2023 New York Laws › GMU - General Municipal › Article 10 - Firefighters and Police Officers › 208-F - Special Accidental Death Benefit.

§  208-f.  Special  accidental death benefit.   a. Notwithstanding any
  other provision of law, the special accidental death benefit provided by
  this section shall be paid to the  widow  or  widower  or  the  deceased
  member's  children under the age of eighteen, or, if a student under the
  age of twenty-three, if the  widow  or  widower  has  died,  or  to  the
  deceased  member's parents if the member has no widow, widower, children
  under the age of eighteen, or a student under the age  of  twenty-three,
  of:  (i) a deceased member of a pension or retirement system of a police
  department or paid fire department of a city, town or  village;  (ii)  a
  deceased paid member of the police force of the police department of the
  New  York  city  transit  authority; (iii) a deceased paid member of the
  police force of the police department  of  the  New  York  city  housing
  authority; (iv) a deceased paid member of the uniformed correction force
  of  the  New  York  city  department  of correction; (v) a deceased paid
  uniformed member of a county sheriff's department (outside the  city  of
  New  York);  (vi) a deceased employee of the city of New York or the New
  York city health and hospitals corporation in a title whose  duties  are
  those  of  an emergency medical technician or advanced emergency medical
  technician (as those terms are defined in section three thousand one  of
  the  public  health  law),  or  in  a  title  whose  duties  require the
  supervision of employees whose duties are those of an emergency  medical
  technician  or advanced emergency medical technician (as those terms are
  defined in section three thousand one of the public health law); (vii) a
  deceased paid bridge and tunnel member of the New York  city  employees'
  retirement  system; (viii) a deceased paid member of the uniformed force
  of the New York city department of sanitation; or (ix) a  deceased  paid
  deputy  sheriff  member  of  the  New  York  city  sheriff's department,
  providing the  widow  or  widower  is  ineligible  to  receive  benefits
  pursuant  to  section  three  hundred  sixty-one-a of the retirement and
  social security law as amended by chapter seven hundred thirty-three  of
  the laws of nineteen hundred ninety and the deceased member:
1.  Died  before  the  effective date of his or her retirement, as the
  natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the performance
  of duty in the service upon which his membership was based, and
2. Did not cause such accident by his or her own  willful  negligence,
  and
3.  At  the  time  of  such  accident  was actually a member of: (i) a
  pension or retirement  system  of  a  police  department  or  paid  fire
  department  of  a  city,  town  or village; (ii) a pension or retirement
  system covering the police force of the police  department  of  the  New
  York  city  transit  authority;  (iii)  a  pension  or retirement system
  covering the police force of the police department of the New York  city
  housing  authority;  (iv)  a  pension  or retirement system covering the
  uniformed  correction  force  of  the  New  York  city   department   of
  correction;  (v)  a  pension  or  retirement  system  covering uniformed
  members of a county sheriff's department (outside the city of New York);
  (vi) a pension or retirement system covering employees of  the  city  of
  New  York,  or  the  New York city health and hospitals corporation in a
  title whose duties are those  of  an  emergency  medical  technician  or
  advanced  emergency  medical  technician  (as those terms are defined in
  section three thousand one of the public health  law),  or  in  a  title
  whose duties require the supervision of employees whose duties are those
  of  an  emergency  medical  technician  or  advanced  emergency  medical
  technician (as those terms are defined in section three thousand one  of
  the  public  health  law); (vii) a pension or retirement system covering
  paid  bridge  and  tunnel  members  of  the  New  York  city  employees'
  retirement  system;  (viii) a pension or retirement system covering paid
  members of the uniformed force  of  the  New  York  city  department  of

  sanitation;  or (ix) a pension or retirement system covering paid deputy
  sheriff members of the New York city sheriff's department.
