383-a. Retirement of members of the regional state park police; new plan. a. Every member or officer of the regional state park police who enters or re-enters service on or after June twenty-eighth, nineteen hundred sixty-five shall contribute on the basis provided for by this section.
b. Every member or officer in the regional state park police who entered such service prior to June twenty-eighth, nineteen hundred sixty-five, and who elected to contribute under former section eighty-three-a of this chapter shall contribute on the basis provided for by this section, if he so elected on or before December thirty-first, nineteen hundred sixty-five.
c. A member who elected to contribute under former section eighty-three-a or is required to contribute in accordance with this section, shall contribute, in lieu of the proportion of compensation as provided in section three hundred 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-one hundredth of his final average salary for each year of service as a member rendered after March twenty-eighth, nineteen hundred forty-nine, 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 three hundred seventy-a of this article for such period of time as his employer contributes pursuant to such section toward pensions-providing-for-increased-take-home-pay. No such member shall be required to continue contributions after completing twenty-five years of such service.
d. A member contributing on the basis of this section at the time of retirement, shall be entitled to retire after the completion of twenty-five years of total creditable service in such service or upon the attainment of age sixty, by filing an application therefor in a manner similar to that provided in section three hundred seventy of this article. He thereupon shall receive, on retirement, a retirement allowance consisting of:
1. An annuity which shall be the actuarial equivalent of his accumulated contributions at the time of his retirement, plus
2. A pension which, together with such annuity and a pension which is the actuarial equivalent of the reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay to which he may then be entitled, if any shall equal one-fiftieth of his final average salary for each year of creditable service in such division. This pension shall not exceed the amount needed to make the total amount of the benefits provided under paragraphs one and two-- this subdivision d equal to one-half of final average salary.
3. An additional pension equal to the pension for any creditable service rendered while not employed in regional state park police service as provided under paragraphs two and three of subdivision a of section three hundred seventy-five of this article. This pension shall:
(a) Be payable only if such member has attained age sixty at the time of retirement and has not completed twenty-five years of service as a member of the regional state park police for which he receives credit under this article, and
(b) Not increase the total allowance to more than he would have received had his total service been rendered as a member of the regional state park police.
For the purpose only of determining the amount of the pension provided herein, the annuity shall be computed as it would be:
(aa) if not reduced by the actuarial equivalent of any outstanding loan, and
(bb) if not increased by the actuarial equivalent of any additional contributions, and
(cc) if not reduced by reason of the member's election to decrease his annuity contributions to the retirement systems in order to apply the amount of such reduction in payment of his contributions for old-age and survivors insurance coverage.
e. The increased pensions to members of the regional state park police, as provided by this section, shall be paid from additional contributions made by the state on account of such members. The actuary of the retirement system shall compute the additional contribution of 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 by the comptroller, such additional contributions shall be certified by him to the commissioner of conservation. The amount thereof shall be included in the annual appropriation of the state for the conservation department. Such amount shall be paid on the warrant of the comptroller to the pension accumulation fund of the retirement system.
f. In computing the twenty-five years of completed service of a member of the regional state park police, full credit shall be given and full allowance shall be made for service of such member in time of war and service with the American expeditionary forces subsequent to November eleventh, nineteen hundred eighteen, and prior to June thirtieth, nineteen hundred nineteen, of honorably discharged officers, soldiers, sailors, marines and army nurses, who were actual residents of the state at the time of their entry into the military service of the United States, and the service of members of the national guard in the military service of the United States of America pursuant to the call of the president or Mexican border service.
g. Service in the division of the state police in the executive department shall be considered allowable service in regional state park police service, for the purposes of this section, provided that the member pays or has paid the required contributions and provided, further, that in the case of employees entering or re-entering regional state park police service on or after July first, nineteen hundred fifty-four, only credit for service as a member or officer of the state police shall be so allowable.
h. The provisions of this section shall be controlling notwithstanding any provision in this article to the contrary.
i. Notwithstanding any provision of subdivision a, b or h of this section to the contrary, a member who is in the collective negotiating unit designated as the security services unit and established pursuant to article fourteen of the civil service law and who has elected or is required to contribute in accordance with this section may, on or before March thirty-first, nineteen hundred seventy-three, elect to come under the provisions of section three hundred seventy-five-h of this article. Such election shall be duly executed and filed with the comptroller.
Last modified: February 3, 2019