N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 551: Optional retirement of certain members

§ 551. Optional retirement of certain members. a. Any member may elect

to contribute to the retirement system on the basis of retirement upon

his or her completion of twenty-five years of total creditable service

on an allowance of one-fiftieth of his or her final average salary for

each year of total service as a member but not exceeding in the

aggregate one-half of his or her final average salary. Any member of the

retirement system may elect to become a member pursuant to the

provisions of this section within one year after he or she becomes a

member, if his or her employer has elected to make the benefits provided

herein available to members, or within one year after his or her

employer elects to make the benefits provided herein available to its

members.

b. Elections made pursuant to this section shall be in writing and

shall be duly acknowledged and filed with the comptroller. Any member

who files such an election pursuant to this section may withdraw it

after it has been filed for at least one year. Such withdrawal shall be

by written notice duly acknowledged and filed with the comptroller.

c. The member's employer by appropriate action shall, in its initial

action under this section, elect to assume all of the additional cost on

account of service as a member rendered prior to the effective date of

such election and in any subsequent action, shall elect to assume all of

the additional cost on account of service as a member of any such other

prior department or force rendered prior to the effective date of such

subsequent election. The employer shall pay the additional cost so

assumed by any such election by means of annual contributions which

shall be determined by the actuary of the retirement system and paid by

the employer in the same manner as the contributions required under this

chapter.

d. For actuarial purposes relative to rates or amounts of

contributions to the funds of the retirement system, service of a member

making an election pursuant to this section shall, as to his or her

service and status subsequent thereto, be deemed continuous and

constant. If the continuity of such service be interrupted or such

status be changed, however, appropriate changes as may be necessary for

actuarial purposes shall be made in such rates and amounts.

e. In the event a member shall continue in service after twenty-five

years of total creditable service, there shall be added to his or her

pension upon retirement a sum equal to one-sixtieth of his or her final

average salary for each completed additional year of service after

twenty-five years; provided, however, that upon completion of

twenty-five years of total creditable service, a participating employer

may elect to provide any service credit earned with a public employer

prior to services performed as a sheriff, undersheriff or deputy sheriff

towards the one-sixtieth allowance and provided, further that the total

allowance payable pursuant to this section shall not exceed

three-quarters of such member's final average salary.

f. The increased pension provided for in subdivision e hereof shall be

conditioned upon the participating employer electing to provide this

added benefit and assuming the additional cost thereof on account of all

of the members. Such increased pensions to the members shall be paid

from additional contributions made by the appropriate participating

employer on account of such members. The actuary of the retirement

system shall compute the additional contributions for each employer who

elects to provide the special benefits so provided. Such additional

contributions shall be computed on the basis of contributions during the

prospective service of such members which will cover the liability of

the retirement system for such extra pensions. Upon approval of the

comptroller, such additional contributions shall be certified by him to

the chief fiscal officer of the participating employer. The amount

thereof shall be included in the annual appropriation of the

participating employer for members. Such amount shall be paid on the

warrant of the chief fiscal officer of the participating employer to the

pension accumulation fund of the retirement system.

g. Any member may, within one year after he or she becomes a member or

within one year after his or her employer assumes the additional cost

therefor, whichever shall last occur, elect to receive the additional

benefits provided for by subdivision e hereof. Any member who elects to

receive such benefits shall be separated from service on the first day

of the calendar month next succeeding his or her attainment of age

sixty-two and the completion of twenty-five years of service, provided,

however, that in the case of any member who attained the age of

sixty-two before his or her employer assumed the additional cost

therefor, or who attains the age of sixty-two within one month after his

or her employer assumes the additional cost therefor, to be eligible for

additional pension credit under subdivision e of this section, his or

her service shall be terminated and he or she shall be retired within

three months after his or her employer assumes the additional cost

therefor.

h. 1. As used in this section "creditable service" shall include, any

and all services performed as a sheriff, undersheriff or deputy sheriff,

provided, however, that criminal law enforcement service shall only be

creditable when it aggregates fifty per centum or more of his or her

service as a deputy sheriff. Credit for service as a member or officer

of the state police or as a paid firefighter, police officer or officer

of any organized fire department or police force or department of any

county, city, village, town, fire district or police district, or as a

criminal investigator in the office of a district attorney, provided

that service as such investigator shall have been rendered prior to

January first, nineteen hundred sixty and that credit therefor shall not

exceed five years, shall also be deemed to be creditable service and

shall be included in computing years of total service for retirement

pursuant to this section, provided such service was performed by the

member while contributing to the retirement system pursuant to the

provisions of this article or article eight of this chapter.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph one of this

subdivision, a participating employer may elect on a form filed with the

comptroller for that purpose to provide that creditable service shall

also include any and all service performed by a deputy sheriff who is a

police officer pursuant to subdivision thirty-four of section 1.20 of

the criminal procedure law as certified by the municipal police council

or as certified by the police department of the city of New York upon

satisfactory completion of the basic training program and graduation

from the New York city police academy.

i. In computing the twenty-five years of completed service of a

member, full credit shall be given for military service as defined in

subdivisions twenty-nine-a and thirty of section three hundred two of

this chapter.

j. The provisions of this section shall be controlling notwithstanding

any provision of this chapter to the contrary.

k. The benefits hereinabove provided shall be payable to a member,

unless at the date of retirement, such member would otherwise be

entitled to a greater benefit under other provisions of this chapter had

he or she withdrawn from this section, in which event such greater

benefits shall be payable.