b.  The  special accidental death benefit shall be paid by the county,
  city, town or village which employed the deceased member at the time  of
  death,  and  shall  consist of a pension which is equal to the salary of
  the deceased member, reduced  by  the  sum  of  each  of  the  following
  benefits  received  by  the  widow  or  widower or the deceased member's
  children under the age of eighteen, if the widow or widower has died, or
  to the deceased member's parents if the member has  no  widow,  widower,
  children  under  the  age  of  eighteen,  or  a student under the age of
  twenty-three, on account of the death of the deceased member:
1. Any death benefit and any supplementation thereto paid by the  said
  county, city, town or village in the form of a pension, and
2. The social security benefit payable on July first, nineteen hundred
  seventy-eight  for death occurring prior to July first, nineteen hundred
  seventy-eight; or the social security benefit payable immediately  after
  death  if  such  death  occurs  on or after July first, nineteen hundred
  seventy-eight. In the event the social security benefit is reduced to an
  amount less than that noted in this paragraph,  the  amount  of  special
  accidental  death benefit shall be increased by the amount of the social
  security reduction.
3. The workers' compensation benefit.
In the case of a deceased member who  died  prior  to  January  first,
  nineteen  hundred  seventy-eight  the  salary  shall  be  increased by a
  percentage which shall be determined on the basis of the consumer  price
  index  (all  items--U.S.  city  average), published by the United States
  bureau of labor statistics. The percentage shall be  determined  as  the
  ratio  of  two  indexes,  the denominator of which is the average of the
  twelve monthly consumer price indexes of the calendar year of the  death
  of  the  member  and the numerator of which is the average of the twelve
  monthly consumer price indexes for the calendar  year  nineteen  hundred
  seventy-seven. Said ratio, minus one, shall be expressed as a percentage
  and shall be adjusted to the nearest one-tenth of one per centum.
c.  Commencing  July  first,  two  thousand  twenty-three  the special
  accidental death benefit paid to a widow  or  widower  or  the  deceased
  member's  children under the age of eighteen or, if a student, under the
  age of twenty-three, if the  widow  or  widower  has  died,  or  to  the
  deceased  member's parents if the member has no widow, widower, children
  under the age of eighteen, or a student under the age  of  twenty-three,
  shall  be  escalated  by  adding thereto an additional percentage of the
  salary of the deceased member (as increased pursuant to subdivision b of
  this section) in accordance with the following schedule:
calendar year of death
of the deceased member              per centum
1977 or prior                  289.5%
1978                           278.2%
1979                           267.1%
1980                           256.5%
1981                           246.1%
1982                           236.0%
1983                           226.2%
1984                           216.7%
1985                           207.5%
1986                           198.5%
1987                           189.8%
1988                           181.4%
1989                           173.2%
1990                           165.2%
1991                           157.5%
1992                           150.0%
1993                           142.7%
1994                           135.7%
1995                           128.8%
1996                           122.1%
1997                           115.7%
1998                           109.4%
1999                           103.3%
2000                            97.4%
2001                            91.6%
2002                            86.0%
2003                            80.6%
2004                            75.4%
2005                            70.2%
2006                            65.3%
2007                            60.5%
2008                            55.8%
2009                            51.3%
2010                            46.9%
2011                            42.6%
2012                            38.4%
2013                            34.4%
2014                            30.5%
2015                            26.7%
2016                            23.0%
2017                            19.4%
2018                            15.9%
2019                            12.6%
2020                             9.3%
2021                             6.1%
2022                             3.0%
2023                             0.0%
d.  For  the  purpose  of  this  section,  salary shall be the regular
