§ 89-V*2 — Retirement of paramedics employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda

* § 89-v. Retirement of paramedics employed by the police department\nin the town of Tonawanda. a. A member employed by the town of Tonawanda\nas a paramedic, or, if the title of paramedic is abolished, an\nindividual employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda in\na position with responsibilities that are essentially identical to those\nof a paramedic, shall be eligible to retire pursuant to the provisions\nof this section, if such member files a timely election with the\ncomptroller, on a form provided by the comptroller for such purpose, to\nbe covered by this section. To be effective, such form must be filed\nwithin one year after this section shall become law, or within one year\nfollowing the individual's commencement of eligible employment with the\npolice department in the town of Tonawanda, whichever is later. The\nbenefits hereinabove provided shall be payable to a member, unless at\nthe date of retirement, such member would otherwise be entitled to a\ngreater benefit under other provisions of this article had he withdrawn\nfrom this section, in which event such greater benefits shall be\npayable.\n b. Such members shall be entitled to retire upon the completion of\ntwenty-five years of total creditable service by filing an application\ntherefor in the manner provided for in section seventy of this article.\n c. Upon completion of twenty-five years of such services and upon\nretirement, each such member shall receive a pension which, together\nwith an annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of his or her\naccumulated contributions at the time of his or her retirement and an\nadditional pension which is the actuarial equivalent of the\nreserved-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he or she may then be\nentitled shall be sufficient to provide him or her with a retirement\nallowance equal to one-half of his or her final average salary.\n d. As used in this section "creditable service" shall include any and\nall services performed as a paramedic with the police department in the\ntown of Tonawanda.\n e. Credit for service as a member or officer of the state police or as\na 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, shall also be deemed to be\ncreditable service and shall be included in computing years of total\nservice for retirement pursuant to this section provided such services\nare performed by the member while contributing to the New York state and\nlocal police and fire retirement system pursuant to the provisions of\nthis article or article eight of this chapter.\n f. The town of Tonawanda shall certify to the comptroller,\nperiodically and at such intervals of time as may be required and in\nsuch fashion as may be prescribed, the identity of the paramedics in the\npolice department's employ.\n g. A member contributing on the basis of this section at the time of\nretirement, may retire after the completion of twenty-five years of\ntotal creditable service. Application therefor may be filed in a manner\nsimilar to that provided in section seventy of this article. Upon\ncompletion of twenty-five years of such service and upon retirement,\neach such member shall receive a pension which, together with an annuity\nwhich shall be the actuarial equivalent of his or her accumulated\ncontributions at the time of his or her retirement and an additional\npension which is the actuarial equivalent of the\nreserved-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he or she may then be\nentitled shall be sufficient to provide him or her with a retirement\nallowance equal to one-half of his or her final average salary. Upon\nretirement, each such member shall receive, for each year of service in\nexcess of twenty-five, an additional pension which shall be equal to\none-sixtieth of his or her final average salary; provided, however, that\nthe total allowance payable pursuant to this section shall not exceed\nthree-quarters of such member's final average salary.\n h. In computing the service of a member pursuant to this section full\ncredit shall be given and full allowance shall be made for service of\nsuch member in time of war after World War I as defined in section two\nof this chapter, provided such member at the time of his or her entrance\ninto the armed forces was in the service of the town of Tonawanda.\n i. Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent a member, who does not\nretire pursuant to the provisions of this section, from utilizing\nservice which is creditable service pursuant to the provisions of this\nsection for service credit pursuant to the provisions of any other plan\nof this article to which such member is subject.\n j. Impairments of health; presumption. Notwithstanding any provision\nof this chapter or of any general, special or local law to the contrary,\nany paramedic employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda\nwho is covered by the provisions of this section or subdivision s of\nsection six hundred four of this chapter and who contracts HIV,\ntuberculosis or hepatitis after contact with members of the public\n(where there may have been an exposure to a bodily fluid) will be\npresumed to have contracted such disease in the performance or discharge\nof his or her duties as the natural and proximate result of an accident\nsustained in the performance of duties unless the contrary be proven by\ncompetent evidence.\n k. 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 any\nparamedic employed by the police department in the town of Tonawanda who\nis covered by the provisions of this section or subdivision s of section\nsix hundred four of this chapter and who, prior to entry into such\nservice successfully passed a physical examination which 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 and the natural proximate result of an accident,\nunless the contrary be proved by competent evidence.\n l. A paramedic employed by the police department in the town of\nTonawanda who is covered by the provisions of this section or\nsubdivision s of section six hundred four of this chapter and is in a\nplan which permits immediate retirement upon completion of a specified\nperiod of service without regard to age or who is subject to the\nprovision of subdivision b of section four hundred forty-five of this\nchapter, shall upon completion of ninety days of service be covered for\nfinancial protection in the event of death in service pursuant to this\nsubdivision. Such death benefit shall be equal to three times the\nmember's salary raised to the next highest multiple of one thousand\ndollars, but in no event shall it exceed three times the maximum salary\nspecified in section one hundred thirty of the civil service law.\n m. The provisions of this section shall be controlling notwithstanding\nany other provisions in this chapter to the contrary.\n * NB There are 3 § 89-v's\n