§ 604-E*2 — Twenty-five year retirement program for EMT members

* § 604-e. Twenty-five year retirement program for EMT members. a.\nDefinitions. The following words and phrases as used in this section\nshall have the following meanings unless a different meaning is plainly\nrequired by the context.\n 1. "EMT member" shall mean a member of the New York city employees'\nretirement system who is employed by the city of New York or by the New\nYork city health and hospitals corporation in a title whose duties are\nthose of an emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical\ntechnician (as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of\nthe public health law), or in a title whose duties require the\nsupervision of employees whose duties are those of an emergency medical\ntechnician or advanced emergency medical technician (as those terms are\ndefined in section three thousand one of the public health law).\n 2. "Twenty-five year retirement program" shall mean all the terms and\nconditions of this section.\n 3. "Starting date of the twenty-five year retirement program" shall\nmean that date of enactment of this section.\n 4. "Participant in the twenty-five year retirement program" shall mean\nany EMT member who, under the applicable provisions of subdivision b of\nthis section, is entitled to the rights, benefits and privileges and is\nsubject to the obligations of the twenty-five year retirement program,\nas applicable to him or her.\n 5. "Discontinued member" shall mean a participant in the twenty-five\nyear retirement program who, while he or she was an EMT member,\ndiscontinued service as such a member and has a right to a deferred\nvested benefit under subdivision d of this section.\n 6. "Administrative code" shall mean the administrative code of the\ncity of New York.\n 7. "Allowable service as an EMT member" shall mean (i) all service as\nan EMT member; and (ii) all service while employed by the city of New\nYork or by the New York city health and hospitals corporation in the\ntitle motor vehicle operator.\n b. Participation in twenty-five year retirement program. 1. Subject to\nthe provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this subdivision, any\nperson who is an EMT member on the starting date of the twenty-five year\nretirement program and who, as such an EMT member or otherwise, last\nbecame subject to the provisions of this article prior to such starting\ndate, may elect to become a participant in the twenty-five year\nretirement program by filing, within one hundred eighty days after the\nstarting date of the twenty-five year retirement program, a duly\nexecuted application for such participation with the retirement system\nof which such person is a member, provided he or she is such an EMT\nmember on the date such application is filed.\n 2. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this\nsubdivision, any person who becomes an EMT member after the starting\ndate of the twenty-five year retirement program and who, as such an EMT\nmember or otherwise, last became subject to the provisions of this\narticle prior to such starting date, may elect to become a participant\nin the twenty-five year retirement program by filing, within one hundred\neighty days after becoming such an EMT member, a duly executed\napplication for such participation with the retirement system for which\nsuch person is a member, provided he or she is such an EMT member on the\ndate such application is filed.\n 3. Each EMT member, other than an EMT member subject to paragraph one\nor two of this subdivision, who becomes subject to the provisions of\nthis article on or after the starting date of the twenty-five year\nretirement program shall become a participant in the twenty-five year\nretirement program on the date he or she becomes such an EMT member.\nProvided, however, a person subject to this paragraph, and who has\nexceeded age twenty-five upon employment as an EMT member, shall be\nexempt from participation in the improved twenty-five year retirement\nprogram if such person elects not to participate by filing a duly\nexecuted form with the retirement system within one hundred eighty days\nof becoming an EMT member.\n 4. Any election to be a participant in the twenty-five year retirement\nprogram shall be irrevocable.\n 5. Where any participant in the twenty-five year retirement program\nshall cease to be employed as an EMT member, he or she shall cease to be\nsuch a participant and, during any period in which such person is not so\nemployed, he or she shall not be a participant in the twenty-five year\nretirement program and shall not be eligible for the benefits of\nsubdivision c of this section.\n 6. Where any participant in the twenty-five year retirement program\nterminates service as an EMT member and returns to such service as an\nEMT member at a later date, he or she shall again become such a\nparticipant on that date.\n 7. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any\nperson who is eligible to elect to become a participant in the\ntwenty-five year retirement program pursuant to paragraph one or two of\nthis subdivision for the full one hundred eighty day period provided for\nin such applicable paragraph and who fails to timely file a duly\nexecuted application for such participation with the retirement system,\nshall not thereafter be eligible to become a participant in such\nprogram.