N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 607 – Accidental death benefits
§ 607. Accidental death benefits. a. The eligible beneficiary of a member in service, or of a vested member who dies as a result of a qualifying World Trade Center condition as defined in section two of this chapter, shall be entitled to an accidental death benefit in the form of a pension equal to fifty percent of such member's wages earned during his or her last year of actual service or his or her annual wage rate if he or she was credited with less than one year of service since last becoming a member, if, upon application filed within five years after the death of the member, the head of the retirement system determines that such member died before the effective date of retirement, as the natural and proximate result of an accident not caused by his or her own willful negligence sustained in the performance of his or her duties in active service and while actually a member of the retirement system.
Terms Used In N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 607
- Active service: shall mean service while being paid on the payroll of a participating employer provided, however, a leave of absence with pay may be deemed active service pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by a public retirement system of the state. See N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 601
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Head of the retirement system: shall mean the comptroller, with respect to the state employees' retirement system and the retirement board of the other public retirement systems of the state. See N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 601
- Intestate: Dying without leaving a will.
- Member: shall mean a member subject to the provisions of this article. See N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 601
- Wages: shall mean regular compensation earned by and paid to a member by a public employer, except that for members who first join the New York state and local employees' retirement system or the New York state teachers' retirement system on or after January first, two thousand ten, overtime compensation paid in any year in excess of the overtime ceiling, as defined by this subdivision, shall not be included in the definition of wages. See N.Y. Retirement and Social Security Law 601
Notwithstanding the provisions of section two hundred forty-two, two hundred forty-three or two hundred forty-four of the military law or the provisions of any other law to the contrary and solely for the purpose of determining eligibility for an accidental death benefit, a member shall be considered to have died as the natural and proximate result of an accident sustained in the performance of duty provided such member 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.
Provided, however, the head of the retirement system in its sole discretion may accept an application for an accidental death benefit after the expiration of the applicable filing period, where, but only where, an ordinary death benefit has not been previously paid.
b. If an eligible beneficiary receiving the accidental death benefit hereunder becomes ineligible to continue to receive such benefit, the benefit shall be continued for all other members of the eligible class of beneficiaries and, if none, to each successive class, if any, during their eligibility therefor.
c. If the aggregate benefits under the provisions of this section have not exceeded the amount of the ordinary lump sum death benefit because of the absence of eligible beneficiaries or because those beneficiaries formerly eligible are no longer eligible for payments pursuant to section six hundred one of this article, then the difference between the amounts, if any, paid under this section and the amount of the ordinary lump sum death benefit shall be paid to:
1. The last eligible beneficiary or beneficiaries, if surviving, who were receiving pension payments hereunder or, if none
2. The distributees of the member, if there were no eligible beneficiaries at the member's death, or the persons who would be distributees of the member had he or she died intestate on the date that the last eligible beneficiary died or became ineligible.