N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 370: Superannuation retirement

§ 370. Superannuation retirement. a. Any member may retire if such

member shall have attained at least the minimum retirement age while in

service as a member, or while in federal service, or in the service of

the United Nations or other international organizations of which the

United States is a member, as a member continued pursuant to paragraph

one of subdivision f of section three hundred forty of this article or

while entitled to make application for a vested retirement allowance

pursuant to section three hundred seventy-six of this title. Any such

member desiring to retire shall execute and file with the comptroller an

application for retirement, which shall specify the effective date of

such member's retirement, which shall be not less than fifteen nor more

than ninety days subsequent to such date of filing. An application for

service retirement, filed hereunder in accordance with the provisions of

subdivision c of section sixty-two or subdivision f of section

sixty-three of this chapter, shall be processed in the regular manner,

provided that if the application filed simultaneously therewith under

either of such subdivisions is granted, then and in that event the

retirement allowance granted in accordance with the provisions of this

section shall be appropriately adjusted. Notwithstanding any other

provision of law, for any member who is eligible to retire, who has died

while in active service, and who has filed an application for service

retirement less than ninety days prior to death, the member's designated

option election beneficiary or beneficiaries, if an option election has

been filed prior to death, or the beneficiary or beneficiaries

designated for the death benefit, if no option election was filed prior

to death, shall have the option to choose the benefit provided by

service retirement rather than the death benefit, provided, however that

if the designated beneficiary elects the service retirement benefit such

person shall be required to choose an option as provided by law. If the

member's beneficiary or beneficiaries elect the service retirement

benefit, the member shall be deemed to have retired on the day before

the member's date of death. If there are multiple option beneficiaries

and such beneficiaries cannot agree on the choice between the death

benefit or the service retirement under an agreed upon option, the

service retirement benefit shall be payable under the option election

form filed by the member prior to such member's death. If there are

multiple death beneficiaries and such beneficiaries cannot agree on the

choice between the death benefit or the service retirement under an

agreed upon option, the death benefit shall be payable.

b. Any member who attains age seventy shall be retired on the first

day of the calendar month next succeeding such event. Such retirement

shall be on the basis of "Option One-half", unless the member files an

effective election pursuant to section three hundred ninety of this

article to retire on a different basis. If he shall have filed such an

election, his retirement allowance shall be computed in accordance with

the basis so selected by him. The provisions of this subdivision with

respect to mandatory retirement shall be inapplicable to a member of

this system who is an employee of the port of New York authority who was

a member of the state employees' retirement system prior to April first,

nineteen hundred sixty-seven.

c. Notwithstanding the provision of subdivision b of this section, the

state civil service commission may approve the continuance in service of

members who have attained age seventy. Such approvals shall be for

periods not to exceed two years each. No such approval shall be given

unless:

1. The head of the department in which the member is employed shall

file a written statement with the comptroller approving such

continuance, and

2. The medical board shall certify that such member is physically fit

to perform the duties of his position, and

3. The state civil service commission shall find that:

(a) Such member is less than seventy-eight years of age, and

(b) His continuance in service would be advantageous because of his

expert knowledge and special qualifications.

The service of any such member may, however, be terminated at any time

by the head of the department in which he is employed, upon sixty days

written notice of such member.