  compensation earned during the member's last twelve months of service in
  full pay status as a member, or, if he or she had not  completed  twelve
  months of service prior to the date of death, the compensation he or she
  would  have  earned  had he or she worked for the twelve months prior to
  such date, provided, that for the purpose of any  payment  on  or  after
  July  first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-five the term salary shall in no
  case be less than the full  salary  payable  to  a  first  grade  police
  officer  (in  the  case  of  a deceased police officer) or a first grade
  firefighter (in the case  of  a  deceased  firefighter)  employed  by  a
  department or uniformed force described in subdivision c of this section
  on  the  date  of  such employee's death. Provided further, that for the
  purpose of  any  payment  on  or  after  July  first,  nineteen  hundred
  ninety-six  the  term  salary shall in no case be less than the earnings
  that would have been payable to a police superior officer were he or she
  in the highest grade of a supervisory position (in the case of a  police
  superior  officer  deceased  on  or  after  July first, nineteen hundred
  ninety-five who had  been  appointed  to  and  was  serving  in  such  a
  supervisory position) or payable to a fire officer were he or she in the
  highest  grade  of a supervisory position (in the case of a fire officer
  deceased on or after July first, nineteen hundred  ninety-five  who  had
  been  appointed  to  and  was  serving  in  such a supervisory position)
  employed by a department or uniformed force described in  subdivision  c
  of  this  section  on  the  date  of such employee's death, and provided
  further that, for the purpose of  any  payment  on  or  after  September

  tenth, two thousand one, in the case of a police officer, a firefighter,
  a  police superior officer, or fire officer acting in a higher rank, the
  term salary shall in no case be less than the earnings that  would  have
  been payable at the highest grade of such higher rank.
e.  There shall be appropriated to the general fund an amount equal to
  the special accidental death benefits paid pursuant  to  subdivisions  b
  and  c  of  this  section  during  each  preceding state fiscal year, as
  certified to the comptroller by the appropriate municipal official,  for
  the purposes of reimbursing such special accidental death benefits.
The   monies   appropriated   and  made  available  pursuant  to  this
  subdivision shall be paid under rules and  regulations  adopted  by  the
  comptroller  and  subject  to the approval of the director of the budget
  upon the audit and warrant of the comptroller on vouchers  certified  or
  approved as provided by law.
f. The special accidental death benefit shall be paid to:
1.  The  member's  widow  or  widower  to  continue  during his or her
  lifetime.  If he or she shall leave no widow or widower, or  if  his  or
  her widow or widower shall die before all his or her children shall have
  attained  age  eighteen  or,  if students shall have attained the age of
  twenty-three, or sooner die, then to
2. His or her child or children under age eighteen, or,  if  students,
  under  age  twenty-three,  divided in such manner as the comptroller, in
  his discretion, shall determine, or sooner die, then to
3. His or her parents if the member has no  widow,  widower,  children
  under  the  age of eighteen, or a student under the age of twenty-three,
  for their lifetimes. Such pension shall continue in the same  amount  as
  received  by  the  member's  widow  or  widower  as a joint and survivor
  pension until every such child  shall  have  attained  age  eighteen  or
  sooner die.
g.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision of law to the contrary, and
  solely for the purposes of this section, a member otherwise  covered  by
  this  section  shall be deemed to have died as the natural and proximate
  result of an accident sustained in the performance of  duty  upon  which
  his  or  her  membership  is  based,  and  not  as  a  result of willful
  negligence on his or her part, provided that such member was  in  active
  service  upon which his or her membership is based at the time that such
  member was ordered to active duty pursuant to Title  10  of  the  United
  States Code, with the armed forces of the United States or to service in
  the  uniformed services pursuant to Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the United
  States Code, and such member died while on such active duty  or  service
  in the uniformed services on or after June fourteenth, two thousand five
  while serving on such active military duty or in the uniformed services.
