New York State Assembly

1998 Annual Report

Commitee on Governmental Employees

Sheldon Silver, Speaker
Eric N. Vitaliano, Chairman

Eric N. Vitaliano Assemblyman 60th District

THE ASSEMBLY STATE OF NEW YORK ALBANY

CHAIRMAN Committee on Govermental Employees

December 31, 1998 

Honorable Sheldon Silver
Speaker, New York State Assembly
932 Legislative Office Building
Albany, NY 12248

Dear Speaker Silver:

I am pleased to submit the 1998 Annual Report of the Assembly Committee on Governmental Employees. This was an extremely busy and productive year for the Committee.

The Committee initiated major reforms in retirement benefits for all public employees. Tier 4 equity, five year vesting, and death benefits to long-term public employees who die out of service, all became law this year. These new laws will be valuable to thousands of public employees and their families.

In addition, teachers who lost retirement benefits due to a break in service, most often to raise a family, will have their original benefits reinstated under a new law due to the Committee's leadership.

The financial well-being of retirees is always a concern to the Committee. This year the Committee fought for and won increased pension benefits for all public retirees which began in September of this year. Public retirees deserve increased benefits on a regular basis to assist them to meet the rising costs of living. The 1998 benefit increase is a step in that direction. I personally hope that benefit increases can be granted on a more regular basis in the years to come.

Many public employees work in very dangerous positions. This year the Committee led the fight to provide a 75% accidental disability retirement to police officers, firefighters, and New York City emergency medical technicians.

This annual report will provide greater details of these accomplishments and report on the numerous other proposals that the Committee put forth.

I look forward to building on this year's success in 1999. Bringing greater equity between retirement tiers and improving retiree pension benefits will be goals for the Committee in the next legislative session.

I extend my thanks to all the Committee members and the committee staff for their dedication and efforts. Our successes would not have been achieved without their great cooperation. I, also, thank you for your guidance and support which were instrumental to the accomplishments of the Committee during the 1998 Legislative Session.

With kind regards, I am

Sincerely,

Eric N. Vitaliano
Member of Assembly

1998 ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE
ASSEMBLY STANDING COMMITTEE ON
GOVERNMENTAL EMPLOYEES

Eric N. Vitaliano, Chairman

Members of the Committee

Committee Staff

Bernard H. Bryan, Legislative Coordinator
Edward J. Lilly, Principal Analyst
A. Joshua Erhlich, Associate Counsel
Jude A. Raphael, Senior Committee Assistant
Sharon Grobe, Committee Clerk
Sharif Soliman, Assistant Committee Clerk
Jodie Fritz, Program and Counsel Secretary

TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. Summary

The Assembly Standing Committee on Governmental Employees is responsible for legislation pertaining to civil service requirements and regulations, and to public pensions and the public pension systems. Proposals relating to the qualifications of public employees, disciplinary proceedings, the right to organize collective bargaining units, and ratifying collective bargaining agreements are examples of civil service legislation referred to the Committee. The Committee also reviews legislation pertaining to the governance of the public employee retirement systems in the State and New York City, as well as changes to pension benefits.

The Committee considered 526 and reported 245 legislative proposals in 1999. Of those proposals, 58 became law.

II. Retirement Benefits

A. Pension Benefit Increases

The retirement benefits of state and local public retirees are fixed at retirement and are increased only upon action of the Legislature. However, increases in the cost of living affect public retirees the same as they affect all others. This can and does place the retiree on a fixed pension in a difficult position. The last benefit increase granted to public retirees occurred through Chapter 119 of the Laws of 1995. The Committee's top priority was to increase retirees pension benefits in 1998.

The Committee set as its objectives a benefit increase that would apply equally to the retirees of each of the eight state and local public retirement systems, to provide the greatest assistance to whose who have suffered the most from inflation, and to grant more than a one time increase. Past benefit increases were one time increases with no guaranteed future increase. The Committee believed that this year more should be done.

Assembly bill 11300 (Silver, Vitaliano) was the product of those goals. It provided a benefit increase in 1998 to all who retired prior to 1994 and an additional increase in 1999, as well as including the 1994 retirees in the 1999 benefit increase. Unfortunately, the Senate rejected A.11300 but the concepts contained in it became the basis for active negotiations.

