Section 343. Transfer of members between systems

a. Notwithstanding any
  other provision of law  providing  for  transfers,  any  member  of  any
  retirement  system  maintained  by  the state or a municipality thereof,
  operating on a sound financial basis and subject to the  supervision  of
  the  insurance  department  of  this  state  may  transfer  his  or  her
  membership pursuant to this section to the  New  York  state  and  local
  employees'  retirement  system,  the  New  York  city board of education
  employees' retirement system, the New York  state  teachers'  retirement
  system,  the  New York state and local police and fire retirement system
  or to the New York city employees' retirement system. Any member of  the
  New  York state and local police and fire retirement system may transfer
  his or her membership to any retirement system, other than the  hospital
  retirement system, which is operating on a sound basis and is subject to
  the  supervision  of  the insurance department of this state. Any police
  officer employed by the metropolitan transportation authority who  is  a
  member  of  the  MTA  police  twenty  year  retirement  program  of  the
  metropolitan  transportation  authority  defined  benefit  pension  plan
  (hereinafter  referred  to in this section as the "MTA police retirement
  program") may transfer his or her membership in the New York  state  and
  local  police and fire retirement system and/or the New York city police
  pension fund to the MTA police retirement program. Any transfer pursuant
  to this section may be effectuated only if the  member  has  accepted  a
  position in another branch of the state or municipal service which would
  make it:
    1.  Impossible  for him or her to continue in the retirement system of
  which he or she has been a member, and
    2. Possible for him or her to participate in another such system.
    Notwithstanding the foregoing  provisions  of  this  subdivision,  any
  employee  who  would  be  eligible  to  avail  himself or herself of the
  provisions of this section but for being on leave of absence status from
  a prior employment while in his or  her  present  employment,  shall  be
  permitted  to  transfer his or her retirement system membership pursuant
  to the provisions of this section.
    b. 1. In order to effect such a transfer, a member must give notice to
  the administrative head of the retirement system of which he or she is a
  member, prior to  his  or  her  withdrawal  therefrom,  of  his  or  her
  intention to enter such other retirement system within one year.
    2.  If  a member of the New York city police pension fund is trying to
  effect a transfer from such pension fund to the  MTA  police  retirement
  program,  the  member must give notice to the administrative head of the
  New York city police pension  fund,  prior  to  his  or  her  withdrawal
  therefrom, of his or her intention to enter such other retirement system
  within  one  year  or  within  one  year  of  the effective date of this
  paragraph.
    3. In the case of a person who has withdrawn from a retirement  system
  and  has  been entitled to at least thirty years of total service credit
  in such system, however, such notice may be  given  within  three  years
  from  the  time  of  such  withdrawal. In the case of a person who was a
  member of a retirement system, and who while under such status becomes a
  member of such second retirement system, and who has not  withdrawn  his
  or her contributions to the first such retirement system, any provisions
  of  law  notwithstanding,  such  notice  may  be given on or before June
  thirtieth, nineteen hundred sixty-seven. A person so  transferring  from
  one  retirement  system to another shall be deemed to have been a member
  of the system to which he or  she  has  transferred  during  the  entire
  period  of  membership service credited to him or her in the system from
  which he or she has transferred. Such  transferee,  however,  shall  not
  receive more than three percent interest on his or her contributions and

  accumulated  contributions  unless  he  or  she  has continuously been a
  member in either the system  from  which  or  to  which  he  or  she  is
  transferring  since  a  date  prior  to  July  first,  nineteen  hundred
  forty-three.  This  shall  not  be  construed to prevent a change in the
  interest rate to such member if  the  interest  rate  payable  to  other
  members of the system to which he or she has transferred is changed. Any
  member  who heretofore transferred from one retirement system to another
  shall, commencing with  the  effective  date  of  this  subdivision,  be
  entitled  to  the  same  rights,  privileges  and benefits, and shall be
  subject  to  the  same  obligations,  as  a  transferee  who   hereafter
  transfers.  He  or she shall receive no credit for prior service, except
  as hereinafter provided. He or she shall be permitted to deposit in  the
  second  retirement  system  the total amount of his or her contributions
  withdrawn from the first retirement system. Upon such deposit within one
  year or within three years, or on or  before  June  thirtieth,  nineteen
  hundred sixty-seven, as the case may be, he or she or the administrative
  head of the system to which he or she desires to transfer, shall request
  the  administrative  head  of the first retirement system to transfer to
  the second  retirement  system  a  credit  on  account  of  his  or  her
  membership in such system.
    c.  Upon  the  request  for  a transfer of credit, the reserve on such
  member's  benefits,  computed  as  though  he   had   not   discontinued
  membership,  shall  be  determined by the actuary of the first system in
  the following manner:
    1. The total  present  value  of  all  benefits  allowable  under  the
  retirement  system  as the result of contributions made or to be made by
  his employer shall be computed.
    2. From such total present value there shall be deducted  the  present
  value of the future contributions which would be payable by his employer
  on  such  member's  account  had  he  become  a member of the retirement
  system, subsequent  to  its  establishment,  at  the  age  at  which  he
  originally  entered  the service of his employer. The result so obtained
  shall be  considered  as  the  reserve  on  his  account  in  the  first
  retirement system.
    d.  Such  reserve  shall  be  transferred from the appropriate fund or
  funds of the first system to the appropriate fund or funds of the second
  system within one year from the date of the request for  a  transfer  of
  credit.  Such member, thereupon, shall be given such status and credited
  with such service in the second retirement system as he was  allowed  in
  the first retirement system. Such contributor, notwithstanding any other
  provision  of  law,  shall  on  retirement  after  three years of member
  service in the second retirement system be entitled to a  pension  based
  on  salary  earned during member service in either retirement system, or
  in both retirement systems together, whichever may produce  the  greater
  pension  pursuant to the statutory requirements of the second retirement
  system. No such contributor, however, shall be entitled,  on  retirement
  within  three  years of the date of his transfer, to a greater or lesser
  pension for such service rendered before his transfer than he would have
  received had he remained under  the  pension  provisions  of  the  first
  retirement system.
    e.  1.  A  "New York city member," as defined in subdivision twenty of
  section two hundred forty-three of the military law, who shall  transfer
  to  another  retirement  system  pursuant to this section shall be given
  credit, upon such transfer, for the period of  military  duty  to  which
  such member would have been entitled pursuant to such subdivision twenty
  if  he  had  remained,  until  the  time  of death or retirement, in the
  retirement system from  which  he  shall  so  transfer.  The  amount  of
  reserves  to  be transferred under this section for such credit shall be