\n c. Service retirement benefits. 1. A participant in the twenty-five\nyear retirement program:\n (i) who has completed twenty-five or more years of allowable service\nas an EMT member; and\n (ii) who has paid, before the effective date of retirement, all\nadditional member contributions and interest (if any) required by\nsubdivision e of this section; and\n (iii) who files with the retirement system of which he or she is a\nmember an application for service retirement setting forth at what time,\nnot less than thirty days subsequent to the execution and filing\nthereof, he or she desires to be retired; and\n (iv) who shall be a participant in the twenty-five year retirement\nprogram at the time so specified for his or her retirement; shall be\nretired pursuant to the provisions of this section affording early\nservice retirement.\n 2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, and\nsubject to the provisions of paragraph six of subdivision e of this\nsection, the early service retirement benefit for participants in the\ntwenty-five year retirement program who retire pursuant to paragraph one\nof this subdivision shall be a retirement allowance consisting of:\n an amount, on account of the required minimum period of service, equal\nto fifty percent of his or her final average salary; plus\n an amount on account of allowable service as an EMT member, or\nfraction thereof, beyond such required minimum period of service equal\nto two percent of his or her final salary for such allowable service as\nan EMT member during the period from completion of twenty-five years of\nallowable service as an EMT member to the date of retirement but not to\nexceed more than five years of additional service as an EMT member.\n d. Vesting. 1. A participant in the twenty-five year retirement\nprogram:\n (i) who discontinues service as such a participant, other than by\ndeath or retirement; and\n (ii) who prior to such discontinuance, completed five but less than\ntwenty-five years of allowable service as an EMT member; and\n (iii) who, subject to the provisions of paragraph seven of subdivision\ne of this section, has paid, prior to such discontinuance, all\nadditional member contributions and interest (if any) required by\nsubdivision e of this section; and\n (iv) who does not withdraw in whole or in part his or her accumulated\nmember contributions pursuant to section six hundred thirteen of this\narticle unless such participant thereafter returns to public service and\nrepays the amounts so withdrawn, together with interest, pursuant to\nsuch section six hundred thirteen; shall be entitled to receive a\ndeferred vested benefit as provided in this subdivision.\n 2. (i) Upon such discontinuance under the conditions and in compliance\nwith the provisions of paragraph one of this subdivision, such deferred\nvested benefit shall vest automatically.\n (ii) In the case of a participant who is not a New York city revised\nplan member, such vested benefit shall become payable on the earliest\ndate on which such discontinued member could have retired for service if\nsuch discontinuance had not occurred or, in the case of a participant\nwho is a New York city revised plan member, such vested benefit shall\nbecome payable at age sixty-three.\n 3. Subject to the provisions of paragraph seven of subdivision e of\nthis section, such deferred vested benefit shall be a retirement\nallowance consisting of an amount equal to two percent of such\ndiscontinued member's final average salary, multiplied by the number of\nyears of allowable service as an EMT member.\n e. Additional member contributions. 1. In addition to the member\ncontributions required by section six hundred thirteen of this article,\neach participant in the twenty-five year retirement program shall\ncontribute to the retirement system of which he or she is a member\n(subject to the applicable provisions of subdivision d of section six\nhundred thirteen of this article) an additional six and twenty-five\none-hundredths percent of his or her compensation earned from (i) all\nallowable service, as a participant in the twenty-five year retirement\nprogram, rendered on or after the starting date of the twenty-five year\nretirement program, and (ii) all allowable service after such person\nceases to be a participant, but before he or she again becomes a\nparticipant pursuant to paragraph six of subdivision b of this section.\nThe additional contributions required by this subdivision shall be in\nlieu of additional member contributions required by subdivision d of\nsection six hundred four-c of this chapter as added by chapter\nninety-six of the laws of nineteen hundred ninety-five, and no member\nmaking additional contributions pursuant to this section shall be\nrequired to make contributions pursuant to such subdivision d of section\nsix hundred four-c of this chapter.\n 2. A participant in the twenty-five year retirement program shall\ncontribute additional member contributions until the later of (i) the\nfirst anniversary of the starting date of the twenty-five year\nretirement program, or (ii) the date on which he or she completes thirty\nyears of allowable service as an EMT member.