Assembly bill 11349 (Silver, Vitaliano) was the result of those negotiations and became Chapter 390 of the Laws of 1998. Chapter 390 provides a pension benefit increase beginning in September 1998 to those who retired prior to 1993 and, starting in September 1999, a benefit increase to those who retired in 1993. To be eligible for this increase in pension benefits, the retiree must be at least 62 years old or, if younger than 62, retired for a minimum of ten years. Persons who retired with a disability pension are eligible for the benefit increase, regardless of age.

Chapter 390 made other significant changes in addition to the benefits increase. First, the recipients of an accidental death benefit, other than police and firefighters (see II B., below), became eligible for a benefit increase for the first time. Second, the maximum pension to which the benefit increase applies was increased to $13,500 for 1998 and to $14,500 for benefits beginning in September 1999. Finally, the minimum pension for retirees of the New York State Teachers' Retirement System who retired before July 1,1970 was increased to $300 times the number of years of service to a maximum of 35 years. Commencing in September 1999 this minimum pension will increase to $350 per year of service.

B. Police and Fire Accidental Death Benefit

The survivors of a police officer or firefighter who was killed in the line of duty are granted an accidental death benefit. Since 1978, the Legislature has provided a cost-of-living increase in this benefit. Chapter 313 of the Laws of 1998 (A. 9487-A / Crowley) continues that cost of living increase for the coming year to the widow or widower and children of police officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty.

C. Tier Equity

Within the retirement systems, retirement benefits are different depending on the date of membership in the retirement system. There are four basic membership provisions in the law, commonly referred to as Tiers 1, 2, 3, and 4. Tier 4 limits benefits in two significant ways when compared to the other tiers.

First is the manner in which benefits are calculated. Retirement benefits under Tiers 1, 2, and 3 are determined by multiplying the number of years of service by 1.67% through nineteen years of service. This formula changes to 2% for each year of service at 20 years. However, the change to the 2% formula does not change in Tier 4 until the employee has 25 years of service.

The second difference pertains to the benefit reduction imposed should an employee wish to retire prior to age 62. Tier 2 imposes a benefit reduction of 27% if retirement taken at age 55. The Tier 4 benefit reduction at age 55 is 38%.

The Committee believed that both of these differences should be eliminated. The Committee reported and the Assembly passed Assembly bill 11128 (McEneny) to accomplish that goal. Unfortunately, the Senate would not act upon A.11128.

After a series of negotiations, the Committee brokered an agreement to provide that a Tier 4 member would be eligible for a pension of 2% for each year of service at 20 years, rather than 25 years of service. That bill (A.7907-B / Vitaliano) became Chapter 266 of the Laws of 1998.

D. Five Year Vesting

A person who vests in the retirement system is eligible for a retirement benefit when he/she reaches retirement age. Prior law required an employee to have ten years of service credit before being vested. Pursuant to federal law, a private employer must vest its employees after only five years of employment. The Committee believed that a five year vesting requirement was appropriate for public employees, also.

Chapter 389 of the Laws of 1998 (A.11130 / Colton) changed New York's vesting requirement to five years of service credit. This law makes it easier for all employees to vest in the retirement system.

Service credit is based on the number of hours worked in a year. Thus, part-time and seasonal employees obtain only a fraction of a year's service credit depending on the amount of time worked each year. Therefore, these employees had to be employed for more than ten years to obtain ten years of service credit making it very difficult to vest in the retirement system. Chapter 389 will be extremely valuable to part-time and seasonal employees.

E. Out of Service Death Benefits

A death benefit is granted to the survivors of a retirement system member who dies while publicly employed. However, should a member of the retirement system die while not publicly employed, no benefit is paid. The Committee believed that this law was extremely harsh, especially to the survivors of persons who had long term public employment. In addition, the lack of an out of service death benefit did not conform to Federal law which pertains to private pensions.

For example, the survivor of a retirement system member who is entitled to a retirement benefit but dies out of public service and before he/she begins to collect his/her pension is not entitled to a death benefit. However, the survivor of an employee who dies while in public service is eligible for a death benefit. The Committee believed this disparate treatment to be unfair and was successful this year in changing the law.

Chapter 388 of the Laws (A.11129 / Vitaliano) provides that the survivor of a person who has at least ten years of service credit with a public retirement system and who dies while not publicly employed shall be entitled to a death benefit equal to 50% of the benefit the individual was entitled to receive on his/her last day of employment.

