N.Y. Retirement & Social Security Law § 89-d: Optional twenty year retirement plan for detective investigators, criminal investigators, senior criminal investigators, confidential cri...

§ 89-d. Optional twenty year retirement plan for detective

investigators, criminal investigators, senior criminal investigators,

confidential criminal investigators, assistant criminal investigators

and criminal investigators/arson in the office of a district attorney in

counties which have elected to provide same. (a) Any member who is a

detective investigator, criminal investigator, senior criminal

investigator, confidential criminal investigator, assistant criminal

investigator and criminal investigator/arson in the office of a district

attorney who is engaged directly in criminal law enforcement activities,

may elect to contribute to the retirement system on the basis of

retirement after the completion of twenty years of total creditable

service pursuant to this section within one year after the county

wherein he is so engaged elects to make the benefits provided herein

available. One year or more after the filing of an election, a member

may withdraw any such election by written notice duly acknowledged and

filed with the comptroller.

(b) On and after a county elects to make the benefits provided herein

available, every detective investigator, criminal investigator, senior

criminal investigator, confidential criminal investigator, assistant

criminal investigator and criminal investigator/arson in the office of a

district attorney, entering or re-entering service as such and within

one year from the date of entry or re-entry, may elect to contribute to

the retirement system pursuant to this section. One year or more after

the filing thereof, a member may withdraw any such election by written

notice duly acknowledged and filed with the comptroller.

(c) Elections shall be in writing and shall be duly executed and filed

with the comptroller.

(e) A member who elects or is required to contribute in accordance

with subdivision (a) of this section shall contribute, in lieu of the

proportion of compensation as provided in section twenty-one of this

article, a proportion of his compensation similarly determined. Such

latter proportion shall be computed to provide, at the time when he

shall first become eligible for retirement under this section, an

annuity equal to one-eightieth of his final average salary for each year

of creditable service and as a member rendered after the county wherein

he is engaged elected the provisions of this section and prior to the

attainment of the age when he shall first become eligible for

retirement. Such member's rate of contribution pursuant to this section

shall be appropriately reduced pursuant to section seventy-a of this

article for such period of time as the county wherein he is engaged

contributes pursuant to such section towards

pensions-providing-for-increased-take-home-pay. Such member's

contribution, reduced as aforesaid, shall also be appropriately further

reduced by any multiple of twenty-five percentum of such contribution,

reduced as aforesaid, which the county wherein he is engaged has elected

to contribute on his behalf in lieu of such member's contributions

pursuant to this subdivision. No such member shall be required to make

contributions after completing twenty years of such service, except as

is provided in subdivision (m) of this section.

(f) (1) A member then covered by the provisions of this section shall

be entitled to retire after the completion of twenty years of total

creditable service and shall retire upon attainment of age sixty-two by

filing an application therefor with the comptroller.

(2) Upon completion of twenty years of such service and upon

retirement, each such member shall receive a pension which, together

with an annuity which is the actuarial equivalent of his accumulated

contributions, if any, at the time of his retirement, and an additional

pension which is the actuarial equivalent of the

reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he may then be entitled, if

any, shall be sufficient to provide him with a retirement allowance

equal to one-half of his final average salary.

(3) Upon attainment of the mandatory retirement age of sixty-two

years, and upon retirement without completion of twenty years of such

service, each such member shall receive a pension which together with an

annuity which is the actuarial equivalent of his accumulated

contributions at the time of his retirement and an additional pension

which is the actuarial equivalent of the

reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he may then be entitled,

shall be sufficient to provide him with a retirement allowance equal to

one-fortieth of his final average salary for each year of creditable

service in a district attorney's office. Every such member shall also

be entitled to an additional pension for other service as provided under

paragraphs three and four of subdivision a of section seventy-five of

this article. This latter pension shall not increase the total allowance

to more than one-half of his final average salary.

(4) For the purpose only of determining the amount of the pension

provided in subdivisions (f) and (m) of this section, the annuity shall

be computed as it would be if it were not reduced by the actuarial

equivalent of any outstanding loan, and if it were not increased by the

actuarial equivalent of any additional contributions, and if it were not

reduced by reason of the member's election to decrease his annuity

contributions to the retirement system in order to apply the amount of

such reduction in payment of his contributions for old-age and survivors

insurance coverage.

(g) The entire additional cost for the increased pensions to members,

as provided by this section, shall be paid from additional contributions

made by the participating employer on account of such members. The

actuary of the retirement system shall compute the additional

contribution required for each member who elects to receive the special

benefits provided under this section. Such additional contributions

shall be computed on the basis of contributions during the prospective

service of such member 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 fiscal officer

of the participating employer. The amount thereof shall be included in

the annual appropriation of the participating employer for its district

attorney's office. Such amount shall be paid to the pension accumulation

fund of the retirement system.

(h) As used in this section "creditable service" shall include all

criminal law enforcement services performed as a detective investigator,

criminal investigator, senior criminal investigator, confidential

criminal investigator, assistant criminal investigator or criminal

investigator/arson in the office of a district attorney, provided,

however, that criminal law enforcement service shall only be creditable

when it aggregates fifty percentum or more of such service.

(i) 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 sheriff, undersheriff or

regular deputy sheriff or as a criminal investigator in the office of a

district attorney, 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 this

article or article eight of this chapter.

(j) The county wherein the member is engaged may, in its initial

action taken under this section or subsequent thereto, elect to assume

and pay all or part of the additional cost on account of service

rendered to the county prior to the effective date of such election and,

in addition, may in its initial action taken under this section or

subsequent thereto, elect to assume and pay all or any multiple of

twenty-five per centum of the additional cost on account of service

rendered on and after the effective date of such election. The county

shall pay the additional cost so assumed by any such election by means

of annual contributions which shall be determined by the actuary.

(k) A member contributing on the basis of this section at the time of

retirement, shall be retired on December thirty-first of the year in

which he attains sixty-two years of age. Application therefor may be

filed in a manner similar to that provided in section seventy of this

article.

(l) The benefits of this section shall be available only to those

members whose employer elects to provide such benefits by adopting a

resolution to such effect and filing a certified copy thereof with the

comptroller.

(m) Upon completion of twenty years of total creditable service and

upon retirement, each member covered by the plan provided by this

section shall receive, for each year of creditable service in excess of

twenty, but not more than ten such years, an additional retirement

allowance equal to one-sixtieth of his final average salary for each

such year of such service; provided, however, that this benefit shall be

available only after the county employing such member elects

specifically to provide this benefit. Member contributions, if any,

shall be computed in a manner consistent with subdivision (e) of this

section so as to provide an annuity of one hundred twentieth of final

average salary for each such year of service and employers shall have

the further option to reduce contributions in a manner similar to that

provided in said subdivision (e).

(n) Notwithstanding the provisions of article eleven of this chapter,

a detective investigator, criminal investigator, senior criminal

investigator, confidential criminal investigator, assistant criminal

investigator and criminal investigator/arson in the office of district

attorney that otherwise qualifies for retirement under this section may

retire after the completion of twenty years total creditable service

without regard to age with a retirement allowance equal to one-half of

such persons final average salary.

(o) The provisions of this section shall, subject to the provisions of

section seventy-six of this article, apply to members who, on and after

June first, nineteen hundred eighty-three retire or separate in vested

status from service with a participating employer who has elected to

provide the benefits hereunder.