New York Laws
Title 11 - Metropolitan Commuter Transportation Authority
1266-H - Authority Police Force.

(a) any benefit provided pursuant to such plan shall be subject to an
offset, as defined in this paragraph, for any tier II benefit payable
pursuant to the federal Railroad Retirement Act to or in the respect of
a member. The offset provided for by this paragraph shall be the amount
of the tier II benefit which would be payable to or in respect to such
member pursuant to the federal Railroad Retirement Act multiplied by a
fraction, the numerator of which is the member's years of credited
service covered by the federal Railroad Retirement Act rendered to, or
credited by, the authority or any subsidiary corporation of the
authority, and the denominator of which is the member's total years of
service covered by the federal Railroad Retirement Act;
(b) references to Long Island Rail Road shall be to the authority;
(c) the transfer of funds described in subdivision f of section three
hundred eighty-nine of the retirement and social security law as enacted
by chapter six hundred twenty-eight of the laws of nineteen hundred
ninety-one shall include the Metro-North Commuter Railroad Company
Defined Contribution Pension Plan for Agreement Employees;
(d) the provisions of subdivision g of section three hundred
eighty-nine of the retirement and social security law as enacted by
chapter six hundred twenty-eight of the laws of nineteen hundred
ninety-one to the extent of requiring contributions for past service
liability shall not be applicable; and
(e) when a police officer transferred from the Long Island Rail Road
Company police force to the authority police force reaches age sixty-two
the authority will offset the amount payable under this plan by the
amount of tier II benefit payable from the Railroad Retirement Board for
a service age annuity or disability payable at the participants age
sixty-two.
5. The authority may, in its sole discretion, establish within the
authority's defined benefit program, a retirement program consistent
with the foregoing. If the authority has not so established such program
in its defined benefit program within one hundred eighty days after

enactment, then the authority shall elect to participate in article
fourteen-B of the retirement and social security law.
6. If the authority elects to participate in the New York state and
local employees' retirement system, such election to participate shall
be made by resolution filed with the comptroller and accepted by him
pursuant to section thirty-one of the retirement and social security
law.
7. Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to diminish, suspend or
abolish an existing benefit inured to a police officer, transferred from
the Long Island Rail Road Company and/or Metro-North Commuter Railroad
Company police force and subject to the provisions of this section in
and to the rights, privileges or status previously earned within a
pension or retirement system of which they were a member immediately
prior to the enactment of this section; and any such existing right,
privilege or status shall survive the effect of any decisions or
determinations lawfully made in accordance with the provisions hereof so
long as such right, privilege or status is greater in benefit to that
which would be imposed or imputed to any subject officer as a result of
actions of the authority authorized herein.
* 8. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section or of any
general, special or local law to the contrary, and solely for the
purpose of determining eligibility for benefits under this section,
where:
(i) a member reported in person to such member's usual place of public
employment at the direction of such member's public employer or to any
alternate worksite as directed by such public employer, on or after
March first, two thousand twenty, provided that such alternate worksite
was not such member's home or residence;
(ii) such member contracted COVID-19 within forty-five days after
reporting to work pursuant to subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, as
confirmed by a positive laboratory test or as diagnosed before or after
such member's death by a licensed, certified, registered or authorized
physician, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant currently in
good standing in any state or the District of Columbia, or a physician,
nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant authorized to practice in
New York by executive order during the declared COVID-19 state of
emergency; and
(iii) Such member died on or before December thirty-first, two
thousand twenty-four, and COVID-19 caused or contributed to such
member's death, as documented on such member's death certificate, or as
certified by a physician, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant
described in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph who determines with a
reasonable degree of medical certainty that COVID-19 caused or
contributed to the member's death, such member's statutory beneficiary
shall receive an accidental death benefit, unless such statutory
beneficiary elects to receive an ordinary death benefit.
(b) Any amount payable as a result of this section shall be reduced by
any amount paid by such member's retirement system to any recipient of
ordinary death benefits pursuant to this section.
(c) Notwithstanding any provision of this section or of any general,
special or local law to the contrary, and solely for the purpose of
determining eligibility for benefits under this section, where a member:
(1) retired from his or her retirement system on or after March first,
two thousand twenty, and before July first, two thousand twenty;
(2) on or after March first, two thousand twenty, reported in person
to such member's usual place of public employment at the direction of
such member's public employer or to any alternate worksite as directed

by such public employer, provided that such alternate worksite was not
such member's home or residence;
(3) contracted COVID-19 within forty-five days after any such date of
reporting to work in person, as confirmed by a positive laboratory test
or as diagnosed before or after such member's death by a licensed,
certified, registered or authorized physician, nurse practitioner, or
physician's assistant currently in good standing in any state or the
District of Columbia, or a physician, nurse practitioner, or physician's
assistant authorized to practice in New York by executive order during
the declared COVID-19 state of emergency; and
(4) Such member died on or before December thirty-first, two thousand
twenty, and COVID-19 caused or contributed to such member's death, as
documented on such member's death certificate, or as certified by a
physician, nurse practitioner, or physician's assistant described in
subparagraph three of this paragraph who determines with a reasonable
degree of medical certainty that COVID-19 caused or contributed to the
member's death, such member's statutory beneficiary shall receive an
accidental death benefit if such statutory beneficiary elects conversion
of the member's service or disability retirement benefit into an
accidental death benefit.
(d) Such member's statutory beneficiary, as defined pursuant to this
section, for purposes of accidental death benefits payable from such
member's retirement system under this section, may, within ninety days
of such member's retirement or September first, two thousand twenty,
whichever is later, apply to such member's retirement system to request
the conversion of such member's service or disability retirement benefit
into an accidental death benefit. For purposes of the salary base upon
which the accidental death benefit is calculated, such member shall be
deemed to have died on the date of such member's retirement. At the time
of such conversion, such statutory beneficiary shall relinquish all
rights to the prospective benefits payable under the service or
disability retirement statute, including any post-retirement death
benefits, since such member's death. If the statutory beneficiary is not
the only beneficiary receiving or entitled to receive a benefit under
the service or disability retirement statute including, but not limited
to, a post-retirement death benefit or benefit paid or payable pursuant
to the member's option selection, the accidental death benefit payments
to the statutory beneficiary will be reduced by any amounts paid or
payable to any other statutory beneficiary.
(e) In order to be eligible for the benefit described in this
subdivision, the applicable retirement system or systems are authorized
to promulgate rules and regulations to administer this benefit
including, but not limited to, requiring a statement to be filed
confirming the member contracted COVID-19 and the dates and locations of
such member's employment.
* NB Repealed December 31, 2024

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