h.  Notwithstanding  any  other provision of law, if (i) a member of a
  pension or retirement system covering a police department or  paid  fire
  department  of  a  city,  town or village; (ii) a member of a pension or
  retirement system covering the uniformed corrections force  of  the  New
  York  city  department  of  corrections;  (iii) a member of a pension or
  retirement system covering a county sheriff's department (outside of the
  city of New York); (iv) a deputy sheriff member of  the  New  York  city
  employees'  retirement  system;  (v)  a  member  of  the  New  York city
  employees' retirement system who is an employee of the city of New  York
  or  the  New York city health and hospitals corporation in a title whose
  duties  are  those  of  an  emergency  medical  technician  or  advanced
  emergency  medical  technician  (as  those  terms are defined in section
  three thousand one of the public health law), or in a title whose duties
  require the supervision of  employees  whose  duties  are  those  of  an
  emergency  medical  technician  or advanced emergency medical technician
  (as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of the  public

  health  law);  (vi)  a  bridge  and  tunnel  member of the New York city
  employees'  retirement  system,  who:  (1)  has  met  the  criteria   of
  subdivision  g  of  section  sixty-three  of  the  retirement and social
  security  law, subdivision g of section three hundred sixty-three of the
  retirement and social security  law,  subdivision  h  of  section  three
  hundred  sixty-three-bb  of  the  retirement  and  social  security law,
  subdivision g of section five hundred seven of the retirement and social
  security law, subdivision c of  section  five  hundred  seven-c  of  the
  retirement  and  social  security  law,  subdivision  h  of section five
  hundred fifty-six of the retirement and social security law, subdivision
  h of section six hundred five of the retirement and social security law,
  subdivision h of section six hundred five-a of the retirement and social
  security law, subdivision  d  of  section  six  hundred  five-b  of  the
  retirement and social security law as added by chapter five hundred four
  of  the  laws  of two thousand two, subdivision b of section six hundred
  five-c of the retirement and  social  security  law,  subdivision  c  of
  section  six  hundred seven-b of the retirement and social security law,
  subdivision one of section 13-252.1 of the administrative  code  of  the
  city   of   New  York,  subdivision  one  of  section  13-353.1  of  the
  administrative code of the city of New York, or subdivision b of section
  13-168 of the administrative code of the city of New York; and (2)  dies
  in  active  service from a qualifying condition or impairment of health,
  as defined in each of the foregoing subdivisions, that is determined  by
  the applicable head of the retirement system or applicable medical board
  to  have  been  caused by such member's participation in the World Trade
  Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations, then unless the  contrary
  be  proven  by  competent  evidence, such member shall be deemed to have
  died as a natural and proximate result of an accident sustained  in  the
  performance  of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his or
  her part. Upon such determination,  the  eligible  beneficiary  of  such
  member,  as defined in either section sixty-one, five hundred one or six
  hundred one of the retirement and social security law,  section  13-149,
  13-244  or  13-347  of  the  administrative code of the city of New York
  shall be entitled to a special accidental death benefit as  provided  by
  this section, payable in accordance with subdivisions b, c and d of this
  section.
i.  Notwithstanding  any other provision of law, if (i) a retiree of a
  pension or retirement system covering a police department or  paid  fire
  department  of  a  city, town or village; (ii) a retiree of a pension or
  retirement system covering the uniformed corrections force  of  the  New
  York  city  department  of  corrections; (iii) a retiree of a pension or
  retirement system covering a county sheriff's department (outside of the
  city of New York); (iv) a retired deputy sheriff member of the New  York
  city  employees' retirement system; (v) a retired member of the New York
  city employees' retirement system who was an employee of the city of New
  York or the New York city health and hospitals corporation  in  a  title
  whose  duties  are  those of an emergency medical technician or advanced
  emergency medical technician (as those  terms  are  defined  in  section
  three  thousand one of the public health law) or in a title whose duties
  require the supervision of  employees  whose  duties  are  those  of  an
  emergency  medical  technician  or advanced emergency medical technician
  (as those terms are defined in section three thousand one of the  public
