§ 89-B — Optional twenty year retirement plan for sheriffs, under-sheriffs, and regular deputy sheriffs in counties which have elected to provide ...

§ 89-b. Optional twenty year retirement plan for sheriffs,\nunder-sheriffs, and regular deputy sheriffs in counties which have\nelected to provide same. (a) Any member who is a sheriff, under-sheriff\nor a regular deputy sheriff in any county who is engaged directly in\ncriminal law enforcement activities, may elect to contribute to the\nretirement system on the basis of retirement after the completion of\ntwenty years of total creditable service pursuant to this section within\none year after the county wherein he is so engaged elects to make the\nbenefits provided herein available. One year or more after the filing of\nan election, a member may withdraw any such election by written notice\nduly acknowledged and filed with the comptroller.\n (b) On and after a county elects to make the benefits provided herein\navailable, every sheriff, under-sheriff or regular deputy sheriff\nentering or re-entering service as such and within one year from the\ndate of entry or re-entry may elect to contribute to the retirement\nsystem pursuant to this section. One year or more after the filing\nthereof, a member may withdraw any such election by written notice duly\nacknowledged and filed with the comptroller.\n (c) Elections shall be in writing and shall be duly executed and filed\nwith the comptroller.\n (d) A sheriff shall certify to the comptroller, periodically and at\nsuch intervals of time as may be required of him and in such fashion as\nmay be prescribed, the identity of the regular deputy sheriffs in his\nemploy who are engaged directly in criminal law enforcement activities,\nand shall likewise so certify to the chief executive officer of his\ncounty and to the chairman of the board or body of his county which\nappropriates the funds to pay for the plan's benefits.\n (e) A member who elects or is required to contribute in accordance\nwith subdivision (a) of this section shall contribute, in lieu of the\nproportion of compensation as provided in section twenty-one of this\narticle, a proportion of his compensation similarly determined. Such\nlatter proportion shall be computed to provide, at the time when he\nshall first become eligible for retirement under this section, an\nannuity equal to one-eightieth of his final average salary for each year\nof creditable service and as a member rendered after the county wherein\nhe is engaged elected the provisions of this section and prior to the\nattainment of the age when he shall first become eligible for\nretirement. Such member's rate of contribution pursuant to this section\nshall be appropriately reduced pursuant to section seventy-a of this\narticle for such period of time as the county wherein he is engaged\ncontributes pursuant to such section towards\npensions-providing-for-increased-take-home-pay. Such member's\ncontribution, reduced as aforesaid, shall also be appropriately further\nreduced by any multiple of twenty-five percentum of such contribution,\nreduced as aforesaid, which the county wherein he is engaged has elected\nto contribute on his behalf in lieu of such member's contributions\npursuant to this subdivision. No such member shall be required to make\ncontributions after completing twenty years of such service, except as\nis provided in such subdivision (m) of this section.\n (f) (1) A member then covered by the provisions of this section shall\nbe entitled to retire after the completion of twenty years of total\ncreditable service and, except a sheriff, shall retire upon attainment\nof age sixty by filing an application therefor with the comptroller.\n (2) Upon completion of twenty years of such service and upon\nretirement, each such member shall receive a pension which, together\nwith an annuity which is the actuarial equivalent of his accumulated\ncontributions, if any, at the time of his retirement, and an additional\npension which is the actuarial equivalent of the\nreserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he may then be entitled, if\nany, shall be sufficient to provide him with a retirement allowance\nequal to one-half of his final average salary.\n (3) Upon attainment of the mandatory retirement age of sixty years,\nor, in the case of a sheriff, upon attainment of the age of sixty years,\nand upon retirement without completion of twenty years of such service,\neach such member shall receive a pension which together with an annuity\nwhich is the actuarial equivalent of his accumulated contributions at\nthe time of his retirement and an additional pension which is the\nactuarial equivalent of the reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which\nhe may then be entitled, shall be sufficient to provide him with a\nretirement allowance equal to one-fortieth of his final average salary\nfor each year of creditable service in a sheriff's department. Every\nsuch member shall also be entitled to an additional pension for other\nservice as provided under paragraphs three and four of subdivision a of\nsection seventy-five of this article. This latter pension shall not\nincrease the total allowance to more than one-half of his final average\nsalary.\n (4) For the purpose only of determining the amount of the pension\nprovided in subdivisions (f) and (m), the annuity shall be computed as\nit would be if it were not reduced by the actuarial equivalent of any\noutstanding loan, and if it were not increased by the actuarial\nequivalent of any additional contributions, and if it were not reduced\nby reason of the member's election to decrease his annuity contributions\nto the retirement system in order to apply the amount of such reduction\nin payment of his contributions for old-age and survivors insurance\ncoverage.