Wednesday, October 14, 2020

EARLY RETIREMENT INCENTIVE BILL INTRODUCED THAT HAS CITY LETTER OF SUPPORT

The Delegate Assembly actually was not a total waste of time as it was announced that an early retirement bill has been introduced in the State Senate by Brooklyn Senator Andrew Gounardes that has a letter of support from NYC. 

Here are the parts of the summary of Senate Bill S9041 that I think most of you would be interested in:

A member is eligible to participate in Part A of the ERI Program if he or she:

   * Is otherwise eligible for service retirement;

   * Is at least age 50 with 10 or more years of service and is not in  a plan which permits retirement at half-pay with 25 or fewer years of service without regard to age 

MPACT ON BENEFITS: Part A would provide one-twelfth of a year of additional retirement service credit for each year of pension service, up to a maximum of three years of additional retirement service credit.

Part B would allow members to retire with an unreduced benefit if they are at least age 55 with 25 or more years of service.

I welcome someone who is more versed at these matters than me to simplify it for us. 

64 comments:

BxT said...

So if we're opted in for the 55 25 no dice??

Anonymous said...

I’m beyond disappointed to see that this only applies to NYC employees. There are layoffs happening all over the state. Not to mention the dangerous conditions for teachers over 55, such as myself. I’m on Long Island where our students can take ten minute mask breaks in our poorly ventilated classrooms. We’re all assigned remote, in person, and streamed classes. I was so hoping for an incentive that would help us all.

Anon said...

Oh no! I opted in for 25/55! Who knew?!

Not will to die yet said...

I am locked into 55 /25
I hope I can jump on this !
I hope I make the cut.

Anon said...

Done! 25/55 you are stuck!

Anonymous said...

@7:58 and 8:26. I am not a lawyer and I don't pretend to be one. But look at the language of Part A of the bill. It's saying you need to be at least 50 years of age with at least 10 years of service. Part B says you can retire at 55 with 25 years of service if you're NOT a part of a plan that does NOT specify an age, but specifies years of service. That's not us in the UFT titles in Part B. We are bound by years of service AND AGE (55), which is at least 55.

Bottomline is this. If you are least age 50, and have at least ten years of service, this incentive is open to you, period. At least this is how I interpret this.

TJL said...

Perhaps the plan b will allow for a refund of the 1.85% contribution (+5%) towards the 25/55.

Not will to die yet said...

I read it that way too .

Anonymous said...

This makes SOME sense upon reading it 10 times for NYC TRS members 50 years old that want to retire under PART A:
1. You have to be "otherwise eligible for service retirement"
Meaning you have to be at least age 55 with 30 years OR you are in the age 55+ ("regard to age") and have at least 25 years of service PROGRAM.

Why would anyone choose Part B otherwise? Certainly not cops who can retire at ANY AGE with 20+ years and NO PENALTY.

Then there's this part:
"If such employee has not accrued, excluding additional credit granted pursuant to this act, the minimum number of years of service required to retire with an allowance equal to fifty percent of final average salary under such plan, but has, with the inclusion of the additional credit provided under this act, accrued such number of years of credit, the benefit payable shall be the percentage of final average salary that would ordinarily be applicable to such individual upon retirement with such amount of credit (including incentive credit), reduced by five per centum per year for each year by which the number of years of service otherwise required to retire with an allowance equal to fifty percent of final average salary under such plan exceeds the amount of service credited to such employee under such plan at retirement (excluding the additional retirement incentive service credit provided pursuant to this act). Such reduction shall be prorated for partial years."

Summary: If you don't have 25 years, you are going to pay 5% penalty per year short.