The Committee believes that Chapter 388 eliminates a great injustice to those employees and their families who provided many years of dedicated public service. The retirement systems were obligated to pay a retirement benefit upon reaching retirement age. It is only fair that the retirement system pay a death benefit to the survivors of long term public employees should they die before retirement age. The Committee takes great satisfaction in achieving this goal which it championed for many years.

F. Early Retirement Incentive

The Committee reported and the Governor signed into law an extension of the 1997 early retirement incentive plan. Chapter 47 of the Laws of 1998 (A.9537 / Vitaliano) permits the State to offer retirement incentive to its employees and permits localities to opt into the early retirement incentive plan. The benefits and qualifications are the same as contained in 1997 early retirement incentive law (Chapter 41 of the Laws of 1997) and the opt in periods for local governments are advanced one year.

This law provides one additional month of retirement service credit for each year of service the employee has in public employment, up to a maximum of 36 months of additional retirement credit, as an incentive to employees to accept early retirement. In addition, the employee has to be at least 50 years old, have 10 years of employment, be on the payroll of the employer, and retire prior to a date set by the public employer.

State Employee Specifics

Chapter 47, for executive branch employees, prohibits the re-filling of a position vacated by the early retirement incentive unless another state employee is transferred into the vacated position. In that instance, the position from which a person transferred is to be eliminated.

This law, also, permits the executive branch to offer more than one period to accept early retirement. The purpose of this provision is to meet the needs of the state in managing its workforce and the delayed effective dates of possible office reductions or closing.

Local Government Specifics

Also, Chapter 47 permits local governments to provide the early retirement incentive to its employees but it does not require the elimination of the positions from which the employee retired. Rather, the law permits local governments to replace employees who accept early retirement if a 50% savings of base salary in each of the following two years can be demonstrated.

G. Tier Reinstatement

The Retirement and Social Security Law (RSSL) provides that membership in the retirement system expires when a member has not worked for a participating employer for seven consecutive years, except in the New York City Teachers' Retirement System (NYC TRS) where membership is lost after five years of inactivity.

The Committee believes that this loss of membership has worked a hardship on persons who left public service to raise a family because when they returned to public service were placed in a less advantageous retirement tier.

Chapter 640 of the Laws of 1998 A.6896-B / Vitaliano) resolved this inequity by reinstating members of the New York State and New York City Teachers' Retirement Systems to their original tier if they had a prior retirement system membership.

H. Retroactive Membership Re-Opener

Section 803 of the RSSL permitted retirement system members who were not afforded the ability to join the retirement system when they were first employed to seek retroactive membership. Enacted in 1993, Section 803 required individuals to apply for retroactive membership prior to October 23, 1996. The Committee has received numerous inquiries since the close of the application period from persons who may have been eligible for retroactive membership but were unaware of the law.

Assembly bill 9799-A (Vitaliano) proposed to re-open the application period until December 31, 1999. Unfortunately, the Governor vetoed this proposal (Veto #1400) which was designed to provide proper retirement benefits to those who were denied membership to the retirement systems when first employed. The Committee will continue its efforts during the 1999 Legislative Session to rectify this issue.

I. Accelerated Death Benefit

A death benefit is paid to the survivors of a member of a public retirement system. However, there are times when a member is diagnosed with a terminal illness and may need the proceeds of the anticipated death benefit to deal with medical expenses or other personal matters.

Chapter 616 of the Laws of 1998 (Assembly bill 5534 / Vitaliano) permits a member of the NYS or NYC Teachers' Retirement Systems to request payment of a death benefit if the member has been diagnosed with a terminal illness with a life expectancy of 12 months or less or with a medical condition requiring extraordinary care or treatment. The Committee expects that this new law will assist those with severe medical conditions to live out their life in a dignified manner.

III. Accidental Disability Benefits

Specific public employees face dangers to employment related accidents on a daily basis. Often the employment related accident will result in the person's inability to continue working in their profession. This year the Committee recognized three employee functions deserving of a 75% accidental disability retirement allowance.

Chapter 489 of the Laws of 1998 (A.9731-A / Vitaliano) provides this benefit to members of the NYS&L Police and Fire Retirement System. Chapter 587 of the Laws of 1998 (A.6947-C / Vitaliano) confers the accidental disability retirement to emergency medical technicians employed by the City of New York.

