IMPLEMENTATION GUIDE · S.7635B
This guide separates the public employer's decision from an individual member's election. It summarizes the current B amendment; the enacted law, Comptroller, and NYSLRS would control actual implementation and individual eligibility.
Bill text reviewed August 28, 2026. This is general campaign information—not legal, employment, or individual retirement advice.
THE CORE DISTINCTION
“Optional” does not mean the same choice happens at the same level. The employer process comes first.
PUBLIC EMPLOYER PATH
The bill gives the State, a county, or a municipality a defined election process. A symbolic support resolution is not the same as the later statutory employer-election resolution.
The employer identifies members in titles and duties potentially covered by the bill and submits the roster required for an exact estimate.
The Comptroller has authority under the bill to include differently named positions that comprehend the same duties and responsibilities.The employer must receive an estimate from the retirement system before making the election.
Final Fiscal Note 2026-40 says the roster would be used to determine the exact cost to that employer.If the employer chooses the benefit, it adopts a resolution and files a certified copy with the Comptroller. The resolution must also include an affidavit from the relevant State officer or local chief executive confirming receipt of the retirement system’s cost estimate.
The resolution may provide for past-service cost to be paid over five or ten years; the fiscal note also describes a one-time payment.Each electing employer pays the cost attributable to providing the benefit, including its past-service cost.
Final Fiscal Note 2026-40 estimates approximately 7% annually on affected-member salary, average past-service cost of approximately 30% varying by employer, and additional administrative costs.The resolution applies to members defined by the covered-title and duty provisions, subject to the bill's exception for certain members already in qualifying service-based plans.
An employer should rely on the Comptroller and NYSLRS for title, roster, and administrative guidance.The appropriate State officer or local chief executive periodically certifies the identity of members in eligible titles to the Comptroller as required.
Implementation is an ongoing administrative responsibility, not a one-time public statement.MEMBER PATH
The campaign can explain the bill's structure. It cannot determine a person's title coverage, creditable service, contributions, final average salary, or retirement date.
A member cannot use this proposed plan through a non-electing employer.
If the employer declines, existing retirement-plan rules continue to govern the member.The bill names public safety dispatchers, public safety telecommunicators, 911 operators, communications officers, police communication technicians, emergency services operators, and emergency services dispatchers. It also authorizes the Comptroller to recognize differently named positions that comprehend the same duties and responsibilities.
Job title alone does not establish eligibility. The official text and Comptroller control the actual determination.The bill defines covered emergency-communications service and also identifies certain police, firefighter, and district-attorney investigator service as creditable.
Military-service provisions and other service-credit rules are fact-specific; obtain official guidance.An Article 14 member would file the bill's election within one year after the employer election or one year after entering eligible employment, whichever is later.
The election would place the member under the applicable article provisions described in the bill. Seek NYSLRS guidance before making any election.At 25 years, the allowance is designed to equal 50% of final average salary. Each additional year adds 1/60 of final average salary, up to a 75% maximum. The proposal is service-based and sets no minimum retirement age.
For illustration, uninterrupted qualifying service beginning at 18 could reach 25 years at 43. This is not a personalized estimate or eligibility guarantee.The current bill would take effect on the first January following the date it becomes law.
The bill has not yet become law. Do not treat this as an announced enrollment or retirement date.QUESTIONS THAT REQUIRE OFFICIAL GUIDANCE
SOURCE DESK
The B amendment and Final Fiscal Note 2026-40 are the current proposal. Earlier amendment and fiscal-note figures should not be reused.