New York Assembly Bill A07570

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 4/1/25
• Refer: 4/1/25
• Refer: 1/7/26

Caption

Provides for service credit related to the birth or adoption of a new child for certain correction officer retirement system members.

Summary

This bill amends the Retirement and Social Security Law to allow certain correction officer members of the New York State and Local Employees’ Retirement System employed by Suffolk County to receive retirement service credit for periods of authorized unpaid leave taken in connection with the birth or adoption of a new child. The credit is available only if the member files a claim by December 31, 2026, or within 90 days after the leave ends, whichever is later, and pays the retirement contributions they would have made during the leave, plus interest, based on their most recent 12 months of non-zero compensation and mandatory contribution rate. To qualify, the member must have at least five years of credited service, excluding the new credit being sought. If the member had not yet reached five years of service when the leave began, they may file within 90 days after reaching five years of service. The bill caps the benefit at one year of service credit for each period of authorized unpaid leave related to the birth or adoption of a child and states that, if there is a conflict with other laws, this new provision controls. The act would take effect immediately.

Impact

The bill would create a new, targeted retirement benefit for a narrow class of public employees: Suffolk County correction officers in NYSLERS. It would modify the retirement and social security law to permit service credit for unpaid parental leave tied to childbirth or adoption, which is currently not generally credited under the system’s salary-paid service credit rules. The bill also shifts all past service costs to Suffolk County and exempts the act from the retirement law’s appropriation requirement, meaning the county would bear the fiscal burden rather than the state retirement system or state appropriations process.

Sentiment

Based on the bill text and fiscal note, the measure appears supportive of family leave and retirement fairness for affected correction officers, while remaining limited and cost-contained. There is no recorded committee debate or vote history in the provided materials, so the available context suggests no documented opposition or support statements beyond the bill’s sponsor-driven policy design. The fiscal note acknowledges the proposal is not consistent with the retirement system’s usual rule that service credit is granted only when salary is paid, but it does not indicate political controversy in the available record.

Contention

The main policy tension is between expanding retirement credit for unpaid parental leave and preserving the retirement system’s traditional salary-based service credit structure. The fiscal note highlights that the proposal departs from existing NYSLERS policy, and the cost would be borne by Suffolk County, which may be a point of concern for local fiscal stakeholders. Another possible point of contention is the bill’s narrow scope: it applies only to correction officer members employed by Suffolk County, so questions could arise about equity compared with other public employees or counties that are not covered.