However, a proposal (A.9798 / Vitaliano) to permit counties to grant the same accidental disability retirement benefit to its sheriff, undersheriff, deputy sheriffs, and correction officers on a local option basis was vetoed by the Governor (Veto # 1411).

IV. Retiree Benefits

A. Educational Retirees Health Insurance

In recent years, many public employers have abandoned their long-standing policy of providing health insurance coverage for retirees in an attempt to contain or reduce health insurance costs. There is no statutory requirement that public employers provide health care coverage to retirees which allows public employers to unilaterally lessen or even eliminate health insurance benefits to retirees. The Committee strongly believes that protecting retirees from the loss or diminution of health care benefits is important.

Chapter 729 of the Laws of 1994 protects school district retirees by prohibiting school districts from reducing health insurance contributions or changes in benefit plans, unless similar changes for active employees are made. That law was set to expire on May 15, 1998. Because a long-term equitable solution could not be reached, the Committee urged that the law be extended for another year.

Chapter 68 of the Laws of 1998 (A.9167 / Weinstein) extends that law until May 15, 1999.

B. Health Insurance Protection for Other Retirees

The Committee believes that all public employees, not just school district retirees, should be protected from unilateral increases in health insurance premiums or decreases in health services. In response, the Committee reported and the Assembly passed Assembly bill 4215-A (Vitaliano) to prohibit any public employer from diminishing the health insurance benefits provided to retirees and their dependents or the contributions for health insurance premiums unless there is a corresponding change applicable to active employees in the period between May 15, 1998 and May 15, 1999.

Unfortunately, the Senate did not act on this measure. The Committee will press for the passage of this legislation again in the 1999 Legislative Session.

C. Retiree Earnings Limitation

Many public retirees return to public employment after retirement because they have valuable skills and/or depend on employment to supplement their pension income. However, state law prohibits a retiree from receiving a pension and a public salary, unless special permission is granted or the income is less than a specified amount.

Chapter 91 of the Laws of 1998 (A.9219, Harenberg) increases from $14,500 to $15,500 the amount which a retiree who returns to public service can earn from public employment in 1999 without a loss in pension benefits. This increase provides greater earning capabilities to retirees and is consistent with the earnings limitation in the federal Social Security program.

V. Civil Service

A. Comparable Worth

The Committee believes that positions in the public sector which require similar skills and education are positions of comparable worth and should receive the same pay. Unfortunately, disparities exist and often those positions which have been predominately filled by women are paid less than comparable positions dominated by men.

A public hearing jointly held by the Assembly Governmental Employees', Labor, and Governmental Operations Committees revealed troubling situations where women dominated positions are paid substantially less in salary even though the employment requirements are equal to or greater than positions that are dominated by men. In particular, there was testimony that school nurses and secretaries were paid less than maintenance workers and grounds keepers of the same employer, although the training and educational requirements and the responsibilities and skills of the nurses and secretaries surpassed that of the maintenance and groundskeeper staff.

Salaries for positions of comparable worth must be comparable. Discrimination based on stereotyped gender roles is inappropriate in the eyes of the Committee.

In response to this, the Committee reported and the Assembly passed two bills which will end this systematic underpayment of work that lowers the paycheck of many the state's working women.

Assembly bill 810 (Katz) would require the president of the Civil Service Commission to annually determine those segregated titles for which a disparity exists based on comparable value of work performed and then to provide an estimated cost to correct any disparity.

Assembly bill 9822 (Katz) proposes that it will be an unlawful discriminatory practice for any public employer in this state to discriminate between employees on the basis of sex, by paying any employee in any occupation a wage that would be less than the salary at which other employees of the opposite sex are paid.

Unfortunately, the Senate did not act on either proposal. The Committee will work for passage of these bills again next year.

B. Binding Arbitration

1. Police and Firefighters

Binding arbitration for all local police officers and firefighters was initially adopted in 1974 (Chapter 724 of the Laws of 1974). The purpose of the law was to provide a fair method for resolving contract disputes involving police and firefighters and in turn to avoid strikes by employees who provide critical public safety services. Although municipalities were originally given the authority to enact local binding arbitration procedures, those local mechanisms developed have proven to be inadequate.

Chapter 641 of the Laws of 1998 (A.9867-A / Crowley) assures that consistent and fair binding arbitration procedures are available to all local police and firefighters by providing that the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) is the administrative agency to administer disputes which reach an impasse during collective negotiations.

