2023 New York Laws › RSS - Retirement and Social Security › Article 2 - New York State Employees' Retirement System › Title 10 - Options › 90 - Options.

§  90. Options. a. A member; or if he is an incompetent, his spouse or
the committee of his property; or if he is a conservatee, his spouse  or
the  conservator  of  his  property,  may elect to receive a Single Life
Allowance (a retirement allowance without optional modification)  or  to
receive the actuarial equivalent of his retirement allowance at the time
of his retirement, in the form of a smaller retirement allowance payable
to him for life and one of the following optional settlements:
Cash  Refund-Contributions (Option One-half). If he dies before he has
received annuity payments equal to the present value of his annuity,  as
it  was at the time of his retirement, the balance thereof shall be paid
to his estate or  to  a  beneficiary  designated  as  provided  in  this
section. In the event a designated beneficiary does not survive him, any
balance shall be payable to the estate of the deceased retired member or
as provided in section one thousand three hundred ten of the surrogate's
court  procedure act. The beneficiary so designated may elect by written
designation, duly executed and filed with the  comptroller,  to  receive
the balance payable in the form of an annuity, the amount of which shall
be  determined  as the actuarial equivalent of such balance on the basis
of regular interest and the age of such beneficiary at the time  of  the
retiree's  death,  or  in  the  alternative  to  receive  the  actuarial
equivalent of such balance in the form of a reduced annuity payable  for
life,  with the further proviso that if he should die before the annuity
payments received by him are equal to  such  actuarial  equivalent,  the
balance  thereof  shall  be  paid in a lump sum to his estate or to such
person as he shall have designated to receive same. In either  case  the
election  shall  be  made  within  ninety  days  after  the death of the
retiree. The designation of the individual who is to receive  such  lump
sum  on  the death of the beneficiary, may be changed by the beneficiary
at any time. Such election, designation or change shall  be  made  by  a
writing,  duly  executed  and filed with the comptroller. In the event a
designated beneficiary has elected to receive a balance payable  in  the
form of a reduced annuity, and the person designated by him to receive a
lump  sum  payment does not survive him, such lump sum, if any, shall be
payable to the estate of the designated beneficiary or  as  provided  in
section  one  thousand  three  hundred  ten  of  the  surrogate's  court
procedure act.
Cash Refund-Initial Value (Option One).  If  he  dies  before  he  has
received retirement allowance payments equal to the present value of his
retirement  allowance,  as  it  was  at  the time of his retirement, the
balance thereof shall be paid to his estate or  to  the  beneficiary  so
designated.  In the event a designated beneficiary does not survive him,
any balance shall be payable to  the  estate  of  the  deceased  retired
member  or  as provided in section one thousand three hundred ten of the
surrogate's court procedure act. The beneficiary so designated may elect
by written designation, duly executed and filed with the comptroller, to
receive the balance payable in the form of an  annuity,  the  amount  of
which shall be determined as the actuarial equivalent of such balance on
the  basis  of  regular  interest and the age of such beneficiary at the
time of the retiree's death, or  in  the  alternative,  to  receive  the
actuarial  equivalent  of  such balance in the form of a reduced annuity
payable for life, with the further proviso that if he should die  before
the  annuity  payments  received  by  him  are  equal  to such actuarial
equivalent, the balance thereof shall be paid  in  a  lump  sum  to  his
estate or to such person as he shall have designated to receive same. In
either  case  the  election  shall  be made within ninety days after the
death of the retiree. The  designation  of  the  individual  who  is  to
receive such lump sum on the death of the beneficiary, may be changed by
the  beneficiary at any time. Such election, designation or change shall

be made by a writing, duly executed and filed with the  comptroller.  In
the  event  a  designated  beneficiary  has elected to receive a balance
payable in the form of a reduced annuity, and the person  designated  by
him  to  receive a lump sum payment does not survive him, such lump sum,
if any, shall be payable to the estate of the designated beneficiary  or
as provided in section one thousand three hundred ten of the surrogate's
court procedure act.
Joint  Allowance-Full  (Option  Two).  Upon  his  death,  a retirement
allowance in an amount equal to that paid to him, shall be paid for life
to the beneficiary so designated.
Joint Allowance-Half (Option Three).  Upon  his  death,  a  retirement
allowance  of  one-half the amount paid to him shall be paid for life to
the beneficiary so designated.
