Purpose: 

The purpose of this bulletin is to inform the Division of Housing and Community Renewal of OSC’s automatic processing of the DC 37 Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment and to provide processing instructions for entering the payment for employees not processed automatically or who require an adjustment.

Affected Employees: 

Employees in the Rent Regulations Services Unit (RRSU) - BU67 who meet the eligibility criteria are affected.

Background:

Per Chapter 177 of the Laws of 2024, employees in the RRSU bargaining unit listed above may be eligible for a one-time lump sum payment. 

The one-time lump sum payment is not pensionable and not subject to across-the-board increases but must be included in the calculation of overtime. 

Effective Dates:

The Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment is effective on 04/24/2024, end dated on 03/26/2025, and will be paid in the Administration Lag Pay Period 8L Check Dated 07/31/2024.

Eligibility Criteria:

Employees who meet the following criteria are eligible for the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment:

• On 01/04/2024, employees must:
  • Be in one of the following bargaining units:
    • CSEA (02, 03, 04, 47, 97)
    • M/C (06, 18, 46, 66, 78, 79, 96, 98)
    • PEF (05)
    • RRSU (67)
    • SUNY M/C (13)
    • UUP (08)
  • Have an Employee Status of Active, Leave With Pay, or Leave of Absence.
• On 04/24/2024 employees must:
  • Be in the following bargaining unit:
    • RRSU (67)
  • Have an Employee Status of Active, Leave With Pay, or Leave of Absence.
    • Employees with an Employee Status of Leave of Absence with an Action/Reason code of Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip) will receive the lump sum payment on the Check Date listed above.
    • Employees with an Employee Status of Leave of Absence (except with an Action/Reason code of Leave of Absence/MLS) who meet all remaining eligibility criteria are eligible for the lump sum payment if they return to the payroll on or before the Payment End Date listed above.
• Employees must have continuous service as stated in Civil Service Law Section 130.3(c) from 01/04/2024 through 04/24/2024.
• Employees who retired after 01/04/2024 but on or before 04/24/2024 and who meet all other eligibility criteria will receive the payment on the Check Date listed above.

Employees in the following situations are not eligible to receive the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment:

• Employees who have an Employee Status of Terminated or Deceased between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 for any length of time.
• Employees who have service between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 in a bargaining unit other than the following:
  • CSEA (02, 03, 04, 47, 97)
  • M/C (06, 18, 46, 66, 78, 79, 96, 98)
  • PEF (05)
  • RRSU (67)
  • SUNY M/C (13)
  • UUP (08)
• Employees who have already received a Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment (Earnings Code BNP).

OSC Actions:

Earnings Codes

OSC has provided the following Additional Pay Earnings Codes to process the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment:

Automatic Processing

OSC will process the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment for employees who meet the eligibility criteria except for employees with an Employee Status of Leave of Absence (except with an Action/Reason Code of Leave of Absence/MLS) on 04/24/2024.

Calculation of Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment Amount

Employees’ work percent on 04/24/2024 determines the methodology used to calculate the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment amount. 

Note: The work percent for employees who retired between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 will be evaluated on the day immediately prior to the employee’s retirement effective date and used to determine the methodology when calculating the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment amount.

Full Payment Amount:

The following employees will receive the full payment amount of $3,000:

• Employees with an Employee Status of Active or Leave With Pay and whose work percent is 100% on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave With Pay with an Action/Reason code of Paid Leave of Absence/SKL (Sick Lv) and whose work percent is 50% on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Active on a voluntary reduction in work schedule (VRWS) on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave of Absence with an Action/Reason code of Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip) and whose work percent is 100% on 04/24/2024

Prorated Payment Amount Based on Work Percent:

The following employees will receive a prorated payment amount determined by multiplying the full payment amount of $3,000 by the employee’s work percent in effect on 04/24/2024:

• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave With Pay with an Action/Reason code of Paid Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip) and whose work percent is less than 100% on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave of Absence with an Action/Reason code of Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip) and whose work percent is less than 100% on 04/24/2024.

Prorated Payment Amount Based on Hours Worked:

The following employees will receive a prorated payment amount based on the number of hours worked as described in the Calculation section:

• Employees with an Employee Status of Active and whose work percent is less than 100% on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave With Pay with an Action/Reason code of Paid Leave of Absence/SKL (Sick Lv) and whose work percent is less than 50% on 04/24/2024.
• Employees with an Employee Status of Leave With Pay (except with an Action/Reason code of Paid Leave of Absence/SKL) and whose work percent is less than 100% on 04/24/2024.

Calculation

The prorated Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment amount based on hours worked will be calculated as follows:

• The hours worked (including hours worked in the CSEA, M/C, PEF, RRSU, SUNY M/C and UUP bargaining units identified in the Eligibility Criteria section) between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 will be totaled.
• The following Earnings Codes will be included in the total hours worked:

Note: In instances where the earnings dates overlap the Evaluation Begin Date or Evaluation End Date provided above, only those transactions with an Earnings Begin Date equal to or greater than the Evaluation Begin Date and an Earnings End Date equal to or less than the Evaluation End Date will be included. 