2. Sheriff Deputies

Assembly bill 2992 (Lentol), which passed the Assembly, proposed to improve collective bargaining procedures between counties and its deputy sheriffs. The bill would have allowed a county or deputy sheriffs who are engaged directly in criminal law enforcement activities to enter into binding arbitration in a collective bargaining impasse. Unfortunately, the Senate failed to act on this measure.

The Committee will continue its efforts to have this measure enacted in 1999.

C. Classification of SUNY Employees

The Chancellor of SUNY has the authority to re-classify positions from the classified service to the unclassified service without independent review.

The Committee strongly believes that this unfettered authority can lead to anomalies which are inconsistent with the merit system. Therefore, the Committee reported Assembly bill 6946-A (Vitaliano) to provide that any state university position in the classified service which the Chancellor of the state university seeks to designate as unclassified must by approved by the Civil Service Commission. The Civil Service Commission process is a fair and objective means of classifying positions. This bill protects the merit and fitness provisions of the New York State Constitution, while still allowing SUNY the necessary flexibility for attracting the most qualified employees.

Assembly bill 6946-A became Chapter 656 of the Laws of 1998.

D. Permanent Status of Sheriff Department Investigators

Chapter 134 of the Laws of 1997 provided that police officers who are assigned as a detective for 18 months or more shall receive permanent appointment to that position if a civil service exam for that title is not held.

Chapter 612 of the Laws of 1998 (A.10760 / Vitaliano) provides the same civil service status to deputy sheriffs who are assigned to the title of detective for 18 months. Additionally, the bill would only apply in jurisdictions that do not administer exams for the designation of detective or in instances where an examination has not been conducted since September 23, 1990.

As with Chapter 134, this legislation would not interfere with any jurisdiction which chooses to administer an exam for the position of detective and investigator. Each county would have the option to promote deputy sheriffs to the position of detective or investigator through a civil service exam or on the job training and evaluation.

VI. Employee Benefits

A. Long Term Health Care

Long term health care is extremely important to the Committee because the number of individuals who are or will likely become candidates for long term care within the next 30 years will be far more than that experienced anytime in history. The ability of individuals to pay for long term health care is extremely difficult and may require public programs to pay for many of the costs related to this care.

Long term care insurance policies permit an individual to protect themselves from the financial devastation caused by the costs of long term care.

Chapter 585 of the Laws of 1998 (A.10916, Cook) directs the state Department of Civil Service to contract with insurance companies to provide long term health care coverage to employees who participate in the state health insurance plan. This plan would be an optional salary deduction to cover premiums.

VII. Employee Contracts

This year, two state contracts were finalized and approved by the Legislature.

A. SUNY Professional Services

Chapter 7 of the Laws of 1998 (A.8916, Sullivan E.) implements the collective bargaining agreement between the United University Professions (UUP), which represents employees of the State University of New York Professional Service Negotiating Unit (PSNU) and New York State.

In general, the contract provides for a 3.5% salary increase in January 1998 and in January 1999. The contract also specifies that full-time members will receive a non-recurring lump sum payment of $1250 and part-time members may receive a lump sum payment of up to $1250. Additionally, there will be a lump sum payment of up to $625 to part-time employees for the fall 1997 and spring 1998 semesters.

B. State Police Senior Investigators

Chapter 45 of the Laws of 1998 (A.10283, Vitaliano) implements the binding arbitration agreement between the State and investigators and senior investigators of the Division of State Police.

Chapter 45 establishes new salary scales for investigators and seniors investigators effective April 1, 1998 and a 3.2% increase on January 1, 1999.

VIII. Outlook for 1999

The Committee will continue its efforts in 1999 to provide meaningful and predictable pension benefit increases to state and local public retirees. It is unfair to make retirees wait three or more years for another benefit increase when the cost of living continues to increase.

The Committee, also, will work to complete its efforts in tier equity. This year the early retirement benefit reduction in Tier 4 was not made equal to the Tier 2 early retirement benefit. Accomplishing this will be a 1999 goal.

The protection of health insurance benefits for all retirees will continue to be a concern to the Committee. Legislation to assure health insurance in retirement years will be advanced by the Committee.

Numerous provision of the Taylor Law must be reviewed in 1999. The Committee will undertake the necessary review of those provisions and make recommendations to the full Assembly for its action.