  health  law); or (vi) a retired bridge and tunnel member of the New York
  city employees' retirement system, who: (1)  has  met  the  criteria  of
  subdivision  g  of  section  sixty-three  of  the  retirement and social
  security law, subdivision g of section three hundred sixty-three of  the
  retirement  and  social  security  law,  subdivision  h of section three
  hundred sixty-three-bb  of  the  retirement  and  social  security  law,

  subdivision g of section five hundred seven of the retirement and social
  security  law,  subdivision  c  of  section  five hundred seven-c of the
  retirement and social  security  law,  subdivision  h  of  section  five
  hundred fifty-six of the retirement and social security law, subdivision
  h of section six hundred five of the retirement and social security law,
  subdivision h of section six hundred five-a of the retirement and social
  security  law,  subdivision  d  of  section  six  hundred  five-b of the
  retirement and social security law as added by chapter five hundred four
  of the laws of two thousand two, subdivision b of  section  six  hundred
  five-c  of  the  retirement  and  social  security law, subdivision c of
  section six hundred seven-b of the retirement and social  security  law,
  subdivision  one  of  section 13-252.1 of the administrative code of the
  city  of  New  York,  subdivision  one  of  section  13-353.1   of   the
  administrative code of the city of New York, or subdivision b of section
  13-168 of the administrative code of the city of New York, or would have
  met the criteria if not already retired on an accidental disability; and
  (2)  has  not been retired for more than twenty-five years; and (3) dies
  from a qualifying condition or impairment of health, as defined in  each
  of the foregoing subdivisions, that is determined by the applicable head
  of the retirement system or applicable medical board to have been caused
  by  such  retiree's  participation  in  the  World  Trade Center rescue,
  recovery or cleanup operations, then unless the contrary  be  proven  by
  competent  evidence,  such  retiree  shall  be  deemed to have died as a
  natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the performance
  of duty and not as a result of willful negligence on his  or  her  part.
  Upon  such  determination,  the eligible beneficiary of such retiree, as
  defined in either section sixty-one, five hundred one or six hundred one
  of the retirement and social security law or section 13-149, 13-244,  or
  13-347  of  the  administrative  code  of  the city of New York shall be
  entitled to a special accidental  death  benefit  as  provided  by  this
  section,  payable  in  accordance  with  subdivisions b, c and d of this
  section, however, for the purposes of determining the salary  base  upon
  which  the  special  accidental death benefit is calculated, the retiree
  shall be deemed to have died on the date of his or her retirement. In no
  event shall the special  accidental  death  benefit  be  paid  unless  a
  written  application is made by the eligible beneficiary of such retiree
  to the head of the applicable retirement system requesting conversion of
  the retiree's service or  disability  benefit  to  an  accidental  death
  benefit  and  upon the approval of said application. At the time of such
  conversion, the eligible beneficiary shall relinquish all rights to  the
  prospective benefits under the service or disability retirement benefit,
  including any post-retirement death benefits, since the retiree's death.
  If  the  eligible  beneficiary  is not the only beneficiary receiving or
  entitled to receive a benefit under the service or disability retirement
  benefit (including, but not limited to, post-retirement  death  benefits
  or benefits paid or payable pursuant to the retiree's option selection),
  the   special   accidental   death  benefit  payments  to  the  eligible
  beneficiary will be reduced by any amounts paid or payable to any  other
  beneficiary.
j.  In  the  case of a deceased member who died prior to the effective
  date of this subdivision, the payment of the  benefit  to  the  deceased
  member's   parents   shall  commence  on  the  effective  date  of  this
  subdivision, provided, however that the benefit amount shall  be  deemed
  to  have  been  subject to annual increases pursuant to subdivision b of
  this section and escalation pursuant to subdivision c of  this  section,
  from the date of such member's death.
k.  In  the  case  of  a  deceased county member who died prior to the
  effective date of this subdivision, the payment of the  benefit  to  the

  deceased  member's  beneficiaries  pursuant  to  subdivision  f  of this
  section, shall commence on  the  effective  date  of  this  subdivision,
  provided,  however  that the benefit amount shall be deemed to have been
  subject  to  annual  increases pursuant to subdivision b of this section
  and escalation pursuant to subdivision c of this section, from the  date
  of such member's death.