• The total hours worked will be divided by 640 (80 workdays between the Evaluation Begin Date and Evaluation End Date x 8 hours per day).
• The result is rounded to 4 decimal places. This is the proration percentage.
• The full lump sum payment amount of $3,000 is multiplied by the proration percentage and rounded to the nearest cent. This is the prorated Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment amount.

Note: For employees who retired on or before 04/24/2024, the total hours worked must be divided by the maximum number of hours the employee could work from 01/04/2024 through the date of retirement (8 hours per day x the number of work days between 01/04/2024 and the day prior to the retirement date).

• The result is rounded to 4 decimal places. This is the proration percentage.
• The full lump sum payment amount of $3,000 is multiplied by the proration percentage and rounded to the nearest cent. This is the prorated Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment amount.

Creation of Additional Pay Record 

In Administration Pay Period 8L, OSC will create an Additional Pay record for eligible employees as follows: 

Agency Actions – Payments Not Processed Automatically:

Agencies must submit transactions to process the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment for the following employees:

• Employees who meet the Eligibility Criteria but have an Employee Status of Leave of Absence (except with an Action/Reason code of Leave of Absence/MLS) on 04/24/2024 and who return to the payroll on or before 03/26/2025.
• Employees who meet the Eligibility Criteria but whose eligible employment between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 is split between multiple Empl Record numbers in PayServ.
• Employees who did not meet the Eligibility Criteria at the time of automatic processing but, because of a retroactive job change which impacts the employee’s status 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024, are now entitled to the lump sum payment.

Submitting Payment

To process the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment to eligible employees who were not processed automatically, agencies must submit the following information on the Additional Pay page:

Agency Actions – Adjusting the Automatic Payment Amount:

Increasing the Original Payment Amount Prorated Based on Hours

Agencies must correct the payment amount for employees whose Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment was calculated based on hours and who received less than the full payment amount of $3,000 if any of the following apply:

• Earnings Code RGO (Regular Pay Override)

  Hours paid using Earnings Code RGO should be included in the calculation, but hours do not exist in PayServ. Therefore, if an employee received the lump sum payment and has RGO earnings in their record earned between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. Divide these additional hours by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

• Eligible Transactions Submitted Subsequent to Automatic Payment Processing

  If subsequent to an employee receiving the automatic lump sum payment, a transaction is submitted on the Job Data page or for any of the eligible earnings codes listed above effective between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 that results in the employee receiving increased hours, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. Divide these additional hours by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

• Action/Reason Code of Leave of Absence/MLS (Mil Stip)

  Hours do not exist in PayServ when an employee is on an Unpaid Military Stipend Leave. Therefore, if an employee received the lump sum payment and was on an Unpaid Military Stipend Leave between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. Divide the hours the employee would have received had the employee not been on an Unpaid Military Stipend Leave by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

• Workers’ Compensation Leave (Reason Codes WDL or WPS)

  Hours do not exist in PayServ when an employee is on Workers’ Compensation Leave. Therefore, if an employee received the lump sum payment and was on a Workers’ Compensation Leave between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. Divide the hours the employee would have received had the employee not been on a Workers’ Compensation Leave by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

• Action/Reason Code of Paid Leave of Absence/SKL (Sick Lv)

  Hours are prorated in PayServ when an employee is on a Paid Sick Leave. Therefore, if an employee received the lump sum payment and was on a Paid Sick Leave between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. Total the hours the employee would have received had the employee not been on a Paid Sick Leave and subtract the prorated hours appearing in PayServ for the same period. Divide these additional hours by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

Submitting Payment Increase

To adjust a previously paid Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment, the agency must insert a row on the Additional Pay page at the Effective Date level of Earnings Code BNP and enter the following information:

Note:  If the employee is owed additional monies, the system will pay the difference between the Annual Addl Earnings and the Goal Balance.

Decreasing or Eliminating the Original Payment Amount

Agencies must decrease the payment amount for employees if the following situation occurs: 

• Eligible Transactions Submitted Subsequent to Automatic Payment Processing

  If subsequent to an employee receiving the automatic lump sum payment, a transaction is submitted on the Job Data page or for any of the eligible earnings codes listed above effective between 01/04/2024 and 04/24/2024 that results in the employee receiving decreased hours, the agency must correct the lump sum payment amount. To calculate the overpayment amount, divide these negative hours by 640, round the result to four places, multiply by the full payment amount of $3,000 and round to the nearest cent.

Submitting Payment Decrease

To adjust a previously paid Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment, the agency must insert a row on the Additional Pay page at the Effective Date level of Earnings Code BNP and enter the following information:

Recovering Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment Overpayments:

If an employee incorrectly received the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment or received a higher payment amount than they are eligible to receive, agencies must submit the following information on the Additional Pay page to recover the overpayment:

Goal Balance: The Goal Balance field should be left blank when entering the initial adjustment record. When adjusting the Earnings amount or Goal Amount of an existing adjustment record, the Goal Balance from the prior row should be carried up to the new row. 