PART A:
"Otherwise eligible for retirement"
I'm 50 and 10 years of service = You CAN retire under PART A with a 75% penalty
I'm 50 and 15 years of service = You CAN retire under PART A with a 50% penalty
I'm 50 and 20 years of service = You CAN retire under PART A with a 25% penalty
I'm 50 and 25+ years of service = You CAN retire under PART A with no penalty
I'm 55 and 25 years of service AND 25/55 = You CAN retire under PART A with no penalty
I'm 60 and 20 years of service AND 25/55 = You CAN retire under Part A with a 25% penalty
I'm 60 and 25 years of service = You CAN retire under PART A with no penalty
I'm 62 and 20 years of service = You can retire under PART A, no penalty

Why would anyone do PART A with a penalty? Because you don't have to work for 1-4 years and can start collecting a pension NOW (the less than <25 years AND/OR >62 crowd)

Now, those who are NOT "otherwise eligible for retirement"
AKA PART B:
I'm 55 and 20 years of service BUT no 25/55 = You CANNOT retire
I'm 55 and 25+ years of service BUT no 25/55 = You CAN retire under PART B with no penalty

Why would anyone do Part B? You have to be "eligible for retirement" for PART A in terms of the 25+ years (25/55 already) or the 30+ years or 62+ or pay a penalty. PART B is ONLY for people that are NOT eligible for retirement under Part A, basically the non 25/55 Program.

Why would anyone do Part B? Because you missed the boat 10 years ago and here's your chance to retire NOW. I predict a lot of Part As but Part B (the non-25/55 and/or <30 years and/or <62 years-old crowd) will not be retiring. It seems to make sense to me they would incentivize 25/55 BUT it's possible I'm completely wrong, of course!

Anonymous said...

@Anonymous Non-Lawyer: I think you are right it's open to 50+ BUT they have to had bought into the 25/55 program (as you stated) AND they have to pay a 5% penalty for every year short of 25 years. So people that are 50 that bought into 25/55 and have 25 years, no penalty. But if you are 50 with 20 years, a 25% penalty...10 years? a whopping 75% penalty. So really <25 years-in have to be very desperate to retire ... maybe they were when they signed up for 25/55? That's quite a hit though.

Anonymous said...

How long can a Bill hang around in the Senate?

Anonymous said...

Does it mention any reduction if you retire at 50 with 17 years of service?

So retirement at 50 means you can start collecting at 50 and DO NOT have to wait until you
are 55 to collect?

If you are not 50 yet will we be able to buy into the age 50 retirement? I bet this would sell like a hotcake.

Anonymous said...

Doubtful to get anything, but even if yes, we would pay huge taxes.no good solution except roll to tda

Anonymous said...

Part b

If you are 55 or older and have 25 years in... You can retire with 60 percent fas.. Instead of working another 5 years to get that benefit. Right now, you could retire with reduced benefits, but this bill would allow people in that category to get the full 60 percent and leave 5 years early.

Anonymous said...

Forgive me if I missed it, but I don't see a "buy in" as with the 2010 offer. The way I read this, you have to meet the eligible criteria now. Is this correct?

Anonymous said...

So im 53 with 18 years in. But Im part of 25/55program. I would not be entitled to anything unless there was a penalty involved. I should not have done the 55 program but i figured retired at 60 was better then 62. I was wondering if any of this would apply to me. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

If by the time you turn 50 you have 25 years in, these people would not have bought into the 25/55 since they would only be 50 when they reached 25 like yours truly, so we would lose 5% for each year less than 55 years old. This only works for those who did 25/55.

Anonymous said...

All of the comments above are for nothing as the bill can change 1000 times in committee. No use analyzing it until its a done deal

Anonymous said...

God, I miss Chaz!

Anonymous said...

So I am in the 55/25 program. I am 55 with 22.5 yrs. Will part A apply to me? I saw something about 1-4 years being applied towards retirement. Would I have to pay a penalty? Can anyone help me shed a little light on this? Thanks!

Anonymous said...

8:43- we need to analyze, discuss, and understand so we can advocate for some of those changes.

8:48- I was thinking the same thing.

8:56- You and I are in almost the exact same situation. My hope is that the ERI will allow us to "purchase" 2 years of credit at the end of this school year, thus reaching 25+ years and being eligible to retire without penalty. A refund of the contributions we've made into 55/25 would also be fair, but that will likely be something we will need to lobby for.

Anonymous said...

I'm 40. Doesn't help...

ATR 25/55 said...

Typical Whiney-Ass Teachers: We want a buyout!

NY State: Here's a proposal.

