together with interest thereon,\ncompounded annually; and\n (B) such interest on each amount of undeducted contributions shall\naccrue from the end of the payroll period for which such amount would\nhave been deducted from compensation if he or she had been a participant\nat the beginning of that payroll period, until such amount is paid to\nthe retirement system; and\n (C) the rate of interest to be applied to each such amount during the\nperiod for which interest accrues on that amount shall be equal to the\nrate or rates of interest required by law to be used during that same\nperiod to credit interest on the accumulated deductions of retirement\nsystem members.\n (ii) Except as provided in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph, no\ninterest shall be due on any unpaid additional contributions which are\nnot attributable to the period prior to the first full payroll period\nreferred to in paragraph two of this subdivision.\n (iii) Should any person who, pursuant to paragraph seven of this\nsubdivision, has withdrawn any additional member contributions (and any\ninterest paid thereon) again become a participant in the twenty-year/age\nfifty improved benefit retirement program pursuant to paragraph five of\nsubdivision b of this section, an appropriate amount shall be included\nin such participant's contribution deficiency (including interest\nthereon as calculated pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph) as\nif such additional contributions had never been made.\n (iv) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this paragraph, no\nparticipant shall be charged interest for any period prior to March\ntwenty-fifth, nineteen hundred ninety-eight with respect to any\ncontributions owed with respect to any payroll period beginning prior to\nsuch date.\n 4. The board of trustees of the retirement system may, consistent with\nthe provisions of this subdivision, promulgate regulations for the\npayment of such additional member contributions, and any interest\nthereon, by a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved benefit\nretirement program (including the deduction of such contributions, and\nany interest thereon, from his or her compensation).\n 5. Where a contribution deficiency chargeable to a participant\npursuant to paragraph three of this subdivision has not been paid in\nfull while the participant is a Triborough bridge and tunnel member,\nthat participant shall not be entitled to the benefits provided in\nsubdivision c of this section.\n 6. Where a participant has not paid in full any contribution\ndeficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraph three of this\nsubdivision, and a benefit, other than a refund of a member's\naccumulated deductions or a refund of additional member contributions\npursuant to paragraph seven of this subdivision, becomes payable by the\nretirement system to the participant or to his or her designated\nbeneficiary or estate, the actuarial equivalent of any such unpaid\namount shall be deducted from the benefit otherwise payable.\n 6-a. Notwithstanding paragraph five or six of this subdivision, where\na deficiency chargeable to a participant pursuant to paragraph three of\nthis subdivision has not been paid in full while the participant is a\nTriborough bridge and tunnel member and such participant retires prior\nto July first, two thousand seven, such participant may elect to be\ncovered by this paragraph. Such participant shall be entitled to the\nbenefits provided in subdivision c of this section provided that\nparticipant authorizes the retirement system to deduct from such\nbenefits an amount which will result in the deficiency, plus associated\ninterest to date of final payment, being paid in full no later than July\nfirst, two thousand seven or such earlier date as agreed to by the\nparticipant. Such amount will be deducted in equal installments on a\nmonthly basis. Nothing in this paragraph shall prevent the participant\nfrom making a partial payment of the amount of the deficiency at the\ntime of retirement so as to reduce the monthly payment nor to make a\nlump sum payment equal to the amount of the total unpaid balance at any\ntime during the period of repayment.\n 7. (i) All additional member contributions required by this\nsubdivision (and any interest thereon) which are received by the\nretirement system shall be paid into its contingent reserve fund and\nshall be the property of the retirement system. Such additional member\ncontributions (and any interest thereon) shall not for any purpose be\ndeemed to be accumulated deductions of a member of the retirement system\nwhile he or she is a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved\nbenefit retirement program or otherwise.\n (ii) Should a participant in the twenty-year/age fifty improved\nbenefit retirement program, who has rendered less than fifteen years of\ncredited service cease to hold a position in such uniformed force for\nany reason whatsoever, his or her accumulated additional member\ncontributions made pursuant to this subdivision (together with any\ninterest thereon paid to the retirement system) may be withdrawn by him\nor her pursuant to procedures promulgated in regulations of the board of\ntrustees of the retirement system, together with interest thereon equal\nto eight and one-quarter percent per annum, compounded annually.\n (iii) Except as otherwise provided in subparagraph (ii) of this\nparagraph, no member of the retirement system, while he or she is a\nparticipant in such retirement program or otherwise, shall have a right\nto withdraw such additional member contributions or any interest thereon\nfrom the retirement system.\n 8. A member who has made the additional contributions specified by\nthis subdivision may borrow a portion of such contributions, pursuant to\nthe provisions of section six hundred thirteen-b of this chapter.\n 9. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the\nprovisions of section one hundred thirty-eight-b of this chapter shall\nnot be applicable to the additional member contributions which are\nrequired by this subdivision.\n 10. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the\nadditional member contributions which are required by this subdivision\nshall not be reduced under any program for increased-take-home-pay.\n * NB There are 2 § 445-d's\n