N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 513: Credit for service

§ 513. Credit for service. a. Part-time service.

1. A member who works less than full time, which for the purposes of

this article shall mean less than thirty hours a week, shall receive

retirement credit for such service in accordance with the following

provisions:

(i) A member employed on an hourly basis who works for five hundred or

more hours a year and who is on the payroll for a minimum of five months

in the year shall receive credit on a prorated basis, but in no event

shall less than six hours constitute a full day's retirement credit;

(ii) A member employed on a per diem basis who works at least sixty

days in a year and who is on the payroll for a minimum of five months in

the year shall receive retirement credit on a day-for-day basis, but in

no event shall less than six hours constitute a full day's retirement

credit;

(iii) If the annual salary of a member paid on a basis other than per

diem or per hour would be less than the product of the state's minimum

wage during such period and two thousand hours, the presumption shall be

that such a member is a part-time employee and any retirement credit

granted shall be prorated; provided, however, such a member shall not

receive greater credit than a member working on a per diem basis.

2. Except for retirement credit for military service as specified in

subdivision c of this section, a member shall not receive retirement

credit for any day that he is not on the payroll of the state, a

political subdivision thereof, or a participating employer.

Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, with respect to

members of the New York state employees' retirement system, teachers as

defined in section one hundred thirty-six of the civil service law,

employed full time for the school year, shall be deemed on the payroll

of the state, for twelve months in crediting retirement service credit

for service rendered. For the purposes of this paragraph the comptroller

shall define school year by regulation.

* 2-a. Except for retirement credit for military service as specified

in subdivision c of this section, a member shall not receive retirement

credit for any day that he is not on the payroll of the state, a

political subdivision thereof, or a participating employer.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary,

with respect to members of the New York state and local employees'

retirement system, a member who is employed by a community college as

defined in section six thousand three hundred one of the education law,

and who is in the classified service as that term is defined in section

forty of the civil service law, and who is employed for the full

academic year, full academic year shall mean the fall and spring

semesters during which academic courses are offered, shall be deemed to

be on the payroll of such community college for twelve months in

crediting retirement service credit for service rendered.

* NB There are 2 paragraph 2-a's in sb a

* 2-a. Except for retirement credit for military service as specified

in subdivision c of this section, a member shall not receive retirement

credit for any day that he is not on the payroll of the state, a

political subdivision thereof, or a participating employer.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, a

member of the New York state and local employees' retirement system who

is employed by a community college as defined in section six thousand

three hundred one of the education law, and who is in the unclassified

service of the civil service as defined in subdivision (i) of section

thirty-five of the civil service law, and who is employed for the full

academic year, full academic year shall mean the fall and spring

semesters during which academic courses are offered, shall be deemed to

be on the payroll of such community college for twelve months in

crediting retirement service credit for service rendered.

* NB There are 2 paragraph 2-a's in sb a

3. The membership of any member who is subject to the provisions of

this subdivision a, or to the provisions of any rule or regulation

promulgated and approved in accordance with the provisions of

subdivision e of this section, shall be continued and shall not be

terminated for so long as such member is actually in service during the

period this article is in effect.

4. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for the purposes of

retirement service credit, retirement contribution and final average

salary of members of the New York state and local employees' retirement

system, a member who has been granted service credit for a period of

time for which he or she received compensation or wages shall not lose

such credit by virtue of the fact that the employer has subsequently

been reimbursed by a workers' compensation carrier with respect to all

or a portion of the compensation or wages paid for such period.

5. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for the purposes of

retirement credit, retirement contribution and final average salary

under this chapter, the compensation of a member of the New York city

employees' retirement system who is either (i) a Triborough bridge and

tunnel member as defined in section six hundred four-c of this chapter

as added by chapter four hundred seventy-two of the laws of nineteen

hundred ninety-five or as defined in section six hundred four-c of this

chapter as added by chapter ninety-six of the laws of nineteen hundred

ninety-five or to whom article sixteen of this chapter is applicable, or

(ii) a New York city transit authority member as defined in section six

hundred four-b of this chapter, for the period during which he or she

receives a workers' compensation benefit shall be deemed to be the full

compensation or salary such employee would have earned or been entitled

to receive had he or she not received the workers' compensation benefit.

During the period of time a member receives payment of such workers'

compensation benefit, such member shall be deemed on the payroll in full

status for the aforementioned purposes.

b. Previous service. A member shall be eligible to obtain retirement

credit hereunder for previous service with a public employer if

retirement credit had previously been granted for such service or if

such service which would have been creditable in one of the public

retirement systems of the state, as defined in subdivision twenty-three

of section five hundred one of this article, at the time such service

was rendered, if the individual had been a member of such retirement

system and the member has rendered a minimum of two years of credited

service after July first, nineteen hundred seventy-six or after last

rejoining a public retirement system, if later; provided, however,

retirement credit may be granted for service which predates the date of

entry into the retirement system if such service is otherwise creditable

and was rendered by an employee of a public employer during which

employment he was ineligible to join a public retirement system provided

that such public employer was participating in a public retirement

system of the state at the time of such employment, or is so

participating at the time that credit for such previous service is being

sought.

* b-1. Employer pick-up of contributions in respect of previous

service or military service. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,

any member eligible to purchase credit for previous service with a

public employer pursuant to subdivision b of this section or to purchase

credit for military service pursuant to article twenty of this chapter,

may elect to purchase any or all of such service by executing a periodic

payroll deduction agreement where and to the extent such elections are

permitted by the retirement system by rule or regulation. Such agreement

shall set forth the amount of previous service or military service being

purchased, the estimated total cost of such service credit, and the

number of payroll periods in which such periodic payments shall be made.