TWAT: UGH, NOT THAT ONE!

Anonymous said...

7:28, how did u calculate 60%?
After 30, it is 1.5%for every year over 30.we get 3%in march

Anonymous said...

When I started teaching decades ago, we had teachers in my building that were in their eighties having started there in their early twenties. When I ended up in getting appointed in my third school, with plenty of seventy year olds that had started in their twenties, many were shocked I had been in so many schools - some of them implying something must have been wrong with me (I changed licenses, was excesses and finally got appointed). Now I don’t know anyone that’s only been in only one school. I also don’t know anyone that wants to stay a second more than they’re required. Also I don’t know anyone who enjoys teaching. I ran into one elderly retiree from my appointed school, a couple of years ago, ninety five years old and told her I had been in over fifty schools, just as an ATR. She looked at me like I was some type of horrid fornicator. Three schools before being appointed and now fifty after my school closed. I told her the other 2 and the appointment were consensual - the ATR rotations and placements were rape facilitated by the UFT.

Anonymous said...

Nobody who has only 10 years in the system will be eligible because the window for opting into the 25/55 option was over 15 years ago.

Anonymous said...

Dues well spent. Unity propoganda. They are proud of giving up half the retro.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAPfIHEj1zk&feature=youtu.be

Anonymous said...


If not otherwise
16 eligible for a service retirement, the following person shall be deemed
17 to satisfy the eligibility condition of this section: a person who is at
18 least age fifty with ten or more years service as of the effective date
19 of retirement (other than a member of a retirement plan which provides
20 for half-pay pension upon completion of twenty-five years or less
21 service without regard to age); or a member of a retirement plan which
22 provides for half-pay pension upon completion of twenty-five years of
23 service without regard to age who has not accrued, excluding additional
24 credit granted pursuant to this act, the minimum number of years of
25 service required to retire with an allowance equal to fifty percent of
26 final average salary under such plan, but has, with the inclusion of the
27 additional credit provided under this act, accrued such number of years
28 of credit.


without regard to age -- or has not met the requirements of the 25/55 --- does this mean that people in 25/55 are eligible or not???????
I say it does. I am writing my state senator right now!! Pass this!

Anonymous said...

Question I haven't seen asked - how would the monthly retirement credit be applied within the FAS? Customarily, you FAS is directly connected to a salaried dollar value. So, will any additional month given simply be given value of your current salary?

Anonymous said...

without regard to age - is the phrase I need to understand --- this is open to all city employees... in different agencies, right... like NYPD - cops don't have a minimum age requirement -- so let's say cop has 25 years of service and is 48 --- maybe this incentive does not want to allow the cop to buy 3 more years of credit since they could already retire w/25 years of service

25/55 - is a plan "with regard to age" -- must be 55 -- so I think it means NYC teachers who are in 25/55 can opt in to this incentive and that we can buy service credit if we have not met the years requirement

1 month for every year

Anonymous said...

Ok, let's see what responses I get, I realize the bill may change, hasn't been passed etc.

I am:

51 yrs old, going on 52 this year
will have 29+ years of service by June of this year
Am not part of 25/55 or any other plan.

Can I retire without penalty under this ERI? It looks like if I am 50+, and the 1 month of service credit for each yr of service gives me 29 more months of service = 2 yrs 5 months, and puts me over 30 yrs total.

Remaining questions? Can we use terminal leave also? Do we start to earn pension right away [not wait until 55]?

Anonymous said...

I need 15 more months to reach 55, could we hold this incentive for another 1.5 years?
Inside this proposal, the open window is only 90 days from the the day it goes into effect.

Anonymous said...

I need 15 more months to reach 55, could we hold this incentive for another 1.5 years?
Inside this proposal, the open window is only 90 days from the the day it goes into effect.

Anonymous said...

We will have to see it to believe it. There were 2 other ERIs that just stalled. Let's see how far/fast this goes. Cheers!

Anonymous said...

You oldies want our so bad. Can't keep up LOL ��

Anonymous said...

No generational warfare please. We are on the same side.

Anonymous said...

