Section 89-B. Optional twenty year retirement plan for sheriffs, under-sheriffs, and regular deputy sheriffs in counties which have elected to provide same

(a) Any member who is a sheriff, under-sheriff
  or  a  regular  deputy  sheriff in any county 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  sheriff,  under-sheriff  or  regular  deputy  sheriff
  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.
    (d) A sheriff shall certify to the comptroller,  periodically  and  at
  such  intervals of time as may be required of him and in such fashion as
  may be prescribed, the identity of the regular deputy  sheriffs  in  his
  employ  who are engaged directly in criminal law enforcement activities,
  and shall likewise so certify to the  chief  executive  officer  of  his
  county  and  to  the  chairman  of the board or body of his county which
  appropriates the funds to pay for the plan's benefits.
    (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 such 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, except a sheriff, shall retire upon attainment
  of age sixty 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 years,
  or, in the case of a sheriff, upon attainment of the age of sixty 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  sheriff's  department.  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), 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 sheriff's
  department.  Such  amount shall be paid to the pension accumulation fund
  of the retirement system.
    (h) As used in this section "creditable service" shall include (1)  in
  the  case  of a sheriff or under-sheriff, any and all services performed
  as a sheriff and/or under-sheriff of  a  county  and  all  criminal  law
  enforcement  services performed as a regular deputy sheriff of a county,
  provided, however, that criminal law enforcement service shall  only  be
  creditable  when it aggregates fifty percentum or more of his service as
  a regular deputy sheriff and  (2)  in  the  case  of  a  regular  deputy
  sheriff,  all  criminal  law enforcement services performed as a regular
  deputy sheriff  of  a  county,  provided,  however,  that  criminal  law
  enforcement  service  shall  only be creditable when it aggregates fifty
  percentum or more of such service and any and all services performed  as
  a sheriff and/or under-sheriff of a county.
    (i)  Credit for service as a member or officer of the state police, or
  as a paid fireman, policeman 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 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, excepting a sheriff, 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  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 and 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) That portion of the pension  reserve  required  pursuant  to  this
  section  which  is in excess of the pension reserve that would have been
  required pursuant to section eighty-nine-a  of  this  article,  had  the
  number  been  covered thereunder, shall not be included in computing any
  benefit payable pursuant to the provisions  of  section  sixty  of  this
  article.
    (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 seventy and prior to June  first,  nineteen
  hundred  seventy-four  retire  or separate in vested status from service
  with a participating employer who has elected to  provide  the  benefits
  hereunder.