2023 New York Laws › RSS - Retirement and Social Security › Article 15 - Coordinated Retirement Plan › 607-C - Performance of Duty Disability Benefit.

§  607-c.  Performance  of  duty  disability  benefit. a. Any sheriff,
deputy  sheriff,  undersheriff  or  correction  officer  as  defined  in
subdivision  a  of  section  sixty-three-b  of this chapter, and who are
employed in a county which makes an election pursuant to  subdivision  d
of  such  section  sixty-three-b,  who  becomes  physically  or mentally
incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural and proximate
result of an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge of his or
her duties by, or as the natural and proximate result of any act of  any
incarcerated  individual  or any person confined in an institution under
the jurisdiction of such county, shall be paid  a  performance  of  duty
disability  retirement  allowance  equal  to  that  which is provided in
section sixty-three of  this  chapter,  subject  to  the  provisions  of
section sixty-four of this chapter.
b.  Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter or of any general or
special law to the contrary,  a  member  covered  by  this  section  who
contracts  HIV  (where there may have been an exposure to a bodily fluid
of an incarcerated individual or a person defined in  subdivision  a  of
this  section  as  a  natural  and  proximate  result  of  an act of any
incarcerated individual or person described in such subdivision  a  that
may have involved transmission of a specified transmissible disease from
an  incarcerated individual or person described in such subdivision a to
the  retirement  system  member),  tuberculosis  or  hepatitis  will  be
presumed to have contracted such disease in the performance or discharge
of  his  or  her  duties,  and  will be presumed to be disabled from the
performance of his or her duties,  unless  the  contrary  be  proved  by
competent evidence.
c.  1.  (a)  Notwithstanding  any provisions of this chapter or of any
general, special or local law, charter, administrative code or  rule  or
regulation  to the contrary, if any condition or impairment of health is
caused by a qualifying  World  Trade  Center  condition  as  defined  in
section  two  of  this chapter, it shall be presumptive evidence that it
was incurred in the performance and discharge of duty  and  the  natural
and  proximate  result  of  an  accident not caused by such member's own
willful negligence, unless the contrary be proved by competent evidence.
(b) The head  of  each  retirement  system  is  hereby  authorized  to
promulgate  rules  and  regulations  to implement the provisions of this
paragraph.
2. (a) Notwithstanding the  provisions  of  this  chapter  or  of  any
general,  special  or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a member who participated in World  Trade
Center rescue, recovery or cleanup operations, as defined in section two
of  this  chapter,  and subsequently retired on a service retirement, an
ordinary disability retirement  or  a  performance  of  duty  disability
retirement  and  subsequent to such retirement is determined by the head
of the retirement  system  to  have  a  qualifying  World  Trade  Center
condition,  as  defined  in  section  two  of  this  chapter,  upon such
determination by the head of the retirement system it shall be  presumed
that  such  disability  was incurred in the performance and discharge of
duty as the natural and proximate result of an accident  not  caused  by
such  member's  own  willful  negligence, and that the member would have
been physically  or  mentally  incapacitated  for  the  performance  and
discharge  of  duty of the position from which he or she retired had the
condition been known and fully developed at the  time  of  the  member's
retirement, unless the contrary is proven by competent evidence.
(b)   The   head   of   the   retirement   system   shall  consider  a
reclassification of the member's retirement as an accidental  disability
retirement effective as of the date of such reclassification.
(c)  Such  member's retirement option shall not be changed as a result
of such reclassification.
(d)  The  member's  former  employer  at  the  time  of  the  member's
retirement shall have  an  opportunity  to  be  heard  on  the  member's
application  for  reclassification  by the head of the retirement system
according to procedures developed by the comptroller.
(e) The head  of  each  retirement  system  is  hereby  authorized  to
promulgate  rules  and  regulations  to implement the provisions of this
paragraph.
d. Notwithstanding any other provision  of  this  chapter  or  of  any
general,  special  or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a retiree who: (1) has met  the  criteria
of  subdivision c of this section and retired on a service or disability
retirement, 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  World  Trade  Center
condition,  as  defined in section two of this chapter, as determined by
the applicable head of  the  retirement  system  or  applicable  medical
board,  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.  Such  retiree's  eligible
beneficiary,  as  set  forth in section six hundred one of this article,
shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit as provided by  section
six  hundred  seven  of  this  article,  however,  for  the  purposes of
determining the salary base upon which the accidental death  benefit  is
calculated,  the retiree shall be deemed to have died on the date of his
or her retirement. Upon the retiree's death,  the  eligible  beneficiary
shall  make  a  written application to the head of the retirement system
within the time for  filing  an  application  for  an  accidental  death
benefit  as  set  forth  in  section  six  hundred seven of this article
requesting conversion of such retiree's service or disability retirement
benefit to an accidental death benefit. At the time of such  conversion,
the  eligible beneficiary shall relinquish all rights to the prospective
benefits payable 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  accidental  death benefit payments to the eligible beneficiary will
be reduced by any amounts paid or payable to any other beneficiary.
e. Notwithstanding any other provision  of  this  chapter  or  of  any
general,  special  or local law, charter, administrative code or rule or
regulation to the contrary, if a member who: (1) has met the criteria of
subdivision c of this section; and (2) dies in  active  service  from  a
qualifying  World  Trade  Center  condition as defined in section two of
this chapter, as determined by the applicable  head  of  the  retirement
system  or  applicable medical board, 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.
Such member's eligible beneficiary, as set forth in section six  hundred
one  of  this  article, shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit
provided he or  she  makes  written  application  to  the  head  of  the
retirement  system  within  the  time  for  filing an application for an
accidental death benefit as set forth in section six  hundred  seven  of
this article.
f. Any sheriff, deputy sheriff, undersheriff, or correction officer as
defined  in  subdivision a of section sixty-three-b of this chapter, and
who are employed  in  Westchester  county,  who  becomes  physically  or
mentally  incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural and
proximate result of an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge
of  his  or  her duties by, or as the natural and proximate result of an
intentional or reckless act  of  any  civilian  visiting,  or  otherwise
present  at, an institution under the jurisdiction of such county, shall
be paid a performance of duty disability retirement allowance  equal  to
that  which  is provided in section sixty-three of this chapter, subject
to the provisions of section sixty-four of this chapter.
g. Any sheriff, deputy sheriff, undersheriff, or correction officer as
defined in subdivision a of section sixty-three-b of this  chapter,  and
who  is  employed  in  Nassau county, who becomes physically or mentally
incapacitated for the performance of duties as the natural and proximate
result of an injury, sustained in the performance or discharge of his or
her duties by, or as the natural and proximate result of an  intentional
or  reckless  act  of any civilian visiting, or otherwise present at, an
institution under the jurisdiction of such county where such injury  was
sustained  and  documented after the enactment of this section, shall be
paid a performance of duty disability retirement allowance equal to that
which is provided in section sixty-three of this chapter, subject to the
provisions of section sixty-four of this  chapter.  Notwithstanding  any
other  provision  of law to the contrary, none of the provisions of this
subdivision shall be subject to section twenty-five of this chapter.