Note: Overtime monies may also need to be recouped. Please refer to Recovering Overtime Monies When the Original Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment is Reduced section below.

Overtime Calculation

The Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment will be included automatically in the calculation of overtime earned from the OT Eff Date through the End Date on the employee’s Additional Pay page for Earnings Code BNP.

Ending Overtime Eligibility

If an employee has received the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment and is appointed to a position in a bargaining unit other than CSEA (02, 03, 04, 47, 97), M/C (06, 18, 46, 66, 78, 79, 96, 98), PEF (05), RRSU (67), SUNY M/C (13) or UUP (08), the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment cannot be included in the compensation calculation of overtime earned on or after the date of the appointment. Therefore, agencies must insert a row on the Additional Pay page at the Effective Date level of Earnings Code BNP and enter the following information:

Recovering Overtime Monies When the Original Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment is Reduced 

If an employee’s lump sum payment is reduced and the higher lump sum payment amount was used in their overtime calculation, the overtime monies paid must be reduced as follows:

Annualized Employees: The negative overtime adjustment for annualized employees will be calculated automatically when the lump sum payment (Earnings Code BNP) is adjusted on the Additional Pay page. 

If the agency would like to recover the entire overtime overpayment in a single paycheck, a general comment must be entered stating that the retroactive adjustment must be left on. 

If the entire overpayment will not be recovered in a single paycheck, a general comment must be entered stating that the retroactive adjustment should be marked paid out. In addition, agencies must submit a negative overtime adjustment on the Time Entry page or the Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using the following information in each pay period until the full overpayment is recovered:

*Please refer to Payroll Bulletin No. 1893 for more information on overtime adjustments.

Retroactive Overtime Processing

OSC will automatically calculate retroactive adjustments for Time Entry overtime earnings that are calculated by the system based on annual salary such as OT for Annual 2080 (Earnings Code OCS). These adjustments will be paid using the associated retroactive earnings code and will be paid in the applicable Check Date as referenced in the Effective Dates section.

Control-D Report Available After Processing: 

After processing of the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment in Administration Pay Period 8 Lag Check Date 07/31/2024 is completed, the following Control-D report will be available for agency use:

NPAY770 – One Time Payment Report 

This report identifies all employees who received the Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment in the above check date.

Retirement and Deduction Information:

The Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment is non-pensionable and not subject to union dues. Deductions will be taken from the lump sum payment for garnishments and federal levies.

Tax Information:

The Non-Pensionable Lump Sum Payment is supplemental taxable income, will be added to the employee’s taxable gross wages, and is subject to employment and income taxes. 

The retroactive payments (Earnings Codes RXX) are supplemental taxable income and will be included in the employee’s taxable gross subject to all employment and income taxes.

Federal, State and New York City income tax withholding will be calculated using the Aggregate method. Yonkers income tax withholding will be calculated using the Flat Rate method (1.95975% for Yonkers residents and 0.50% for Yonkers non-residents).

Special Wage Payments for Individuals Who Filed for Retirement Social Security Benefits:

Per Internal Revenue Service Publication 957, OSC will be reporting retroactive payments made to individuals who have filed for Social Security benefits to the Social Security Administration (SSA).

As PayServ does not include this information, OSC will be mailing a Request for Special Wage Payment Report to inactive individuals who are 62 or older in the calendar year and to active employees with the New York Retiree Indicator checked in Modify a Person who receive the retroactive payment. Recipients of this mailing will be asked to fill out the request and return it to OSC for inclusion on the Special Wage Payment Report to SSA. This report will be submitted to SSA after the close of the 2024 tax year.

It is important that agencies ensure the New York Retiree Indicator box is checked for rehired retirees. Please see Payroll Bulletin No. 1728 – New York Retiree Indicator for further details on the New York Retiree Indicator box.

Payroll Register and Employee’s Paycheck/Advice:

The Earnings Code and the amount paid will be displayed on the Payroll Register. The Earnings Description and the amount paid will appear on the employee’s paycheck stub or direct deposit advice. If the number of earnings codes exceeds 13, agencies should utilize Locked Query LQ_PCD_PAYCHECK_EARNINGS_BY_ID to identify a complete list of earnings.

Undeliverable Checks:

When a valid payroll check is undeliverable due to the agency’s inability to locate the employee, the agency should follow the Agency Actions identified in Payroll Bulletin No. 1786 – Non-Negotiated and/or Undeliverable New York State Payroll Checks.

Checks issued to eligible employees who are now deceased should be submitted as a stop payment request with a reason of Exchange in PayServ. The Report of Check Exchange (AC 1476-P), Next of Kin Affidavit (AC 934-P) and original death certificate should be submitted to the Payroll Reversal and Exchange mailbox at the same time as the stop payment request. If a Next of Kin Affidavit has been previously submitted for a deceased employee’s payroll check, OSC will accept a photocopy of this form along with a new Report of Check Exchange.

Questions:

Questions regarding this bulletin may be directed to the Payroll Earnings mailbox.