@10:47. Why would a 50 year old with 10 years of service be able to retire and a 55 y.o with a 20 years of service would not? This does not make sense.

Anonymous said...

@6:07 What is it that oldies want ? "Our" what ? Tier VI ? We come to this blog to gain and share knowledge , not pettiness.

Anonymous said...

I don't think the 50/10 can apply to teachers. That may apply only to other city agencies. Even if someone retires with only 10 years at 60 percent, their pension will be nil. Still it's crazy that someone with 10 years in gets the same as someone who had to work 30 years.

Anon2323 said...

DITTO @8:48 WE ALL MISS AND NEED CHAZ, THESE TIMES ESPECIALLY MORE THAN EVER!

I did the 25/55 15 years ago naive believing it2 25 years teaching figuring I would be 47. Now I want last no chance I am teaching 34 years, I hope all the money I put into the 25/55 will be there for me.

Anonymous said...

well if people actually took the time to read, it actual does apply to teachers; 50/10 is the proposal. however, the penalty would be incredible. As such, it would only be beneficial to an ultra minority group of teachers who might need health care and some pocket change.

Anonymous said...

@10:47 - a 50 year old with 10 years *I think* can retire because they are in the 25/55 program and therefore "eligible to retire" although technically no teacher can retire until they hit 55 years old so the question really should be - how does being 50 years old allow you to retire at all? You can have 30+ years of service at 50 years old (there are some licenses that you can actually start teaching at age 18) and you are technically NOT eligible to retire. What does not make sense is that a 50-54 year old can retire under Part A, but, we know from 1995, that this was the case. As far as the 55 year old with 20 years of service, they ARE "eligible" to retire with an EXTREME penalty AND would have to pay AN ADDITIONAL 5% penalty for every year short of 25 years of service. In short, I mistyped in saying that they are NOT eligible; however, it would be ridiculous for them to retire. At Tier IV (best case scenario) they would be looking at a 60-70% reduction in their FAS-based pension. The other point here is if anyone can choose Part A or B, why would anyone choose B with no-time added to their FAS? All I can figure is, based on the language, that you NEED 25 years to choose A OR *I think, hope, maybe this will be worked out according to Mulgrew's nebulous description at the Town Hall today* YOU ALREADY are in the 25/55 program. That door is definitely open as someone pointed out with the not "age based" retirement program required for Part A. Bottomline is if you are 55-61, my thinking is you would have to be signed up for 25/55 to qualify for retirement with less than 30 years AND PICK PART A; why have a PART B option otherwise? It's for those people that missed the boat in 2010 and want to retire now, without penalty. But you're not gonna get more years too; the State will not give out more than they have to. That, I can be sure of.

Anonymous said...

i AM IN 55/25 ALREADY.
i WILL HAVE 28 YEARS SERVICE CREDIT IN JUNE.
i TURN 50 SEPT 8- RIGHT BEFORE THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL,
wILL I BE ELIGIBLE TO RETIRE UNDER THIS BILL?
WILL I GET ADDITIONAL SERVICE CREDIT?
I READ THE BILL AND I AM UNSURE ABOUT MY SITUATION.

Siegal said...

25/55 is 25 or 55 not and . So you could have 25 years and retire but you wouldn’t be able to collect till you were 55. With the incentive I believe you will be able to collect

Anonymous said...

thansk that what i am inquiring about

Not will to die yet said...

Any more info about this thing ? It flat lined ———————————————————————————————

jodie said...

What if you didn’t buy in to 25/55?? I am 51 with 26.5 years? Am I eligible without penalty??

jodie said...

What if you didn’t buy in to 25/55?? I am 51 with 26.5 years? Am I eligible without penalty??

James Eterno said...

I do not believe the Legislature is in session.

Prehistoric pedagogue said...

Jodie: You can retire. Get a bump of two years and two months, but if you start collecting before 55 you’re gonna have a penalty

Anonymous said...

What is the penalty if you retire before 55 but you have 30 years of service? Can you collect before age 55?

annon said...

This legislature can change numerous times, it's too early to know how it will look come the late spring.

Prehistoric pedagogue said...

