NY Ret & SS L § 31 (2021)
2021 New York Laws RSS - Retirement and Social Security Article 2 - New York State Employees' Retirement System Title 4 - Participation in System by Political Subdivisions and Other Organizations 31 - Participation by Public or Quasi-Public Organizations.

§  31.  Participation  by public or quasi-public organizations. a. Any   public or quasi-public organization created wholly or partly or deriving   its powers by the  legislature  of  the  state  and  which  organization   employs  persons engaged in service to the public or any state agency as   defined in section fifty-three-a of the state finance law,  or  the  New   York  state association of town superintendents of highways, inc. or any   school board association, by resolution legally adopted by its governing   body and approved by the comptroller, may elect to have its officers and   employees become eligible  to  participate  in  the  retirement  system.   Acceptance  of  the  officers  and  employees  of  such  an employer for   membership  in  the  retirement  system  shall  be  optional  with   the   comptroller. If he shall approve their participation, such organization,   except  as  specifically provided in this article to the contrary, shall   thereafter be treated as a participating  employer.  Any  election  made   pursuant  to  this  subdivision  by  a school board association shall be   applicable to current employees of such association.b. The officers and employees of such organization shall  be  credited   with  such  periods  of  prior  service  as  shall be certified by their   employer for service rendered to it, or its predecessor, or  the  state,   or  in any other capacity approved by such employer and the comptroller.   Service for such employer after  the  date  on  which  it  commences  to   participate  in  the  retirement  system  and  on  account of which such   employer pays contributions shall be considered as  member  service.  An   officer  or  employee  of  such  employer  who,  as of the date he is so   approved for membership in the retirement system, is  already  a  member   thereof,  shall  not have his total credit reduced by such approval. Any   reserve held on account of any such officer or employee in  the  pension   accumulation  fund  shall  be  used  as an offset against the deficiency   contribution payable thereafter by such  employer  on  account  of  such   officer  or  employee for any prior service credit and any such previous   credit. Except as otherwise provided in  this  article,  an  officer  or   employee of such employer who, by reason of this service, is a member of   any  other  governmental retirement system shall not participate in this   retirement system on that part of his compensation so covered. The  term   "governmental  retirement  system",  as  used in this subdivision, shall   include any retirement system wholly or partly maintained by this state,   by  a  municipality  of  this  state,  by  another  state  or  political   subdivision  thereof, by the United States government, or by any foreign   country or political subdivision thereof.c. An agreement, made by such an employer pursuant to this section, to   contribute  on  account  of  its  officers  and   employees   shall   be   irrevocable.  In  the  event  that  such employer for any reason becomes   financially unable to make the contributions required on account of  its   officers  and  employees,  it  shall  be  deemed  to  be  in  default. A   certificate to such effect thereupon shall be sent by the comptroller to   the employer and to the  state  superintendent  of  financial  services.   Every member of the retirement system, who was an officer or employee of   such  employer  at  the  time of default, upon demand made within ninety   days thereafter, shall be entitled to discontinue his membership in  the   retirement  system  and to a refund of his accumulated contributions. As   of a date ninety days following the date of such certificate of default,   the actuary of the retirement  system,  by  actuarial  valuation,  shall   determine  the  amount  of  the  reserves held on account of each active   member and pensioner of such employer. He  shall  credit  to  each  such   member and pensioner the amount of reserve so held. In the event such an   active  member  does  not  discontinue  his  membership  and thus become   entitled to the refund of his accumulated contributions, the reserve  so   credited,  together  with  the  amount  of his accumulated contributions    shall be used to provide for him a paid up deferred annuity beginning at   age sixty. The reserve of each pensioner shall be used in providing such   part of his existing pension as the reserve so held will provide,  which   pension,  together with his annuity, shall thereafter be payable to him.   The rights and privileges of both active members and pensioners of  such   employer  shall  thereupon  terminate  except  as  to the payment of the   deferred annuities so provided for the previous active members  and  the   annuities   and  the  pensions,  or  parts  thereof,  provided  for  the   pensioners.d. Notwithstanding anything to the  contrary,  the  retirement  system   shall not be liable for the payment of any pensions or other benefits on   account  of  the officers, employees or pensioners of any employer under   this section, for which reserves have not been previously  created  from   funds contributed by such employer or its officers or employees for such   benefits.  This  provision  shall  not  apply  to any municipality which   elected to participate in the retirement  system  under  former  section   seventy-five-a  of  this  law  prior  to  July  first,  nineteen hundred   forty-eight.e. 1. Any public organization  not  participating  in  the  retirement   system  prior  to October first, nineteen hundred fifty-three, and which   has not provided  old-age  and  survivors  insurance  coverage  for  its   employees,  may,  at the time of making election to participate, exclude   from eligibility for membership in the retirement system such  class  or   classes  of  offices or positions for which membership in the retirement   system is not made mandatory by this article, as the public organization   may specify in the resolution adopted pursuant to subdivision a of  this   section. Participation by any such public organization which may exclude   from  eligibility  for membership any class or classes of its offices or   positions shall not become  effective  until  such  public  organization   shall  have  entered  into an agreement to provide old-age and survivors   insurance coverage for such class or classes of offices or positions  in   the manner and to the extent provided by article three of this chapter.2.  Any  public  organization  participating  in the retirement system   prior to October  first,  nineteen  hundred  fifty-three,  may,  by  the   adoption of a resolution in the manner provided in subdivision a of this   section  and  filed  with  the comptroller prior to the time such public   organization  makes  an  agreement  to  provide  old-age  and  survivors   insurance  coverage for its employees, elect to exclude from eligibility   for membership in the retirement system any class or classes of  offices   or  positions  for which membership in the retirement system is not made   mandatory by this article. Public notice of the proposed adoption of any   such resolution shall be given  at  least  three  months  prior  to  the   adoption  thereof.   Officers and employees holding offices or positions   in any such excluded class or classes, however, who are members  of  the   retirement  system  at  the  time of the filing of such resolution shall   continue to  be  members  of  the  retirement  system.  Such  resolution   providing  for  such exclusion from eligibility for membership shall not   become effective, however, until such  public  organization  shall  have   entered  into  an  agreement  to provide old-age and survivors insurance   coverage for the class or classes of offices or  positions  so  excluded   from  eligibility  for membership in the retirement system in the manner   and to the extent provided by article three of this chapter.3. The power to exclude employees from eligibility for  membership  in   the retirement system pursuant to paragraph one or paragraph two of this   subdivision  e  shall  terminate  on  the  day  after  the  modification   extending the old-age and survivors insurance  system  to  any  position   covered  by  such  system  and  held  by  an  employee  of  a  political    subdivision of the state (exclusive of one  in  a  police  officer's  or   firefighter's position) is executed.