Relates to special retirement plans for sheriffs, undersheriffs and deputy sheriffs

Section two of this bill amends section 552(j) of the Retirement and Social Security Law to add a new subdivision 2 allowing municipalities to elect to provide creditable service to deputy sheriffs who are also police officers as certified by the municipal police council.

Section three of this bill amends section 551(h) of the Retirement and Social Security Law to add a new subdivision 2 allowing municipalities to elect to provide creditable service to deputy sheriffs who are also police officers as certified by the municipal police council.

Section four of this bill provides that it shall not be subject to the appropriation provisions of Retirement and Social Security Law section 25.

Section five of this bill provides that this act shall take effect immediately.

Justification

All Deputy Sheriffs are classified as police officers under the NYS Criminal Procedure Law (CPL). County deputies attend the same police academy alongside County police cadets and upon graduation receive the same prestigious BMPTC Certificate. In their capacity as police officers, Deputies enforce all of the laws of NYS (Le. criminal, vehicle and traffic, civil, etc.) on a daily basis in the course of their duties. They also participate in multiple law enforcement task forces working alongside other federal, state and local police officers facing the same inherent risks and dangers.

Currently, for Deputy Sheriffs receive "creditable service" under the special retirement (20-year) plan for deputy sheriffs, a member must "engage directly in criminal law enforcement activities that aggregate 50% of his or her service as a police officer under the criminal procedure law as certified by the county sheriff." Police officers, on the other hand, are granted a 20-year retirement plan based on "service as an officer or member of any organized police force or department of any county, city, town, village, police district, authority or other participating employer." In other words, graduates from a NYS certified police academy that go to work for a county/local police department are enrolled in a 20-year retirement plan simply based on the fact that they have received a Bureau of Municipal Police Training Council (BMPTC) certificate. Deputy Sheriffs, however, must be certified individually, year after year by the County Sheriff indicating that they have reached the 50% criminal law enforcement activity threshold. These certifications must also be filed with the State Comptroller. A major problem with this retirement plan is that a deputy sheriff who is out on a performance duty injury could face a possible non-certification under the 50% criteria and lose several years of creditable service putting their 20-year retirement in jeopardy.

Allowing Counties the option to use a deputy's BMPTC certificate and classification as a "police officer" under Section 1.20 of the CPL as the basis for certifying creditable service would once and for all "clean up" the inefficient and unrealistic methodology currently prescribed by law. It will also provide parity with other police officers in NYS who are not held to such arbitrary standards to obtain their 20-year retirement plan.

Legislative history

New Bill

Fiscal implications

See Fiscal Note

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.