 Appendix A

 1998 Committee Workload

Appendix B

All Bills To Pass Both The Assembly And Senate

Bill #	Description	Final Action
A. Pension Benefits
1. General Administration
A.6192-A Vitaliano	Permits persons who failed to claim service credit for employment under the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act in a timely manner to file an application for such credit.	Chapter 291
A.7907-B Vitaliano	Improves the Tier 4 benefit structure by providing a pension of 2% times the number of years of service after the completion of 20 years of public service.	Chapter 266
A.8939 Vitaliano	Provides that the amount of contributions made by Tiers 3 and 4 retirement system members on wages which are excluded from the computation of final average salary shall be refunded to members.	Veto # 1414
A.9537 Vitaliano	Permits the state, local governments, school districts, and public authorities to provide a retirement incentive plan in 1998 and continues the authority of the state to transfer state employees among agencies and departments.	Chapter 47
A.9799-A Vitaliano	Would have extended the application period for retirement system members to seek retroactive membership from October 1996 until December 31, 1999.	Veto # 1400
A.10780-B Tocci	Permits members of a public retirement system in New York state to purchase up to 3 years service credit for military service performed during a period of war.	Chapter 644
A.11058 Feldman	Provides that a member of the New York State and Local Employees Retirement System (NYS&L ERS) who retired for service from the New York City Employees Retirement System (NYC ERS) or the New York City Board of Education Retirement System (NYC BERS) shall be eligible to transfer such service credit to the NYS&L ERS.	Chapter 379
A.11120 Vitaliano	Makes technical corrections to the early retirement incentive legislation which became Chapter 47 of the Laws of 1998. (See A.9537)	Chapter 109
A.11129 Vitaliano	Provides a death benefit to members of a public retirement system in New York state who are vested and die while not in public service prior to receiving retirement benefits.	Chapter 388
A.11130 Colton	Reduces from 10 to 5 years the amount of service credit required to have vested status in a public retirement system in New York state.	Chapter 389
A.11349 Silver	Increases the pension benefits to those who retired prior to 1994 from any public retirement system in New York state.	Chapter 390
2. Disability Benefits
A.5341-A Weinstein	Provides a three-quarters accidental disability benefit to peace officers of the Unified Court System who are injured in the line of duty.	Veto # 1410
A.9731-A Vitaliano	Provides a 75% accidental disability benefit for Tier 2 police officers and firefighters who are injured in the line of duty.	Chapter 489
A.9798 Vitaliano	Permits counties to provide a 75% accidental disability benefit for county sheriffs, undersheriff, deputy sheriffs, or correction officers injured in the line of duty and provides the assumption that tuberculosis, hepatitis, and HIV were contracted in the line of duty.	Veto # 1411
3. 20 and 25 Year Plans
A.4675-A DiNapoli	Permits counties to provide a half-pay retirement plan for probation officers with 25 years of service credit, without regard to age.	Chapter 603
A.6391-B Faso	Would have permitted Columbia County to provide a 25 year, half-pay retirement plan for communication officers employed by the Columbia County sheriffs department.	Veto # 1383
A.6443-A Weisenberg	Permits Nassau County fire marshals to retire with a half-pay retirement benefit after 25 years of eligible service credit, without regard to age.	Veto # 1402
A.7624-A Vitaliano	Provides safety officers of the Office of Mental Health and the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities with a 25 year, half-pay retirement plan without regard to age.	Chapter 657
A.7673-A Harenberg	Permits Suffolk County to provide a 20 year, half-pay retirement plan, without regard to age to park rangers of that county.	Veto # 1416
A.10141 Faso	Provides that members of the Columbia County Sheriff's Department shall be credited for all years of service while employed with the sheriff's department.	Chapter 325
A.10683 Sweeney	Permits counties to provide a 20-year retirement plan for county correction officers.	Veto # 1412
A.10715 Weisenberg	Includes Nassau Counties employees who perform ambulance medical technician related services in the optional 25-year retirement plan for emergency medical technicians employed by the Nassau County Police Department.	Chapter 578
4. Police and Fire Pensions
A.9487-A Crowley	Increases the accidental and special accidental death benefits paid to survivors of police officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty.	Chapter 313