\n (g) The entire additional cost for the increased pensions to members,\nas provided by this section, shall be paid from additional contributions\nmade by the participating employer on account of such members. The\nactuary of the retirement system shall compute the additional\ncontribution required for each member who elects to receive the special\nbenefits provided under this section. Such additional contributions\nshall be computed on the basis of contributions during the prospective\nservice of such member which will cover the liability of the retirement\nsystem for such extra pensions. Upon approval of the comptroller, such\nadditional contributions shall be certified by him to the fiscal officer\nof the participating employer. The amount thereof shall be included in\nthe annual appropriation of the participating employer for its sheriff's\ndepartment. Such amount shall be paid to the pension accumulation fund\nof the retirement system.\n (h) As used in this section "creditable service" shall include (1) in\nthe case of a sheriff or under-sheriff, any and all services performed\nas a sheriff and/or under-sheriff of a county and all criminal law\nenforcement services performed as a regular deputy sheriff of a county,\nprovided, however, that criminal law enforcement service shall only be\ncreditable when it aggregates fifty percentum or more of his service as\na regular deputy sheriff and (2) in the case of a regular deputy\nsheriff, all criminal law enforcement services performed as a regular\ndeputy sheriff of a county, provided, however, that criminal law\nenforcement service shall only be creditable when it aggregates fifty\npercentum or more of such service and any and all services performed as\na sheriff and/or under-sheriff of a county.\n (i) Credit for service as a member or officer of the state police, or\nas a paid firefighter, police officer or officer of any organized fire\ndepartment or police force or department of any county, city, village,\ntown, fire district or police district or as a criminal investigator in\nthe office of a district attorney, provided that service as such\ninvestigator shall have been rendered prior to January first, nineteen\nhundred sixty and that credit therefor shall not exceed five years,\nshall also be deemed to be creditable service and shall be included in\ncomputing years of total service for retirement pursuant to this\nsection, provided such service was performed by the member while\ncontributing to the retirement system pursuant to this article or\narticle eight of this chapter.\n (j) The county wherein the member is engaged may, in its initial\naction taken under this section or subsequent thereto, elect to assume\nand pay all or part of the additional cost on account of service\nrendered to the county prior to the effective date of such election and,\nin addition, may in its initial action taken under this section or\nsubsequent thereto, elect to assume and pay all or any multiple of\ntwenty-five per centum of the additional cost on account of service\nrendered on and after the effective date of such election. The county\nshall pay the additional cost so assumed by any such election by means\nof annual contributions which shall be determined by the actuary.\n (k) A member, excepting a sheriff, contributing on the basis of this\nsection at the time of retirement, shall be retired on December\nthirty-first of the year in which he attains sixty years of age.\nApplication therefor may be filed in a manner similar to that provided\nin section seventy of this article.\n (l) The benefits of this section shall be available only to those\nmembers whose employer elects to provide such benefits by adopting a\nresolution to such effect and filing a certified copy thereof with the\ncomptroller.\n (m) Upon completion of twenty years of total creditable service and\nupon retirement, each member covered by the plan provided by this\nsection shall receive, for each year of creditable service in excess of\ntwenty, but not more than ten such years, an additional retirement\nallowance equal to one-sixtieth of his final average salary for each\nsuch year of such service; provided, however, that this benefit shall be\navailable only after the county employing such member elects\nspecifically to provide this benefit. Member contributions, if any,\nshall be computed in a manner consistent with subdivision (e) of this\nsection so as to provide an annuity of one hundred and twentieth of\nfinal average salary for each such year of service and employers shall\nhave the further option to reduce contributions in a manner similar to\nthat provided in said subdivision (e).\n (n) That portion of the pension reserve required pursuant to this\nsection which is in excess of the pension reserve that would have been\nrequired pursuant to section eighty-nine-a of this article, had the\nnumber been covered thereunder, shall not be included in computing any\nbenefit payable pursuant to the provisions of section sixty of this\narticle.\n (o) The provisions of this section shall, subject to the provisions of\nsection seventy-six of this article, apply to members who, on and after\nJune first, nineteen hundred seventy and prior to June first, nineteen\nhundred seventy-four retire or separate in vested status from service\nwith a participating employer who has elected to provide the benefits\nhereunder.\n