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STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________

5088--A

2011-2012 Regular Sessions

IN ASSEMBLY

February 11, 2011
___________

Introduced  by M. of A. ABBATE, COLTON -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A.
  AUBRY -- read once and  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Governmental
  Employees -- recommitted to the Committee on Governmental Employees in
  accordance  with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill
  amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
  tee

AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law and the education
  law,  in  relation to providing beneficiaries with the same allocation
  of retirement benefits if the member has the service retirement appli-
  cation, disability retirement applications or  option  election  forms
  postmarked prior to his or her death

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding
a new section 74-a to read as follows:
  S 74-A. APPLICATIONS AND ELECTIONS; ISSUES DUE TO DEATH.   WHENEVER  A
STATUTE  REQUIRES THAT A DOCUMENT MUST BE FILED OR MONEYS DEPOSITED WITH
THE SYSTEM WITHIN A PRESCRIBED PERIOD OF TIME OR BY A SPECIFIED DATE  IN
ORDER  FOR  A MEMBER TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICE CREDIT OR A BENEFIT FROM
THE SYSTEM THE DOCUMENT SHALL BE DEEMED FILED OR  THE  MONEYS  DEPOSITED
WITH  THE  SYSTEM  ON  THE DAY THEY ARE CLEARLY POSTMARKED BY THE UNITED
STATES POSTAL SERVICE AS THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM MAY  SPECIFICALLY  PERMIT
BY  RULE  OR  REGULATION. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS HEREOF, NO SUCH
DOCUMENT SHALL BE DEEMED FILED OR MONEYS DEPOSITED WITH  THE  SYSTEM  ON
THE  DAY OF MAILING UNLESS ACTUALLY RECEIVED BY THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM AS
A RESULT OF SUCH MAILING.
  S 2. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding a new
section 374-a to read as follows:
  S 374-A. APPLICATIONS AND ELECTIONS; ISSUES DUE TO DEATH.  WHENEVER  A
STATUTE  REQUIRES THAT A DOCUMENT MUST BE FILED OR MONEYS DEPOSITED WITH
THE SYSTEM WITHIN A PRESCRIBED PERIOD OF TIME OR BY A SPECIFIED DATE  IN

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD07883-02-2
A. 5088--A                          2

ORDER  FOR  A MEMBER TO BE ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICE CREDIT OR A BENEFIT FROM
THE SYSTEM THE DOCUMENT SHALL BE DEEMED FILED OR  THE  MONEYS  DEPOSITED
WITH  THE  SYSTEM  ON  THE DAY THEY ARE CLEARLY POSTMARKED BY THE UNITED
STATES  POSTAL  SERVICE AS THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM MAY SPECIFICALLY PERMIT
BY RULE OR REGULATION. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS  HEREOF,  NO  SUCH
DOCUMENT  SHALL  BE  DEEMED FILED OR MONEYS DEPOSITED WITH THE SYSTEM ON
THE DAY OF MAILING UNLESS ACTUALLY RECEIVED BY THE RETIREMENT SYSTEM  AS
A RESULT OF SUCH MAILING.
  S 3. Subdivision 19 of section 508 of the education law, as amended by
chapter 248 of the laws of 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  19.  Whenever  a  statute  requires  that  a document must be filed or
moneys deposited with the system within a prescribed period of  time  or
by  a  specified  date  in order for a member to be eligible for service
credit or a benefit from the system the document shall be  deemed  filed
or  the  moneys  deposited  with  the system on the day they are [mailed
through]  CLEARLY  POSTMARKED  BY  the  United  States  postal   service
[provided  the  mailing is by registered or certified mail or such other
equivalent service provided by the United States postal service] as  the
retirement board may specifically permit by rule or regulation. Notwith-
standing  the  provisions hereof, no such document shall be deemed filed
or moneys deposited with the system on the day of mailing unless actual-
ly received by the retirement system as a result of such mailing.
  S 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
  FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
  This bill would amend certain filing  requirements  of  the  New  York
State  and  Local  Employees'  Retirement  System (ERS) and the New York
State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System (PFRS) by setting  the
date  of  filing as the date of postmark for any document that has to be
filed, or payment that has to be made by a specified date  or  within  a
prescribed time period.
  If  this  bill is enacted, we anticipate that the cost impact would be
negligible. The cost would be shared by the State of New  York  and  all
participating employers in the ERS and PFRS.
  Summary of relevant resources:
  Data:  March  31,  2011  Actuarial Year End File with distributions of
membership and other statistics displayed in  the  2011  Report  of  the
Actuary and 2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report.
  Assumptions  and  Methods:  2010  and  2011 Annual Report to the Comp-
troller on Actuarial Assumptions, Codes Rules  and  Regulations  of  the
State of New York: Audit and Control.
  Market  Assets and GASB Disclosures: March 31, 2011 New York State and
Local Retirement System Financial Statements and Supplementary  Informa-
tion.
  Valuations  of Benefit Liabilities and Actuarial Assets: summarized in
the 2011 Actuarial Valuations report.
  I am a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and meet the Quali-
fication Standards to render the actuarial opinion contained herein.
  This estimate, dated November 14, 2011,  and  intended  for  use  only
during  the  2012  Legislative  Session,  is  Fiscal  Note  No. 2012-15,
prepared by the Actuary for the New  York  State  and  Local  Employees'
Retirement  System  and  the  New  York  State and Local Police and Fire
Retirement System.