Actuarial Equivalent Allowance  (Option  Four).  Such  other  optional
benefit  or benefits as the comptroller shall approve and which shall be
the actuarial equivalent of his retirement allowance at the time of  his
retirement.
aa.  In  the  event that the monthly retirement allowance payable to a
member or a beneficiary shall amount to less than  twenty-five  dollars,
then  and in such event, the member or beneficiary may elect, in lieu of
such monthly retirement allowance, to receive the  actuarial  equivalent
thereof in a lump sum.
b.  All  elections under this section shall be made on blanks prepared
by the comptroller for that purpose. Any such election may  be  made  at
any  time  before  the  first  payment on account of any benefit becomes
normally due, except that in  the  case  of  retirement  on  account  of
disability,  such  an  election  may  be  made  within thirty days after
mailing by the comptroller of notification of approval of retirement  on
account of disability.
An  optional  election  shall  not become effective if the member dies
before the effective date of his retirement.  Provided,  however,  if  a
member  who  is otherwise eligible for disability retirement pursuant to
this chapter dies after the filing in the office of the  comptroller  of
the  application  for  disability retirement and a valid option election
form pursuant to this chapter and it is established that the physical or
mental impairment or incapacitation of the applicant specified  in  such
application  was directly related to the cause of the applicant's death,
such application shall be approved by the comptroller effective one  day
before  the  date of the applicant's death. An election of an option may
be withdrawn or a new option may be chosen within the period provided in
this subdivision b for  the  making  of  such  an  election.  Except  as
provided  in  subdivision b of section seventy of this article, where an
optional election does not become effective, retirement shall be without
option.
bb. 1. Notwithstanding any other  provision  of  this  section  or  of
section  seventy of this article, the comptroller, for reasonable cause,
shall have power to extend the time for the election of an option, for a
period  or  periods  which  shall  expire  not  later  than  sixty  days
immediately after the effective date of a member's retirement.
2.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision of this section, but except
where payment of accumulated contributions, an ordinary  death  benefit,
or  both,  is  or  are  required  pursuant  to subdivision dd of section
fifty-one of this article or subdivision aa of  section  sixty  of  this
article,  retirement  shall  be on the basis of "Option One-half" unless
the member files an effective  election  pursuant  to  this  section  to
retire  on a different basis. The provisions of this paragraph two shall
apply to cases where retirement shall become effective on or  after  May
first, nineteen hundred fifty-four.
c.  A member, or person authorized by this section to make an election
in his behalf, may designate his beneficiary under any  of  the  options
herein provided. Each such designation shall be:
1.  Made  in  writing  on a blank provided by the comptroller for such
purpose, and
2. Ineffective until it is filed in the comptroller's office, and
3. Revocable to the extent that:
(a) A new  beneficiary  under  a  "Cash  Refund-Contributions"  option
(Option  One-half), or "a Cash Refund-Initial Value" option (Option One)
may be designated at any time during the member's life.
(b) A new beneficiary under any other option may be designated at  any
time  within  the period provided for the making of an election pursuant
to this section.
d. In the event of the death of a retired member, the  installment  of
his  retirement  allowance, which would have become due and payable next
following his death, shall be pro-rated as of the date of his death. The
amount of such installment, as so pro-rated, shall be paid as follows:
1. If the member shall have:
(a) Elected to receive an optional benefit pursuant to  this  section,
and
(b)  Designated  a  beneficiary  pursuant to this section, such amount
shall be paid to such beneficiary, if such beneficiary survives him.  In
any  other case such amount shall be paid to the retired member's estate
or pursuant to section one thousand three hundred ten of the surrogate's
court procedure act.
2. If the member  shall  not  have  elected  to  receive  an  optional
benefit,  such amount shall be paid to the beneficiary designated by him
pursuant to subdivision d of section fifty-one of this article.  In  the
event  the  appropriately  designated  beneficiary does not survive such
member, or if he shall not have so designated a beneficiary, such amount
shall be payable to the retired member's estate or pursuant  to  section
one thousand three hundred ten of the surrogate's court procedure act.
e.  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision  of this article, an option
selection previously filed by a member or retired member subject to  the
provisions  of  this  section  may  be changed no later than thirty days
following the date of payability of his or her retirement  allowance.  A
retired  member who has been retired for disability may change an option
selection previously filed no later than (1) thirty days  following  the
date  on  which  such member's application for disability retirement was
approved by the retirement board or (2) thirty days following  the  date
on which such retiree was retired for disability, whichever is later.