A.9838 Tocci	Extends until June 30, 1999, the presumption that certain cancers resulting in disability or death of a firefighter are incurred in the performance of duty.	Chapter 113
A.10690 DiNapoli	Permits members of the Division of State Police to receive service credit for time spent as a New York City police officer.	Chapter 527
A.10889-A Bragman	Would have granted State police officers with retirement credit for prior service as a deputy sheriff.	Veto # 1397
5. NYS Teachers' Retirement System (NYS TRS)
A.5534-A Vitaliano	Permits a member of the NYS TRS or NYC TRS who is diagnosed as having a terminal illness to be paid his/her death benefit.	Chapter 616
A.6896-B Vitaliano	Would reinstate a member of the NYS or NYC Teachers' Retirement System to their original date of membership in such retirement system where the member's date of membership was terminated.	Chapter 640
A.9600 Harenberg	Authorizes the NYS TRS to adopt an excess benefit plan.	Chapter 595
A.9621-A Vitaliano	Provides that the retired teacher elected as the alternate retiree to the NYS TRS Board of Trustees shall serve out the remainder of the unexpired term of the retired member of such board in the event that the elected retired member is unable to serve due to disability, disqualification, or death. This law, also, makes technical amendments to the election process of the retiree member of the Board of Trustees.	Chapter 205
A.9622 Vitaliano	Extends from 3 to 12 months the time in which Tier 4 members of the NYS TRS may apply for a disability retirement.	Chapter 330
B. New York City Pensions
1. Employees Retirement System (NYC ERS)
A.6947-C Vitaliano	Provides a 75% accidental disability benefit for New York City emergency medical technicians injured in the line of duty and provides the presumption that tuberculosis, hepatitis, and HIV were contracted in the line of duty.	Chapter 587
A.10915 Aubry	Establishes an administrative medical review procedure in the NYC ERS to review disability applications to determine the applicant's disability in relation to his employment.	Chapter 607
2. Educational Employees
A.4790-A Glick	Provides an accidental disability retirement allowance of two-thirds of a member's final average salary where the member is a Tier 4 teacher who is not eligible for Workers' Compensation benefits.	Veto # 1415
A.5116-A Weinstein	Increases from 5 to 7 years the amount of time that a member of the NYC Teachers' Retirement System may remain out of public service before they are terminated from that retirement system.	Chapter 366
A.10863 Colton	Permits members who have retired from the NYC BERS to have membership dues to a retiree organization deducted from their retirement allowance.	Chapter 342
3. Police and Firefighters
A.8264-C Rules	Provides that a member of the New York City Fire Department Pension Fund may obtain past service credit for time served in another public retirement system.	Chapter 404
A.10919 Vitaliano	Provides a fixed schedule of variable supplement payments to NYC fire officers with 20 or more years of service.	Chapter 500
A.11155 Vitaliano	Provides for the transfer of pension monies between the NYC police and fire pension funds when there is a transfer of service credit.	Chapter 645
4. Public Authorities
A.8541-A Colton	Provides that members of the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA) and the NYC Transit Authority (TA) shall be deemed on the payroll in full status while receiving Workers' Compensation benefits.	Chapter 300
A.8716-B Vitaliano	Provides that in the 25 year /age 55 retirement plan for employees of the New York City Transit Authority that the additional 2.3% contribution shall be eliminated by July 1, 2000.	Veto # 1417
A.9839-A Vitaliano	Allows employees of the New York City TA to withdraw from the 25-year/age 55 retirement plan and be refunded all membership contributions.	Veto # 1403
A.10168-A Vitaliano	Eliminates the Tier 2 "60/50/40" pension limitations for Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) members.	Veto # 1405
A.10674-A Vitaliano	Permits the employees of the TBTA who are members of the 20 year/age 50 retirement plan who have not paid all additional member contributions prior to retirement to retire without loss of benefits provided that the deficiency amounts are paid through pension benefit withholdings.	Chapter 329
A.10761 Vitaliano	Provides a 20 year/age 50 retirement plan to maintenance workers of the TBTA.	Veto # 1408
C. Retiree Benefits
A.9167 Weinstein	Extends until May 15, 1999, the prohibition that a school district, board of cooperative educational services, vocational education, or extension board of a school district decrease health benefits provided to retirees and their dependents.	Chapter 68
