New York Laws
Title 7 - Death Benefits and Disability Retirement
60 - Ordinary Death Benefit.

(b) The ordinary death benefit shall be payable from the pension
accumulation fund. Such ordinary death benefit shall be based on
compensation earnable by such member during his last twelve months of
service while a member. The amount thereof shall be computed by
multiplying one-twelfth of such compensation by the number of years, not
to exceed thirty-six, of his total service credit. Provided that where a
member, qualified under subdivisions a and aa of this section would have
been eligible for service retirement at the time of his death and where
his death occurs on or after August nineteenth, nineteen hundred
sixty-six and prior to July first, nineteen hundred seventy-four, the
amount payable under this section shall be equal to the pension reserve
that would have been established pursuant to section seventy-five-c had
the member retired on the date of his death, unless the ordinary death
benefit hereinabove provided for shall be in excess thereof. The benefit
provided herein shall be in lieu of the ordinary death benefit presently
payable under other provisions of this chapter, unless the benefit under
such other provisions shall be in excess of those provided for herein,
in which event the greater benefit shall be payable.
(c) In the case of a retired member who has returned to service, total
service credit, for purposes of this subdivision only, shall include
service rendered prior to his retirement, provided that he shall have
rendered at least one year of service since he last became a member, or
provided he shall have rendered since he returned to public service one
year of service during which he elected pursuant to subdivision a of
section one hundred one of this article not to be restored to membership
in the retirement system. The member's accumulated contributions shall
be refunded in accordance with subdivision d of section fifty-one of
this article.
c. The ordinary death benefit and the
reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay shall be paid to the member's estate
or to such person as he shall have nominated to receive such ordinary
death benefit. To be effective, such a nomination must be in the form of
a written designation, duly acknowledged and filed with the comptroller
for this specific purpose. In the event such a designated beneficiary
does not survive him, or if he shall not have so designated a
beneficiary, such benefit shall be payable to the deceased member's
estate or as provided in section one thousand three hundred ten of the
surrogate's court procedure act.
d. The member, or on the death of the member, the person nominated by
him to receive his death benefit, may provide, by written designation,
duly executed and filed with the comptroller, that such death benefit
and the reserve-for-increased-take-home-pay shall be paid in the form of
an annuity. Such designation shall be filed prior to or within ninety
days after the death of the member. The amount of such annuity shall be
determined as the actuarial equivalent of such death benefit and reserve
on the basis of the age of such beneficiary at the time of the member's
death and regular interest.
e. A member, or after his death, the person nominated by him to
receive his ordinary death benefit, may elect to receive the actuarial
equivalent of the annuity specified in subdivision d of this section in
the form of a reduced annuity, payable for life, with the further
proviso that if the person so nominated should die before the annuity
payments received by him are equal to such actuarial equivalent, the
balance thereof shall be paid in a lump sum to such beneficiary's estate
or to such person as such member or his nominee shall have designated

prior to his death. Such election shall be made prior to or within
ninety days after the death of the member. Such designation of a
beneficiary to receive such lump sum may be made or changed at any time
by the person who made it. Such election, designation or change shall be
made by a writing duly executed and filed with the comptroller. If the
person nominated to receive such lump sum does not survive the member's
beneficiary, such lump sum, if any, shall be payable to the estate of
the member's beneficiary, or as provided in section one thousand three
hundred ten of the surrogate's court procedure act.
f. 1. Notwithstanding any provision of paragraph three of subdivision
a of this section to the contrary and in lieu of the ordinary death
benefit payable pursuant to subdivisions b or bb of this section or the
guaranteed ordinary death benefit payable pursuant to section sixty-a of
this article, a special death benefit shall be payable upon the death in
service of a security services unit member or parkway police unit member
or security supervisors unit member who is subject to the provisions of
this article, and who has credit for ninety or more days of service
while actually a member of the retirement system.
2. The special death benefit provided under this section to the
beneficiary of such security services unit member or parkway police unit
member or security supervisors unit member shall be:
(a) in the case of a security services unit member or parkway police
unit member or security supervisors unit member who was employed by the
state on or before the date this act takes effect, equal to three times
the member's compensation earnable during his last twelve months of
service as a member or, if he had not completed twelve months of service
prior to the date of his death, three times the compensation he would
have earned had he worked for twelve months prior to such date, in
either case raised to the next higher multiple of one thousand dollars.
If, however, the ordinary death benefit payable pursuant to subdivision
b or bb of this section upon the death of such a security services
member or parkway police unit member or security supervisors unit member
would have exceeded the special death benefit payable pursuant to this
subdivision, the special death benefit payable in the event of death of
such a member prior to July first, nineteen hundred seventy-one shall be
equal to that benefit which would have otherwise been payable pursuant
to subdivision b or bb of this section notwithstanding any provision of
paragraph one of this subdivision to the contrary; or
(b) in the case of a security services unit member or parkway police
unit member or security supervisors unit member who enters service after
the date this act takes effect, equal to three times the member's
compensation earnable during his last twelve months of service as a
member or, if he has not completed twelve months of service prior to the
date of his death, three times the compensation he would have earned had
he worked for twelve months prior to such date in either case raised to
the next higher multiple of one thousand dollars.
3. For the purpose of this subdivision: (a) the terms "security
services unit member", "parkway police unit member", and "security
supervisors unit member" shall mean a member in the employ of the state
in the collective negotiating unit designated as the security services
unit or parkway police unit or security supervisors unit established
pursuant to article fourteen of the civil service law; and
(b) the term "death in service" shall include the death of such a
member who dies while off the payroll provided he or she (i) was on the
payroll in such service and paid within a period of twelve months prior
to his or her death, or was on the payroll in the service upon which
membership is based at the time he or she was ordered to active duty
pursuant to Title 10 of the United States Code, with the armed forces of

the United States or to service in the uniformed services pursuant to
Chapter 43 of Title 38 of the United States Code and died while on such
active duty or service in the uniformed services on or after June
fourteenth, two thousand five, (ii) had not been otherwise gainfully
employed since he or she ceased to be on such payroll and (iii) had
credit for one or more years of continuous service since he last entered
or reentered the service of his or her employer. Provided, further, that
any such member ordered to active duty pursuant to Title 10 of the
United States Code, with the armed forces of the United States or to
service in the uniformed services pursuant to Chapter 43 of Title 38 of
the United States Code who died prior to rendering the minimum amount of
service necessary to be eligible for this benefit shall be considered to
have satisfied the minimum service requirement.
4. The provisions of this subdivision shall apply in any case where
death occurs on or after the date this subdivision takes effect and
prior to July first, nineteen hundred seventy-four.