Bill > S08111

This bill provides a new retirement benefit option for Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) and Advanced EMTs in New York City's Employee Retirement System (NYCERS) by allowing them to receive retirement credit for periods of unpaid child care leave. Specifically, EMT members can now apply to purchase up to one year of service credit for each authorized period of unpaid child care leave, provided they meet certain conditions. To take advantage of this benefit, EMT members must file a claim with the pension fund by December 31, 2025, or within 90 days following the termination of their child care leave, whichever is later. They must also contribute to the pension fund the amount they would have contributed during the leave period, including interest. Currently, EMT members are not able to receive retirement credit for periods of unpaid leave, so this bill represents a new opportunity for these essential healthcare workers to maintain their retirement benefits while taking time off to care for children. The fiscal note suggests this could potentially benefit the 4,236 active NYCERS members, with an average age of 36.5 and average salary of $74,000, though the exact number of members who will use this benefit is unknown.

Labor and Employment

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/S8111