A.9219 Harenberg	Increases from $14,500 to $15,500 the amount of income a public retiree may earn in the public service, without subjecting them to loss, suspension or reduction of retirement benefits in 1999.	Chapter 91
D. Civil Service
1. State Legislation
A.5185-A Parment	Provides that the Division of Criminal Justices Services shall issue equivalency certificates to peace officers who successfully completed a basic training program for police officers.	Chapter 421
A.6946-A Vitaliano	Provides that any state university position in the classified service which the chancellor of the state university seeks to designate as unclassified must be approved by the state Civil Service Commission.	Chapter 565
A.7834 Hill	Provides that Nassau County employees who are transferred to Nassau Health Care Corporation will remain in the collective bargaining unit that existed prior to the transfer.	Chapter 551
A.9867-A Crowley	Would transfer jurisdiction of labor disputes between municipalities and its police force or organized fire department from the municipality to the New York State Public Employment Relations Board.	Chapter 641
A.10760 Vitaliano	Provides that deputy sheriffs who are assigned to the title as detectives for 18 months to be permanently designated as such.	Chapter 612
A.11395 Vitaliano	Provides that employees transferred to the Office of Technology from another state agency shall retain their rights on promotion lists of such former agency.	Chapter 228
2. New York City Legislation
A.5459-B Seminerio	Would have provided that lieutenants assigned to investigatory positions for 18 months shall receive the title of commander detective squad and shall be compensated as such.	Veto # 1385
A.6422-B Seminerio	Would have provided that sergeants assigned to investigatory positions for 18 months or more shall receive the title of supervisor detective squad and shall be compensated as such.	Veto # 1386
A.10786 Vitaliano	Provides that contract compensation payments be made in a timely fashion to non-teaching employees of the Board of Education.	Chapter 530
A.10904 Vitaliano	Protects long-term provisional employees in the competitive class from arbitrary discipline and discharge from their jobs by an employer.	Veto # 1406
E. Employee Benefits
A.6875 DiNapoli	Permits unpaid board members of a public authority to participate in the state health insurance plan.	Chapter 534
A.8696 Griffith	Provides that employees of the Division of State Police may make contributions to the Trooper Foundation - State of New York, Inc., a not-for-profit organization.	Chapter 613
A.10916 Cook	Provides that public employees who are eligible for the state health insurance plan with an option to buy additional long term care insurance.	Chapter 585
F. Re-openers of Local 20-Year Retirement Plans The following laws permit localities to re-open the 20-year retirement plans (Section 384, RSSL) to police officers and firefighters who, through no fault of their own, were not included in that plan. The locality indicated below submitted a home rule message to the Legislature and will be responsible for all costs associated with the re-opening of the retirement plan.
A.8453-B Canestrari	City of Rensselaer (Rensselaer County)	Chapter 302
A.8837 Miller	Village of Red Hook (Dutchess County)	Chapter 304
A.9297 Winner	Village of Horseheads (Chemung County)	Chapter 307
A.9340 Manning	Village of Chatham (Columbia County)	Chapter 339
A.10739-A Tonko	City of Schenectady (Schenectady County)	Chapter 334
A.11356 Guerin	Town of Woodstock (Ulster County)	Chapter 625
G. Employee Contracts
A.8916 Sullivan, E.	Implements the collective bargaining agreements negotiated between the State and the United University Professions (UUP) which represents members of the Professional Services Negotiating Unit (PSNU).	Chapter 7
A.10283 Vitaliano	Enacts the salary arbitration award for investigators and senior investigators of the State Police.	Chapter 45
H. Individual Legislation
A.8386-B Kirwan	Requires Edmund Haase to designate Virginia Haase as the beneficiary of his retirement allowance.	Chapter 549
A.9840-A Bragman	Permits the NYS&L ERS to accept the application for a disability retirement from Bonnie S. Sutliff as if it were filed in a timely manner.	Chapter 372
A.9940-A Luster	Permits Robert M. Foster to change his retirement option thus naming his present wife as beneficiary.	Chapter 624
A.10729 Keane	Grants Geraldine Memmo Tier 2 membership in the NYS&L ERS.	Chapter 491
A.10796 Butler, M.	Allows employees of the Town of Schuyler to claim past service credit in the NYS&L ERS.	Veto # 1409
A.10982 Faso	Permits Joseph A. Santoro to participate in the optional 25-year retirement plan offered by the Schoharie County Sheriff's Department.	Chapter 457
A.11333 Rules	Grants Tier 1 retirement credit to certain public employees.	Chapter 507

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