Provides for certain death benefits to deputy sheriffs employed by Orange county

S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                          9212

                                    I N  S E N A T E

                                    February 13, 2026
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sen. SKOUFIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
          printed to be committed to the Committee on Civil Service and Pensions

        AN ACT to amend the retirement and social security law, in  relation  to
          providing certain death benefits to deputy sheriffs employed by Orange
          county

          THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
        BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

     1    Section 1. The retirement and social security law is amended by adding
     2  a new section 606-d to read as follows:
     3    § 606-D. DEATH BENEFITS FOR DEPUTY SHERIFFS EMPLOYED BY ORANGE COUNTY.
     4  A. AS USED IN THIS SECTION, THE  TERM  "DEPUTY  SHERIFF"  SHALL  MEAN  A
     5  PERSON EMPLOYED BY ORANGE COUNTY WITH A TITLE OF DEPUTY SHERIFF.
     6    B. NOTWITHSTANDING ANY PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY, WHERE A DEPU-
     7  TY  SHERIFF  WOULD HAVE BEEN ENTITLED TO A SERVICE RETIREMENT BENEFIT AT
     8  THE TIME OF THEIR DEATH AND WHERE THEIR DEATH OCCURS  ON  OR  AFTER  THE
     9  EFFECTIVE  DATE  OF  THE  CHAPTER OF THE LAWS OF TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-SIX
    10  THAT ADDED THIS SECTION, THE BENEFICIARY OR BENEFICIARIES MAY  ELECT  TO
    11  RECEIVE,  IN  A  LUMP SUM, AN AMOUNT PAYABLE WHICH SHALL BE EQUAL TO THE
    12  PENSION RESERVE THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED HAD THE MEMBER  RETIRED
    13  ON  THE  DATE  OF SUCH MEMBER'S DEATH, OR THE VALUE OF THE DEATH BENEFIT
    14  AND THE RESERVE-FOR-INCREASED-TAKE-HOME-PAY, IF ANY, WHICHEVER IS GREAT-
    15  ER.
    16    §  2.  All  past  service  costs  associated  with  implementing   the
    17  provisions of this act shall be borne by the county of Orange and may be
    18  amortized over a period of ten years.
    19    §  3. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, none
    20  of the provisions of this act shall  be  subject  to  the  appropriation
    21  requirement of section 25 of the retirement and social security law.
    22    § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
          FISCAL NOTE.--Pursuant to Legislative Law, Section 50:
          This  bill  would  modify  the in-service death benefit for retirement
        eligible members of the New York State and Local  Employees'  Retirement
        System  (NYSLERS)  employed  by  Orange  county  as deputy sheriffs. The

         EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD14445-02-6
        S. 9212                             2

        in-service death benefit will be the value of the pension reserve as  if
        the member had retired on their date of death.
          We  estimate  that  Orange county's annual contributions will increase
        $15,000 beginning FYE 2027. Annual costs will vary but are  expected  to
        average 0.1% of salary.
          In  addition, there will be an immediate past service cost of $197,000
        borne by Orange county as a one-time payment.  This  cost  assumes  that
        payment  will  be  made  on February 1, 2027. If Orange county elects to
        amortize this cost over 10  years,  the  cost  for  each  year  will  be
        $25,100.
          These  estimated  costs  are  based on 91 affected members employed by
        Orange county, with annual salary of approximately  $12  million  as  of
        March 31, 2025.
          Summary of relevant resources:
          Membership data as of March 31, 2025 was used to measure the impact of
        the  bill, the same data used in the Actuarial Valuations dated April 1,
        2025. Distributions and other statistics can be found in the 2025 Report
        of the Actuary and the 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial  Report.  The
        actuarial  assumptions and methods used are described in the 2025 Annual
        Report to the Comptroller on Actuarial Assumptions, and the Codes, Rules
        and Regulations of the State of New York: Audit and  Control.  The  fair
        value  of assets and GASB disclosures can be found in the 2025 Financial
        Statements and Supplementary Information.
          Assumptions, demographics, and  other  considerations  may  have  been
        modified  to  better reflect specific provisions of any proposed benefit
        change(s).
          This fiscal note does not constitute a legal opinion on the  viability
        of the bill, nor is it intended to serve as a substitute for the profes-
        sional judgment of an attorney.
          This  estimate,  dated  February  11,  2026, and intended for use only
        during the 2026 Legislative Session, is Fiscal Note Number  2026-88.  As
        Chief  Actuary  of  the  New  York  State  and  Local  Retirement System
        (NYSLRS), I, Aaron Schottin Young, hereby  certify  that  this  analysis
        complies  with applicable Actuarial Standards of Practice as well as the
        Code of Professional Conduct and Qualification Standards  for  Actuaries
        Issuing Statements of Actuarial Opinion of the American Academy of Actu-
        aries,  of  which  I  am  a  member.  I am a member of NYSLRS but do not
        believe it impairs my objectivity.