§ 507-B — Performance of duty disability retirement

§ 507-b. Performance of duty disability retirement. a. Any member in\nthe uniformed personnel in institutions under the jurisdiction of the\ndepartment of corrections and community supervision or a security\nhospital treatment assistant, as those terms are defined in subdivision\ni of section eighty-nine of this chapter, who becomes physically or\nmentally incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural and\nproximate result of an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge\nof his or her duties by, or as a natural and proximate result of, an act\nof any incarcerated individual or any person confined in an institution\nunder the jurisdiction of the department of corrections and community\nsupervision or office of mental health, or by any person who has been\ncommitted to such institution by any court shall be paid a performance\nof duty disability retirement allowance equal to that which is provided\nin section sixty-three of this chapter, subject to the provisions of\nsection sixty-four of this chapter.\n b. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or of any general or\nspecial law to the contrary, a member covered by this section who\ncontracts HIV (where there may have been an exposure to a bodily fluid\nof an incarcerated individual or a person described in subdivision a of\nthis section as a natural and proximate result of an act of any\nincarcerated individual or person described in such subdivision a that\nmay have involved transmission of a specified transmissible disease from\nan incarcerated individual or such person described in such subdivision\na to the retirement system member), tuberculosis or hepatitis will be\npresumed to have contracted such disease in the performance or discharge\nof his or her duties, and will be presumed to be disabled from the\nperformance of his or her duties, unless the contrary be proved by\ncompetent evidence.\n c. Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or of any general or\nspecial law to the contrary, any condition of impairment of health\ncaused by diseases of the heart, resulting in disability or death to a\nmember covered by this section, presently employed and who shall have\nsustained such disability while so employed, who successfully passed a\nphysical examination on entry into service as a correction officer or\nsecurity hospital treatment assistant, which examination failed to\ndisclose evidence of any disease or other impairment of the heart, shall\nbe presumptive evidence that it was incurred in the performance and\ndischarge of duty, unless the contrary be proved by competent evidence.\n d. 1. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter or of any\ngeneral, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or\nregulation to the contrary, if any condition or impairment of health is\ncaused by a qualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in\nsection two of this chapter, it shall be presumptive evidence that it\nwas incurred in the performance and discharge of duty and the natural\nand proximate result of an accident not caused by such member's own\nwillful negligence, unless the contrary be proved by competent evidence.\n (b) The comptroller is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and\nregulations to implement the provisions of this paragraph.\n 2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this chapter or of any\ngeneral, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or\nregulation to the contrary, if a member who participated in World Trade\nCenter rescue, recovery or cleanup operations, as defined in section two\nof this chapter, and subsequently retired on a service retirement, an\nordinary disability retirement or a performance of duty disability\nretirement and subsequent to such retirement is determined by the\ncomptroller to have a qualifying World Trade Center condition, as\ndefined in section two of this chapter, upon such determination by the\ncomptroller it shall be presumed that such disability was incurred in\nthe performance and discharge of duty as the natural and proximate\nresult of an accident not caused by such member's own willful\nnegligence, and that the member would have been physically or mentally\nincapacitated for the performance and discharge of duty of the position\nfrom which he or she retired had the condition been known and fully\ndeveloped at the time of the member's retirement, unless the contrary is\nproven by competent evidence.\n (b) The comptroller shall consider a reclassification of the member's\nretirement as an accidental disability retirement effective as of the\ndate of such reclassification.\n (c) Such member's retirement option shall not be changed as a result\nof such reclassification.\n (d) The member's former employer at the time of the member's\nretirement shall have an opportunity to be heard on the member's\napplication for reclassification by the comptroller according to\nprocedures developed by the comptroller.\n (e) The comptroller is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and\nregulations to implement the provisions of this paragraph.\n e. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any\ngeneral, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or\nregulation to the contrary, if a retiree who:\n 1. has met the criteria of subdivision d of this section and retired\non a service or disability retirement, or would have met the criteria if\nnot already retired on an accidental disability; and\n 2. has not been retired for more than twenty-five years; and\n 3. dies from a qualifying World Trade Center condition, as defined in\nsection two of this chapter, as determined by the applicable head of the\nretirement system or applicable medical board, then unless the contrary\nbe proven by competent evidence, such retiree shall be deemed to have\ndied as a natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the\nperformance of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his or\nher part. Such retiree's eligible beneficiary, as set forth in section\nfive hundred one of this article, shall be entitled to an accidental\ndeath benefit as provided by section five hundred nine of this article,\nhowever, for the purposes of determining the salary base upon which the\naccidental death benefit is calculated, the retiree shall be deemed to\nhave died on the date of his or her retirement. Upon the retiree's\ndeath, the eligible beneficiary shall make a written application to the\nhead of the retirement system within the time for filing an application\nfor an accidental death benefit as set forth in section five hundred\nnine of this article requesting conversion of such retiree's service or\ndisability retirement benefit to an accidental death benefit. At the\ntime of such conversion, the eligible beneficiary shall relinquish all\nrights to the prospective benefits payable under the service or\ndisability retirement benefit, including any post-retirement death\nbenefits, since the retiree's death. If the eligible beneficiary is not\nthe only beneficiary receiving or entitled to receive a benefit under\nthe service or disability retirement benefit (including, but not limited\nto, post-retirement death benefits or benefits paid or payable pursuant\nto the retiree's option selection), the accidental death benefit\npayments to the eligible beneficiary shall be reduced by any amounts\npaid or payable to any other beneficiary.\n f. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or of any\ngeneral, special or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or\nregulation to the contrary, if a member who: (1) has met the criteria of\nsubdivision d of this section; and (2) dies in active service from a\nqualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in section two of\nthis chapter, as determined by the applicable head of the retirement\nsystem or applicable medical board, then unless the contrary be proven\nby competent evidence, such member shall be deemed to have died as a\nnatural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the performance\nof duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his or her part.\nSuch member's eligible beneficiary, as set forth in section five hundred\none of this article, shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit\nprovided he or she makes written application to the head of the\nretirement system within the time for filing an application for an\naccidental death benefit as set forth in section five hundred nine of\nthis article.\n