N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 655: Survivor's benefit

§ 655. Survivor's benefit. 1. a. The term "state employee" as used in

this section shall mean a full time employee or officer of the state,

whose salary is paid directly by the state.

b. For the limited purposes of this section: (1) the term "state

employee" as used in this section include a full time employee or

officer of the state colleges of agriculture, home economics, industrial

labor relations and veterinary medicine, the state agricultural

experiment station at Geneva, and any other institution or agency under

the management and control of Cornell university as the representative

of the board of trustees of the state university of New York, and the

state college of ceramics under the management and control of Alfred

university as the representative of the board of trustees of the state

university of New York; (2) the payroll from which such employees are

paid shall be deemed to be a state payroll; and (3) such employees shall

be deemed to be paid directly by the state.

2. A survivor's benefit shall be payable upon the death of a state

employee who has been a state employee for ninety or more days and who

dies before the effective date of retirement, provided that such

employee:

a. Was on the state payroll for ninety or more days of the one hundred

twenty days immediately prior to his or her death, or

b. Had at least one year of service as a state employee and died while

on the payroll following his or her return from an authorized leave of

absence, or

c. Had at least one but less than five years of service as a state

employee since last entering state service and died while off the

payroll and while on an authorized leave of absence, provided such

person was not otherwise gainfully employed since ceasing to be on the

state payroll, and provided such person was on the state payroll within

six months prior to his or her death, or

d. Had five or more years of service as a state employee since last

entering state service, and died while off the payroll and while on an

authorized leave of absence, provided such employee was not otherwise

gainfully employed since ceasing to be on the state payroll, and

provided that such person was on the state payroll within one year prior

to his or her death.

e. For the purpose of determining eligibility for benefits under this

section, previous service rendered as an employee of an authority or

commission established under the public authorities law shall be

credited to a state employee as state service, provided such authority

or commission has in effect, at the time of death of such employee, a

provision for a survivor's benefit which is substantially equivalent to

that provided in this section and in which previous state service is

credited to authority or commission employees toward eligibility for

such survivor's benefit.

f. For the purposes of this subdivision, a state employee holding a

position having an annual salary payable over a period of less than

twelve months shall be considered to be on the payroll during any period

in which he would otherwise be on the payroll if the annual salary of

his position were paid over the full twelve months. For purposes of

paragraphs c and d of this subdivision, an employee shall not be deemed

to have been gainfully employed solely on account of the performance of

military duty in any capacity in the armed forces of the United States

or of any reserve thereof or in the national guard.

Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law to the contrary and

solely for the purpose of determining eligibility for a survivors

benefit, a member shall be considered to have died while on the state

payroll provided such member was on the payroll in the service upon

which membership is based at the time he or she was ordered to active

duty pursuant to Title 10 of the United States Code, with the armed

forces of the United States or to service in the uniformed services

pursuant to Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the United States Code and died

while on such active duty or service in the uniformed services on or

after June fourteenth, two thousand five.

Provided, further, that any such member ordered to active duty

pursuant to Title 10 of the United States Code, with the armed forces of

the United States or to service in the uniformed services pursuant to

Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the United States Code who died prior to

rendering the minimum amount of service necessary to be eligible for

this benefit shall be considered to have satisfied the minimum service

requirement.

3. The survivor's benefit shall be payable from the survivor's benefit

fund. The survivor's benefit shall be an amount which, when added to the

ordinary death benefit provided under any public pension plan to which

the deceased state employee belonged, equals one-half the annual rate of

compensation of the state employee as of the date he or she was last on

the payroll prior to death; provided, however, that such survivor's

benefit, when added to any ordinary death benefit payable from a public

pension plan to which such employee belonged, shall be at least two

thousand dollars and shall not exceed ten thousand dollars. Any benefit,

other than an accidental death benefit, payable by a public pension plan

in lieu of the ordinary death benefit shall, for the purposes of this

section, be deemed to be an ordinary death benefit. The portion of any

ordinary death benefit attributable to the

reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay shall be excluded in computing the

survivor's benefit.

4. The survivor's benefit payable under this section shall be paid to

such person or persons as the state employee shall have last nominated

to receive the ordinary death benefit of the retirement system or

pension plan supported by funds of the state of which such employee last

became a member, or if such employee did not nominate such a

beneficiary, or if such beneficiary has died, or if the employee was not

a member of such a retirement system or pension plan, to the person last

specifically designated by such employee to receive the survivor's

benefit under this section, on a form prescribed by the department of

audit and control and filed with the department or agency in which such

employee was last employed prior to death. In the event such a

designated beneficiary does not survive such employee, or if a

beneficiary was not designated, the survivor's benefit shall be payable

to the estate of the state employee or as provided in section thirteen

hundred ten of the surrogate's court procedure act.

5. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this section, in the case

of a state employee on whose account an accidental death benefit is

payable from a public pension plan to which the employee belonged, and

regardless of the length of service of the deceased employee, the

survivor's benefit shall be two thousand dollars and shall be payable to

the person or persons first receiving the accidental death benefit.

6. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, in the case of

an employee who enters or re-enters state service at sixty-five years of

age or over, the survivor's benefit shall not be payable unless such

employee has completed at least one year of continuous state service

following such entry or re-entry.

7. There is hereby established in the custody of the state comptroller

a special fund to be known as the survivor's benefit fund. Such fund

shall consist of such moneys as may be appropriated thereto by the

legislature and all other moneys received by such fund from any other

source pursuant to law. The fund shall be used exclusively for the

purpose of making survivor's benefit payments pursuant to this section

and section six hundred fifty-six and section six hundred fifty-seven of

this article. Moneys of the fund shall be paid out on the audit and

warrant of the state comptroller on vouchers approved by such state

comptroller.

8. If the survivor's benefit is paid for a deceased employee or

officer whose salary or compensation is paid from a special or

administrative fund other than the general fund or other than an income

fund of the state university or other than the mental hygiene services

fund, the cost of such benefit shall be charged against such other fund

or funds. If the amounts appropriated or allocable from such special or

administrative fund or funds are insufficient for such purpose, the

director of the budget may allocate such additional sums from such fund

or funds as may be necessary therefor; provided however, that no

transfer shall be made between two or more of such funds. Such amounts

shall be paid, at such times as required, to the state comptroller and

shall be credited to the survivor's benefit fund.

9. The state comptroller shall prescribe such regulations as may be

required for the effective administration and implementation of the

provisions of this section including the establishment of criteria for

determining eligibility of state employees. The state comptroller may

enter into agreement with other agencies to perform such duties as may

be necessary to implement the provisions of this section.

10. The provisions of this section shall apply to state employees who

die on or after April first, nineteen hundred sixty-two and before July

first, nineteen hundred seventy-four.