New York Assembly Bill A07671

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

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

Caption

Authorizes Marie Glarakis, a former Suffolk county police officer who is receiving a performance of duty disability retirement, to change the designated beneficiary of her retirement benefits and her retirement option to single life allowance (Option 0).

Summary

This bill is a private pension relief measure for Marie Glarakis, a former Suffolk County police officer who is receiving a performance-of-duty disability retirement from the New York State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System. It authorizes her, notwithstanding any other law, to change her designated pension beneficiary and to switch her retirement option from a joint allowance to a single life allowance (Option 0), under which no beneficiary is designated and the benefit ends upon the member’s death. If she submits the required request to the state comptroller within six months after the bill’s effective date, her retirement benefit must be recalculated and the revised amount paid prospectively from the effective date forward. The act takes effect immediately and is narrowly tailored to one named individual rather than changing the retirement rules generally for all members of the system.

Impact

The bill would create a one-time exception to existing retirement-benefit election rules for a single member of the New York State and Local Police and Fire Retirement System. It would allow a post-retirement change in beneficiary designation and retirement option, which is ordinarily fixed under pension law, and would require the comptroller to recalculate the member’s benefit accordingly. The fiscal note estimates an immediate past service cost of $47,900, to be shared by participating employers in NYSLPFRS and spread over future billing cycles.

Sentiment

There is no recorded committee transcript or vote history in the provided materials, so no direct debate or formal opposition is available. The bill’s structure suggests a routine private relief measure intended to address an individual retirement-benefit issue, and the fiscal note indicates a modest systemwide cost. Overall, the available record points to a neutral-to-supportive posture rather than broad controversy.

Contention

The main substantive issue is the departure from standard pension finality rules: the bill would let Marie Glarakis change both her beneficiary and her election from a joint allowance to a single life allowance after retirement. That kind of individualized exception can raise fairness and precedent concerns because it treats one retiree differently from other system members who are bound by their original elections. The only identified fiscal concern is the actuarial cost, which is relatively small and spread across participating employers.