\n 3. Commencing with the first full payroll period after each person\nbecomes a participant in the twenty-five year retirement program,\nadditional member contributions at the rate specified in paragraph one\nof this subdivision shall be deducted (subject to the applicable\nprovisions of subdivision d of section six hundred thirteen of this\narticle) from the compensation of such participant on each and every\npayroll of such participant for each and every payroll period for which\nhe or she is such a participant.\n 4. (i) Each participant in the twenty-five year retirement program\nshall be charged with a contribution deficiency consisting of the total\namounts of additional member contributions such person is required to\nmake pursuant to paragraphs one and two of this subdivision which are\nnot deducted from his or her compensation pursuant to paragraph three of\nthis subdivision, if any, together with interest thereon, compounded\nannually, and computed in accordance with the provisions of\nsubparagraphs (ii) and (iii) of this paragraph.\n (ii) (A) The interest required to be paid on each such amount\nspecified in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall accrue from the\nend of the payroll period for which such amount would have been deducted\nfrom compensation if he or she had been a participant at the beginning\nof that payroll period and such deduction had been required for such\npayroll period, until such amount is paid to the retirement system.\n (B) 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 (iii) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph five of this\nsubdivision, no interest shall be due on any unpaid additional member\ncontributions which are not attributable to a period prior to the first\nfull payroll period referred to in paragraph three of this subdivision.\n 5. (i) Should any person who, pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of\nparagraph ten of this subdivision, has received a refund of his or her\nadditional member contribution including any interest paid on such\ncontributions, again become a participant in the twenty-five year\nretirement program pursuant to paragraph six of subdivision b of this\nsection, an appropriate amount shall be included in such participant's\ncontribution deficiency (including interest thereon as calculated\npursuant to subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph) for any credited\nservice for which such person received a refund of such additional\nmember contributions (including any amount of an unpaid loan balance\ndeemed to have been returned to such person pursuant to paragraph twelve\nof this subdivision), as if such additional member contributions never\nhad been paid.\n (ii) (A) Interest on a participant's additional member contributions\nincluded in such participant's contribution deficiency pursuant to\nsubparagraph (i) of this paragraph shall be calculated as if such\nadditional member contributions had never been paid by such participant,\nand such interest shall accrue from the end of the payroll period to\nwhich an amount of such additional member contributions is attributable,\nuntil such amount is paid to the retirement system.\n (B) The rate of interest to be applied to each such amount during the\nperiod for which interest accrues on that amount shall be five percent\nper annum, compounded annually.\n 6. Where a participant who is otherwise eligible for service\nretirement pursuant to subdivision c of this section did not, prior to\nthe effective date of retirement, pay the entire amount of a\ncontribution deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraphs\nfour and five of this subdivision, or repay the entire amount of a loan\nof his or her additional member contributions pursuant to paragraph\neleven of this subdivision (including accrued interest on such loan),\nthat participant, nevertheless, shall be eligible to retire pursuant to\nsubdivision c of this section, provided, however, that such\nparticipant's service retirement benefit calculated pursuant to\nparagraph two of such subdivision c shall be reduced by a life annuity\n(calculated in accordance with the method set forth in subdivision i of\nsection six hundred thirteen-b of this article) which is actuarially\nequivalent to:\n (i) The amount of any unpaid contribution deficiency chargeable to\nsuch member pursuant to paragraphs four and five of this subdivision;\nplus\n (ii) the amount of any unpaid balance of a loan of his or her\nadditional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this\nsubdivision (including accrued interest on such loan).