532. Supplemental retirement allowance. a. A supplemental retirement allowance shall be paid to pensioners who have retired from the retirement system prior to the calendar year nineteen hundred ninety-four. Such supplemental retirement allowance shall be payable on the basis provided for herein, commencing with a payment for the month of September, nineteen hundred ninety-nine and continuing through the month of August, two thousand. Said supplemental retirement allowance shall be a percentage of the retirement allowance otherwise payable, computed without optional modification, but excluding any annuity derived from voluntary contributions made by members, except those made pursuant to elections under subdivision one of section five hundred eleven-a or paragraph c of subdivision three of section five hundred sixteen of this article. Said percentage, for each calendar year of retirement, is set forth in subdivision b of this section. Said supplemental retirement allowance shall be computed on the basis of the first fourteen thousand dollars of such annual retirement allowance and shall be payable commencing September first, nineteen hundred ninety-nine to all disability pensioners and recipients of an accidental death benefit, and to other pensioners who have attained age sixty-two or who have been retired for ten or more years and have attained age fifty-five.
b. 1. In calculating the supplemental retirement allowance in accordance with subdivision a of this section, the following percentages will be used for each calendar year of retirement, as appropriate: Calendar year of retirement Percentage 1993 1.5 1992 1.5 1991 1.5 1990 1.5 1989 2.8 1988 3.7 1987 4.5 1986 5.5 1985 6.3 1984 7.4 1983 8.3 1982 10.5 1981 12.5 1980 15.6 1979 19.9 1978 25.4 1977 30.3 1976 37.8 1975 42.5 1974 54.0 1973 73.0 1972 86.0 1971 96.7 1970 105.0 1969 141.8 1968 169.0 1967 195.9 1966 203.7 1965 230.5 1964 254.5 1963 278.6 1962 310.0 1961 330.0 1960 340.0 1959 390.0 1958 427.3 1957 442.3
The supplemental retirement allowance shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar.
1-a. For those pensioners retired from the retirement system prior to the calendar year nineteen hundred fifty-seven the percentage referred to in this section shall be determined by the ratio of two indexes, in the following manner. The average of the twelve monthly consumer price indexes of the calendar year nineteen hundred ninety-five divided by the average of the twelve monthly consumer price indexes of the calendar year of retirement shall be the ratio of the indexes. Said ratio, minus one, shall be expressed as a percentage and shall be adjusted to the lower one-tenth of one per centum. Such adjusted percentage shall be the percentage of the retirement allowance, computed without optional modification, which is payable as a supplement. Such percentage shall be computed by the actuary and certified to the retirement board which shall, by directive, promulgate a schedule of percentages by year of retirement to be used for this purpose. The supplemental retirement allowance shall be rounded off to the nearest dollar.
c. The benefits herein above provided for shall be in lieu of the benefits presently provided by section five hundred ten and articles four and six of the retirement and social security law, unless such benefits are in excess of those provided by this section, in which latter case such benefits shall be paid by the retirement system pursuant to this section.
d. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the widow or widower of a deceased retired teacher, who had elected one of the options under section five hundred thirteen of this article which provides that benefits are to be continued for life to the widow or widower after the death of the teacher, shall be entitled to receive a monthly supplemental retirement allowance pursuant to this subdivision. Such monthly supplemental retirement allowance shall commence (1) with the payment for the month of September, nineteen hundred seventy-eight, or (2) the month following commencement of widowhood or widowerhood, whichever is later. The amount of the supplemental retirement allowance provided by this subdivision shall be one-half of the amount which would have been payable to the retiree as a supplemental retirement allowance, had he or she survived.
e. 1. Each pensioner of the retirement system who retired before July first, nineteen hundred seventy shall be paid, commencing with a payment for the month of July two thousand one a basic supplemental pension, the total of which when added to his yearly retirement allowance computed without optional modification, but excluding any annuity derived from contributions made by members pursuant to paragraphs a and b of subdivision three of section five hundred sixteen, section five hundred twenty-eight, section five hundred twenty-nine, section five hundred thirty, section five hundred thirty-three and section five hundred thirty-five of this article, shall equal the lesser of seventeen thousand five hundred dollars or the sum of five hundred dollars multiplied by the number of years of full-time New York state service not to exceed thirty-five years with which he was credited at the time of his retirement.
2. The benefits provided for pursuant to this subdivision shall be in lieu of the benefits provided by articles four and six of the retirement and social security law, subdivisions a, b and c of this section, and subdivision f of section five hundred thirty-two-a of this article, unless such a retired member would be eligible to receive a greater benefit pursuant to any of such provisions, in which latter case this subdivision shall not apply.
f. Contributions shall be made to the supplemental retirement allowance fund by, or on account of, each employer at a rate computed by the actuary and approved by the retirement board, which shall be computed to be sufficient to provide the benefits established by this section which are payable during the period of time that this section shall be in effect. The retirement board may from time to time transfer sufficient monies from the pension accumulation fund to the supplemental retirement allowance fund to meet the obligations imposed by this section. Such advances shall be restored to the pension accumulation fund pursuant to paragraph a of subdivision two of section five hundred twenty-one of this article.
g. 1. Commencing July first, nineteen hundred eighty-three, an additional supplemental pension shall be paid to those pensioners who on June thirtieth, nineteen hundred eighty-three were receiving supplemental benefits computed pursuant to article four of the retirement and social security law or computed pursuant to paragraph one of subdivision e of this section as it read prior to amendment by chapter four hundred seven of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy-seven. Such additional supplemental pension shall equal ten percent of the total of the supplemental pension paid to such pensioner pursuant to article four of the retirement and social security law or paragraph one of subdivision e of this section as it read prior to amendment by chapter four hundred seven of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy-seven, and the yearly retirement allowance computed without optional modification, but excluding any annuity derived from voluntary contributions made by members, pursuant to paragraphs a and b of subdivision three of section five hundred sixteen, section five hundred twenty-eight, section five hundred twenty-nine, section five hundred thirty, section five hundred thirty-three and section five hundred thirty-five of this article.
2. The benefits provided pursuant to paragraph one of this subdivision shall be in lieu of the benefits provided by any other provision of law, unless such a pensioner would be eligible to receive a greater benefit pursuant to any such other provision, in which latter case this subdivision shall not apply.
Last modified: February 3, 2019