§ 507-C — Performance of duty disability retirement; New York city department of correction

§ 507-c. Performance of duty disability retirement; New York city\ndepartment of correction. a. Any member in the uniformed personnel in\ninstitutions under the jurisdiction of the New York city department of\ncorrection, who becomes physically or mentally incapacitated for the\nperformance of duties as the natural and proximate result of an injury,\nsustained in the performance or discharge of his or her duties by, or as\na natural and proximate result of, an act of any incarcerated individual\nor any person confined in an institution under the jurisdiction of the\ndepartment of correction or the department of health, or by any person\nwho has been committed to such institution by any court shall be paid a\nperformance of duty disability retirement allowance equal to\nthree-quarters of final average salary, subject to the provisions of\nsection 13-176 of the administrative code of the city of New York,\nprovided, however, that the provisions of this section shall not apply\nto a member of the uniformed force of the New York city department of\ncorrection who is a New York city uniformed correction/sanitation\nrevised plan member.\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 subdivision a of this\nsection that may have involved transmission of a specified transmissible\ndisease from an incarcerated individual or such person described in such\nsubdivision a to the retirement system member), tuberculosis or\nhepatitis will be presumed to have contracted such disease in the\nperformance or discharge of his or her duties, and will be presumed to\nbe disabled from the performance of his or her duties, unless the\ncontrary be proved by competent evidence.\n c. 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 head of the retirement system is hereby authorized to\npromulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this\nparagraph.\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, a performance of duty disability\nretirement, or was separated from service with a vested right to\ndeferred payability of a retirement allowance and subsequent to such\nretirement or separation which is determined by the head of the\nretirement system to have been a qualifying World Trade Center\ncondition, as defined in section two of this chapter, upon such\ndetermination by the head of the retirement system, it shall be presumed\nthat such disability was incurred in the performance and discharge of\nduty as the natural and proximate result of an accident not caused by\nsuch member's own willful negligence, and that the member would have\nbeen physically or mentally incapacitated for the performance and\ndischarge of duty of the position from which he or she retired or vested\nhad the condition been known and fully developed at the time of the\nmember's retirement or separation from service with vested rights,\nunless the contrary is proved by competent evidence.\n (b) The head of the retirement system shall consider a\nreclassification of the member's retirement or vesting as an accidental\ndisability retirement effective as of the date 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 head of the retirement system\naccording to procedures developed by the head of the retirement system.\n (e) The head of the retirement system is hereby authorized to\npromulgate rules and regulations to implement the provisions of this\nparagraph.\n d. 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 or vestee who: (1) has met the\ncriteria of subdivision c of this section and retired on a service or\ndisability retirement, would have met the criteria if not already\nretired on an accidental disability, or was separated from service with\na vested right to deferred payability of a retirement allowance; and (2)\nhas not been retired for more than twenty-five years; and (3) dies from\na qualifying World Trade center condition, as defined in section two of\nthis chapter, that is determined by the applicable head of the\nretirement system or applicable medical board, then unless the contrary\nbe proven by competent evidence, such retiree or vestee shall be deemed\nto have died as a natural and proximate result of an accident sustained\nin the performance of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on\nhis or her part. Such retiree's or vestee's eligible beneficiary, as set\nforth in section five hundred one of this article, shall be entitled to\nan accidental death benefit as provided by section five hundred nine of\nthis article, however, for the purposes of determining the salary base\nupon which the accidental death benefit is calculated, the retiree or\nvestee shall be deemed to have died on the date of his or her retirement\nor separation from service with vested rights. Upon the retiree's or\nvestee's death, the eligible beneficiary shall make a written\napplication to the head of the retirement system within the time for\nfiling an application for an accidental death benefit as set forth in\nsection five hundred nine of this article requesting conversion of such\nretiree's service, vested right or disability retirement benefit to an\naccidental death benefit. At the time of such conversion, the eligible\nbeneficiary shall relinquish all rights to the prospective benefits\npayable under the service or disability retirement benefit, or vested\nright to such benefit, including any post-retirement death benefits,\nsince the retiree's or vestee's death. If the eligible beneficiary is\nnot the only beneficiary receiving or entitled to receive a benefit\nunder the service or disability retirement benefit (including, but not\nlimited to, post-retirement death benefits or benefits paid or payable\npursuant to the retiree's option selection), or that will be eligible\nunder the vested right the accidental death benefit payments to the\neligible beneficiary will be reduced by any amounts paid or payable to\nany other beneficiary.\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 member who: (1) has met the criteria of\nsubdivision c of this section; (2) dies in active service or after\nseparating from service with a vested right to deferred payability of a\nretirement allowance, but prior to the payability of that retirement\nallowance; and (3) dies from a qualifying World Trade Center condition,\nas defined in section two of this chapter, that is determined by the\napplicable head of the retirement system or applicable medical board,\nthen unless the contrary be proven by competent evidence, such member\nshall be deemed to have died as a natural and proximate result of an\naccident sustained in the performance of duty and not as a result of\nwillful negligence on his or her part. Such member's eligible\nbeneficiary, as set forth in section five hundred one of this article,\nshall be entitled to an accidental death benefit provided he or she\nmakes written application to the head of the retirement system within\nthe time for filing an application for an accidental death benefit as\nset forth in section five hundred nine of this article.\n