Section 902. Benefit enhancements


Latest version.
  • a.   1. An eligible employee (i) with a
      date of membership in a retirement system prior to July  twenty-seventh,
      nineteen  hundred  seventy-six  and (ii) who was in active service as of
      April first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-nine  and  continued  in  active
      service  with  a  public employer up to and including (A) October first,
      two thousand or,  if  earlier,  (B)  the  eligible  employee's  date  of
      retirement or death, if applicable, (but no earlier than June first, two
      thousand)  shall  receive one-twelfth of a year of additional retirement
      credit for each year of retirement credit for service rendered as of the
      date of retirement or death, if applicable, up to a maximum of two years
      of   retirement   credit.   Anything   in   the    preceding    sentence
      notwithstanding,  a  member  of  the New York state teachers' retirement
      system  with  a  date  of  membership  in  such  system  prior  to  July
      twenty-seventh,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-six (other than a member who
      has not rendered at least twenty days of credited service  in  any  plan
      year  beginning on or after July first, nineteen hundred ninety-two) who
      retires or dies, if applicable, on or after  June  first,  two  thousand
      shall  be  entitled to receive the additional retirement credit provided
      for in such sentence from such system.
        2. The additional retirement service credit provided for in  paragraph
      one  of  this subdivision shall not apply to (i) an employee who retires
      under a retirement plan which allows all members of such  plan,  without
      regard  to  position, a twenty year service retirement without regard to
      age or to (ii) an employee who retires under  a  retirement  plan  which
      allows  for  twenty-five  year  service retirement without regard to age
      when it has been determined that the criminal  law  enforcement  service
      creditable  for  such  employee  is in the aggregate more than fifty per
      centum for duties not as a correction officer.
        3.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision  of  law,  if  the  service
      retirement  benefit  of  an  eligible  employee  is subject to a maximum
      retirement  benefit,  the  additional   benefit   authorized   by   this
      subdivision  shall  be  computed by multiplying the final average salary
      times the number of years of service credit granted by this  subdivision
      times the benefit fraction of the plan under which the employee retires.
        b.  1.  An  eligible  employee  (i)  with  a  date  of membership in a
      retirement system on or  after  July  twenty-seventh,  nineteen  hundred
      seventy-six  and  (ii) who has ten or more years of membership or ten or
      more years of credited  service  with  a  retirement  system  under  the
      provisions  of  article fourteen or fifteen of this chapter shall not be
      required to contribute to a retirement system pursuant to  section  five
      hundred  seventeen  or  six  hundred  thirteen of this chapter as of the
      cessation date.
        2. No contribution made to a retirement system by an eligible employee
      prior to the eligible  employee's  cessation  date  shall  be  refunded,
      except as otherwise allowable pursuant to article fourteen or fifteen of
      this chapter.
        3.  Nothing  in  this  subdivision  shall  affect the obligation of an
      eligible  employee  to  repay  any  contributions  previously   refunded
      pursuant  to article fourteen or fifteen of this chapter with applicable
      interest pursuant to section six hundred forty-five of this  chapter  in
      the  event  such  person  rejoins  a  retirement system. Nothing in this
      subdivision shall affect the obligation of an eligible employee  to  pay
      such  amounts  as may be required by section five hundred seventeen, six
      hundred nine or six hundred thirteen of this chapter  or  by  any  other
      provision of law for service rendered prior to such employee's cessation
      date or for service rendered prior to such employee's date of membership
      at a time such employee was not a member of a retirement system.
    
        c. The benefit enhancements provided for in this section shall be made
      available  to  all  eligible  employees of a participating employer in a
      retirement system.