Such agreement shall be irrevocable, shall not be subject to amendment

or modification in any manner, and shall expire only upon completion of

payroll deductions required therein. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any

member who has entered into such a payroll deduction agreement and who

terminates employment prior to the completion of the payments required

therein shall be credited with any service as to which such member shall

have paid the contributions required under the terms of the agreement.

* NB Takes effect upon notice of ruling by Internal Revenue Service --

expires per ch. 627/2007 §22

c. Creditable service. 1. A member shall not be eligible to obtain

credit for service with a public employer other than the state of New

York, a political subdivision thereof, a public benefit corporation, or

a participating employer; provided, however, military service with the

federal government may be credited pursuant to section two hundred

forty-three of the military law up to a maximum of four years; and

further provided that retirement credit may be granted for service with

an agency located within the state of New York currently specified in

law as providing retirement credit for service.

2. (i) A police/fire member shall be eligible to obtain credit for

service with a public employer described in paragraph one only if such

service, if rendered prior to July first, nineteen hundred seventy-six

by a police/fire member who was subject to article eleven of this

chapter, would have been eligible for credit in the police/fire

retirement system or plan involved.

(ii) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a

member of the New York city fire department pension fund subject to this

article shall be eligible to obtain credit for any period of allowable

service rendered as an EMT member, as such term is defined in paragraph

one of subdivision a of section six hundred four-e of this chapter, as

added by chapter five hundred seventy-seven of the laws of two thousand,

which immediately precedes service in the uniformed force of the fire

department and such service shall be deemed to be in service of the

uniformed force of the fire department for purposes of eligibility for

benefits and to determine the amount of benefits under the New York city

fire department pension fund, provided that such member pays or

transfers into the New York city fire department pension fund all member

contributions set forth in section five hundred seventeen of this

article plus interest, at a rate of five percent per annum. For a member

who transfers such contributions from the New York city employees'

retirement system to the New York city fire department pension fund or

for a member who withdraws such contributions from the New York city

employees' retirement system, such member's membership in the New York

city employees' retirement system shall cease upon such transfer or

withdrawal and such member shall retain no credited service in such

system.

(iii) The provisions of this paragraph shall apply to a member with

ten or more years of credited service in the New York city employees'

retirement system, notwithstanding the provisions of section six hundred

thirteen of this chapter or any other provision of law to the contrary.

(iv) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a

member of the New York city police pension fund subject to this article

shall be eligible to obtain credit for any period of service rendered as

a New York city school safety agent or supervisor of school safety

agents, a New York city corrections officer or supervisor of New York

city corrections officers, a New York city traffic enforcement agent or

supervisor of traffic enforcement agents, or in the New York city police

department cadet program in the title of police cadet program or police

cadet program II, which immediately precedes service in the uniformed

force of the New York city police department, and such service shall be

deemed to be in service of the uniformed force of the New York city

police department for purposes of eligibility for benefits and to

determine the amount of benefits under the New York city police pension

fund, provided that such member pays or transfers into the New York city

police pension fund all member contributions set forth in section five

hundred seventeen of this article plus interest, at a rate of five

percent per annum. For a member who transfers such contributions from

the New York city employees' retirement system to the New York city

police pension fund or for a member who withdraws such contributions

from the New York city employees' retirement system, such member's

membership in the New York city employees' retirement system shall cease

upon such transfer or withdrawal and such member shall retain no

credited service in such system.

d. To facilitate administration of the provisions of this section the

head of a retirement system may make interpretations of the provisions

of this section which are consistent with the intent of this section,

but such interpretations shall not take effect unless publicly

promulgated.

f. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any member of the New

York state and local employees' retirement system who is subject to the

provisions of this article and who is employed by a school district, a

board of cooperative educational services, a vocational education and

extension board, an institution for the instruction of the deaf and of

the blind as enumerated in section four thousand two hundred one of the

education law, or a school district as enumerated in section one of

chapter five hundred sixty-six of the laws of nineteen hundred

sixty-seven as amended to date, shall have their service credit for

service rendered on or after January first, nineteen hundred ninety

determined by dividing the number of days worked in a school year by one

hundred eighty. For the purpose of this section a school year will begin

on July first and end the following June thirtieth. No more than one

year of service may be credited during any such fiscal year. Credit for

service rendered before January first, nineteen hundred ninety shall be

determined in the same manner if a person eligible for such benefit

shall file the appropriate application with the state comptroller on or

before August second, nineteen hundred ninety-six and, within five years

of filing such application, make payment for all costs necessary to

finance the receipt of such service credit.

g. The provisions of paragraph one of subdivision a of this section

shall not apply to members of the New York city employees' retirement

system or the New York city board of education retirement system who are

subject to the provisions of this article. The crediting of service for

such members of such retirement systems shall be governed by the

applicable provisions of subdivision c of section 13-638.4 of the

administrative code of the city of New York, and the other applicable

provisions of such code and of the rules and regulations of such board

of education retirement system.

h. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any general

member in the uniformed correction force of the New York city department

of correction and any member of the uniformed force of the New York city

department of correction who is a New York city uniformed

correction/sanitation revised plan member, who is absent without pay for

a child care leave of absence pursuant to regulations of the New York

city department of correction shall be eligible for credit for such

period of child care leave provided such member files a claim for such

service credit with the retirement system by December thirty-first, two

thousand five or within ninety days of the termination of the child care

leave, whichever is later, and contributes to the retirement system an

amount which such member would have contributed during the period of

such child care leave, together with interest thereon. Service credit

provided pursuant to this subdivision shall not exceed one year of

credit for each period of authorized child care leave. In the event

there is a conflict between the provisions of this subdivision and the

provisions of any other law or code to the contrary, the provisions of

this subdivision shall govern.