  computed in accordance with this section, shall include pension reserves
  for such military duty, and shall be credited by the  retirement  system
  to  which the member shall transfer in accordance with the provisions of
  such  system  governing credit for service in world war II, and the city
  of New York,  or  the  authority,  by  which  such  member  is  employed
  immediately  prior  to  the transfer, shall pay to the retirement system
  the amount of the reserve to be transferred on account of such  military
  service.
    2.  Any  retirement system from which a member shall transfer pursuant
  to this subdivision shall have the right to require reasonable proof  of
  military  service,  pay  status,  and  any other information relevant to
  eligibility for such transfer of credit for military duty.
    3. The provisions of this subdivision e shall apply  only  to  a  "New
  York  city member" who has rendered service as an officer or employee of
  the city of New York (or any agency thereof) or public corporation,  the
  officers  or employees of which are eligible for membership in a pension
  or retirement system maintained by such city, including  performance  of
  such  military  duty,  for at least fifty per centum of the time between
  his commencement of such service and the date upon which he has attained
  or shall attain age fifty-five.
    f. Notwithstanding any other  provisions  of  law,  a  member  of  the
  retirement  system  in  the  employ  of the state on March thirty-first,
  nineteen hundred seventy, other than a member of  the  state  police  in
  collective negotiating units established pursuant to article fourteen of
  the  civil service law, who would have been entitled to transfer service
  credit from another retirement system pursuant to this  section  had  he
  made  a  timely  election,  may  obtain such credit by depositing in the
  retirement system an amount equal to the  contributions  withdrawn  from
  the  system  of  which he had been a member, with regular interest. Such
  deposit shall be made on or before March thirty-first, nineteen  hundred
  seventy-two,  provided,  however,  such member may elect to deposit such
  amount over a period of time no greater than the period for which credit
  is being claimed. Such  payments  must  commence  no  later  than  March
  thirty-first,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-two. If the full amount is not
  paid to the retirement system, the amount of service credited  shall  be
  proportional to the total amount of the payments made.
    g. This subdivision shall apply only to individuals who, subsequent to
  vesting  in  a retirement system, transfer to a second retirement system
  whose governing laws require a greater number of  years  of  credit  for
  vesting  than those of the first system, and who, upon such transfer, do
  not have the number of  years  of  service  credit  that  is  ordinarily
  required to vest in such second retirement system.
    1.  Upon  transfer, the number of years of service credit required for
  the transferred  individual  to  attain  vested  rights  in  the  second
  retirement  system  shall  be the same as the number of years of service
  credit  required,  under  applicable  law,  for  vesting  in  the  first
  retirement system.
    2.  In  the event that an individual covered by this subdivision makes
  application to retire from such second system  prior  to  attaining  the
  amount  of  service  credit that would otherwise be necessary to vest in
  such second retirement system, and such individual is otherwise eligible
  to retire from such second system, the application shall be granted, and
  benefits shall be calculated pursuant to the applicable subdivisions  of
  this  section  on  the  basis of the actual amount of service credit the
  individual has accrued at the time of  retirement.  Transferred  service
  credit  shall  not be creditable under any plan in the second retirement
  system that it would not otherwise be creditable under.

    h. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to  the  contrary,  with
  respect  to  transfers  pursuant to this section which occur on or after
  the effective date of this subdivision, no determination  of  a  reserve
  pursuant  to  subdivision c of this section or transfer thereof pursuant
  to the first sentence of subdivision d of this section shall be required
  in  the  case  of  any  transfer  pursuant to this section (other than a
  transfer from the New York state and local police  and  fire  retirement
  system  to either (1) the New York city police department subchapter two
  pension fund, (2) the New  York  city  fire  department  subchapter  two
  pension fund or (3) the MTA police retirement program or a transfer from
  either  (i)  the  New York city police department subchapter two pension
  fund or (ii) the New York city fire department  subchapter  two  pension
  fund  to  either  (A)  the  New  York  state  and  local police and fire
  retirement system or (B) the MTA police  retirement  program).  For  the
  purpose of giving the transferring member such status and crediting such
  service  in  the  second retirement system as such member was allowed in
  the first retirement system in those cases  to  which  this  subdivision
  shall  apply,  the transfer shall be deemed complete upon receipt by the
  second retirement system of:
    1. a statement from the first retirement system  of  the  transferring
  member's date of membership in the first retirement system, tier status,
  service  credited  to  such membership being transferred, and such other
  information as the second retirement system may  require  to  effectuate
  the transfer; and
    2.  such  member's accumulated contributions from the first retirement
  system, if same had not been previously withdrawn, or  notice  from  the
  first   retirement   system   that   such   member  had  no  accumulated
  contributions, or notice from the  first  retirement  system  that  such
  member's  accumulated  contributions  had  been withdrawn and the amount
  thereof and, as applicable, receipt from such member  of  such  member's
  accumulated contributions and interest.