The penalty is not for retiring before age 55 it’s for collecting your pension before age 55. You can definitely retire at age 51 or 30 year service. If you start collecting a pension before age 55 it will be a substantial penalty

Florence Calandrella said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Florence Calandrella said...

If I'm in the 25/55 program am I eligible for this buyout july 2020 I'm 52 and have 27 years service?

James Eterno said...

I wish I could answer the questions but this is a bill. It could be amended. You can read what is in it. That's what we know now.

James Eterno said...

It all depends on what the final bill looks like Thal. If you have a big CAR, you could use terminal leave for part of the time to get to January 2022.

Not will to die yet said...

I know more information will be available when spring rolls around. This is my favorite topic. Fingers crossed they allow me to opt in. 55 /25 with 23 years in. Will be 55 next month.

Anonymous said...

I believe action on the ERI has to be taken sooner rather than later as the Mayor indicted that the agreement with the teacher’s union brings him some breathing room. Other unions are looking to get the ERI done by year’s end to avoid their folks from being laid off.
I know Mulgrew said late spring/early summer but I don’t think the Mayor can hold off an layoffs of other City workers until then.

Anonymous said...

Anyone have an update on the status of BillS9041? I have not heard anything about the Legislators meeting to vote on this. Originally, there was talk about them doing so after the election.

James Eterno said...

I do not think the Legislature is in session so nothing is going to happen now.

Anonymous said...

Any update on progress of BillS9041 now that Legislature is in session?

Anonymous said...

Anyupdate on the status of BillS9041?

Scruffygrognard said...

It looks like the language of the bill has been amended for the worse. It now reduces pension benefits of those who retire before age 62 or 57, if they have less than 25 years of service, or 55... not matter how many years of service they have:

=========(Those with less than 25 years and younger than 62)==========
An eligible employee who is covered by the provisions of article 15 of the retirement and social security law shall retire under the provisions of article 15 of the retirement and social security law. The amount of such benefit for an eligible employee who is covered by article 15 of the retirement and social security law and retires under the provisions of this section (other than a member with thirty or more years of service in the New York city employees' retirement system, the New York city teachers' retirement system, or the New York city board of education retirement system) shall be reduced by six percent for each of the first two years by which retirement precedes age sixty-two, plus a further reduction of three percent for each year by which retirement precedes age sixty, provided, however, the foregoing reductions shall not apply: (i) in any case where an eligible employee can retire after twenty-five years of service with immediate payability prior to the age of sixty-two pursuant to section 604-b of the retirement and social security law or (ii) to any time period subsequent to the point at which an eligible employee can retire for service without reduction of his or her service retirement allowance pursuant to article 16 of the retirement and social security law. Such reduction shall be prorated for partial years.

=========(All of those younger than 55)==========
The amount of such benefit for an eligible employee with thirty or more years of service who is a member of the New York city employees' retirement system, the New York city teachers' retirement system, or the New York city board of education retirement system, or an eligible employee who is a participant in the optional twenty-five year early retirement program for certain New York city members governed by section 604-c of the retirement and social security law, as added by chapter 96 of the laws of 1995 or a twenty-five year participant in the age fifty-five retirement program governed by section 604-i of the
retirement and social security law, with twenty-five or more years of service and who is covered by article 15 of the retirement and social security law shall be reduced by five percent for each year by which retirement pursuant to this section precedes age fifty-five.

=========(Those with less than 25 years and younger than 57)==========
The amount of such benefit for an eligible New York city employee with five or more years of service and who is a participant in the age fifty-seven retirement program governed by section 604-d of the retirement and social security law shall be reduced by one-thirtieth for the first two years by which retirement precedes age fifty-seven plus a further reduction of one-twentieth for each year by which retirement precedes age fifty-five.
Such reduction shall be prorated for partial years. There shall be no reduction for an eligible New York city employee in a physically taxing position with twenty-five or more years of service and who is a participant (i) in the optional twenty-five year early retirement program for certain members governed by section 604-c of the retirement and social security law, as added by chapter 96 of the laws of 1995, or (ii) in the age fifty-seven retirement program governed by section 604-d of the retirement and social security law.