\n 7. Where a participant who is otherwise eligible for a vested right to\na deferred benefit pursuant to subdivision d of this section did not,\nprior to the date of discontinuance of service, pay the entire amount of\na contribution deficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to\nparagraphs four and five of this subdivision, or repay the entire amount\nof a loan of his or her additional member contributions pursuant to\nparagraph eleven of this subdivision (including accrued interest on such\nloan), that participant, nevertheless, shall be eligible for a vested\nright to a deferred benefit pursuant to subdivision d of this section,\nprovided, however, that the deferred vested benefit calculated pursuant\nto paragraph three of such subdivision d shall be reduced by a life\nannuity (calculated in accordance with the method set forth in\nsubdivision i of section six hundred thirteen-b of this article) which\nis actuarially equivalent to:\n (i) the amount of any unpaid contribution deficiency chargeable to\nsuch member pursuant to paragraphs four and five of this subdivision;\nplus\n (ii) the amount of any unpaid balance of a loan of his or her\nadditional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this\nsubdivision (including accrued interest on such loan).\n 8. The head of a retirement system which includes participants in the\ntwenty-five year retirement program in its membership may, consistent\nwith the provisions of this subdivision, promulgate regulations for the\npayment of such additional member contributions, and any interest\nthereon, by such participants (including the deduction of such\ncontributions, and any interest thereon, from the participant's\ncompensation).\n 9. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs six and seven of this\nsubdivision, where a participant has not paid in full any contribution\ndeficiency chargeable to him or her pursuant to paragraphs four and five\nof this subdivision, and a benefit, other than a refund of member\ncontributions pursuant to section six hundred thirteen of this article\nor a refund of additional member contributions pursuant to subparagraph\n(ii) of paragraph ten of this subdivision, becomes payable under this\narticle to the participant or to his or her designated beneficiary or\nestate, the actuarial equivalent of any such unpaid amount shall be\ndeducted from the benefit otherwise payable.\n 10. (i) Such additional member contributions (and any interest\nthereon) shall be paid into the contingent reserve fund of the\nretirement system of which the participant is a member and shall not for\nany purpose be deemed to be member contributions or accumulated\ncontributions of a member under section six hundred thirteen of this\narticle or otherwise while he or she is a participant in the twenty-five\nyear retirement program or otherwise, except that, a surplus of such\nadditional member contributions that are paid into the retirement\nsystem's contingent reserve fund may be used for the sole purpose of\noffsetting a deficit of basic member contributions.\n (ii) Should a participant in the twenty-five year retirement program\nwho has rendered less than fifteen years of credited service cease to\nhold a position as an EMT member for any reason whatsoever, his or her\naccumulated additional member contributions made pursuant to this\nsubdivision (together with any interest thereon paid to the retirement\nsystem) may be withdrawn by him or her pursuant to procedures\npromulgated in regulations of the board of trustees of the retirement\nsystem, together with interest thereon at the rate of five percent per\nannum, compounded annually.\n (iii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, (A)\nno person shall be permitted to withdraw from the retirement system any\nadditional member contributions paid pursuant to this subdivision or any\ninterest paid thereon, except pursuant to and in accordance with the\npreceding subparagraphs of this paragraph; and (B) no person, while he\nor she is a participant in the twenty-five year retirement program,\nshall be permitted to withdraw any such additional member contributions\nor any interest paid thereon pursuant to any of the preceding\nsubparagraphs of this paragraph or otherwise.\n 11. A participant in the twenty-five year retirement program shall be\npermitted to borrow from his or her additional member contributions\n(including any interest paid thereon) which are credited to the\nadditional contributions account established for such participant in the\ncontingent reserve fund of the retirement system. The borrowing from\nsuch additional member contributions pursuant to this paragraph shall be\ngoverned by the rights, privileges, obligations and procedures set forth\nin section six hundred thirteen-b of this article which govern the\nborrowing of member contributions made pursuant to section six hundred\nthirteen of this article. The board of trustees of the retirement system\nmay, consistent with the provisions of this subdivision and the\nprovisions of section six hundred thirteen-b of this article as made\napplicable to this subdivision, promulgate regulations governing the\nborrowing of such additional member contributions.\n 12. Whenever a person has an unpaid balance of a loan of his or her\nadditional member contributions pursuant to paragraph eleven of this\nsubdivision at the time he or she becomes entitled to a refund of his or\nher additional member contributions pursuant to subparagraph (ii) of\nparagraph ten of this subdivision, the amount of such unpaid loan\nbalance (including accrued interest) shall be deemed to have been\nreturned to such member, and the refund of such additional contributions\nshall be the net amount of such contributions, together with interest\nthereon in accordance with the provisions of such subparagraph (ii).\n * NB There are 2 § 604-e's\n