N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 30: Participation by municipalities

§ 30. Participation by municipalities. a. A municipality may elect to

participate in the retirement system. Such election shall be exercised

by the adoption of a resolution approved by its local legislative body

and any other body or officer required by law to approve resolution of

such local legislative body. Upon the filing of a certified copy of such

resolution with the comptroller, such election shall be irrevocable, and

the municipality shall become a participating employer, subject,

however, to the conditions provided in this subdivision.

1. A municipality not participating in the retirement system prior to

October first, nineteen hundred fifty-three, and which has not provided

old-age and survivors insurance coverage for its employees, may, at the

time of making election to participate, exclude from eligibility for

membership in the retirement system such class or classes of offices and

positions for which membership in the retirement system is not made

mandatory by this article, as the municipality may specify in such

resolution. Participation by any such municipality which may exclude

from eligibility for membership any class or classes of its offices or

positions shall not become effective until such municipality shall have

entered into an agreement to provide old-age and survivors insurance

coverage for such class or classes of offices or positions in the manner

and to the extent provided by article three of this chapter.

2. Any municipality participating in the retirement system prior to

October first, nineteen hundred fifty-three, may, by the adoption of a

resolution in the manner herein provided and filed with the comptroller

prior to the time such municipality makes an agreement to provide

old-age and survivors insurance coverage for its employees, elect to

exclude from eligibility for membership in the retirement system any

class or classes of offices or positions for which membership in the

retirement system is not made mandatory by this article. Public notice

of the proposed adoption of any such resolution shall be given at least

three months prior to the adoption thereof. Officers and employees

holding offices or positions in any such excluded class or classes,

however, who are members of the retirement system at the time of the

filing of such resolution shall continue to be members of the retirement

system. Such resolution providing for such exclusion from eligibility

for membership shall not become effective, however, until such

participating municipality shall have entered into an agreement to

provide old-age and survivors insurance coverage for the class or

classes of offices or positions so excluded from eligibility for

membership in the retirement system in the manner and to the extent

provided by article three of this chapter.

3. The power to exclude employees from eligibility for membership in

the retirement system pursuant to paragraph one or paragraph two of this

subdivision a shall terminate on the day after the modification

extending the old-age and survivors insurance system to any position

covered by such system and held by an employee of a political

subdivision of the state (exclusive of one in a police officer's or

firefighter's position) is executed.

b. Participation by members of local pension systems.

1. In the event that sixty per centum of the members of any local

pension system petition to become members of this retirement system,

their participation may be approved in the manner provided by

subdivision a of this section.

2. As of the date such participation is approved:

(a) The operation of such local pension system shall be discontinued.

(b) The existing pensioners and annuitants of such local pension

system shall be continued and paid at their existing rates by this

retirement system.

(c) Any cash and securities to the credit of such local pension system

shall be transferred to this retirement system.

(d) The trustees or other administrative head of such local pension

system shall certify the proportion, if any, of the funds of such system

that represents the accumulated contributions of the members and the

individual shares of the members therein. Such shares shall be credited

to the respective annuity savings accounts of such members in this

retirement system. The balance of the funds so transferred to this

retirement system shall be offset against the liability on account of

existing pensioners, annuitants and active members. The resulting

liability so determined shall be the basis for the rate of deficiency

contribution of such county, city, town or village as determined

pursuant to section twenty-three of this article.

c. Participation by a municipality pursuant to this section shall

cover all agencies of the government of such municipality including the

free public library, if any, of such municipality, unless separate

participation by any such agency or school district public library has

been approved pursuant to section thirty-one, thirty-one-a or thirty-two

of this article.