BILL NUMBER: S8686
SPONSOR: RYAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to authorize the city of Buffalo to offer an optional twenty year
retirement plan to firefighters Rhiannon Maguire and Jeffrey Brett
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to allow the City of Buffalo to offer a
twenty-year retirement plan to two firefighters employed by the City
who, for reasons not ascribable to their own negligence, failed to make
a timely application to participate in such optional twenty-year retire-
ment plan.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 authorizes the City of Buffalo to offer a retirement plan
pursuant to section 384-d of the retirement and social security law to
Rhiannon Maguire and Jeffrey Brett.
Section 2 specifies that the City of Buffalo will bear responsibility
for all employer past service costs, which may be amortized over a ten-
year period.
Section 3 is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Rhiannon Maguire and Jeffrey Brett are firefighters employed by the City
of Buffalo. Both firefighters were hired in Sept 2009, at a time when
New York State was transitioning to a new pension tier. Both had prior
public service, and both were given misinformation by a state represen-
tative that they were not eligible to participate in the 20-year retire-
ment plan offered to other firefighters. This bill would authorize the
city of Buffalo to offer an optional twenty year retirement plan to
firefighters Rhiannon Maguire and Jeffrey Brett.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021: S.8771, died in Civil Service and Pensions.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
 
LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
As determined in Fiscal Note 2024-121, appended to this bill.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.