This Bulletin replaces Payroll Bulletin No. 2204 which has been removed.
Purpose:
The purpose of this bulletin is to inform agencies of OSC’s automatic processing of the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend and to provide agency instructions for payments not processed automatically.
Affected Employees:
Employees in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (PS&T) Unit (BU05) who meet the eligibility criteria are affected.
Background:
Chapter 190 of the Laws of 2023 implemented the 2023-2026 Agreement between the State of New York and PEF which includes a side letter authorizing a $400 lump sum payment to offset out-of-pocket dental expenses for eligible employees. The payment is payable each fiscal year until the State enters into a new dental services contract for eligible NYSHIP enrollees. These monies will not be added to base salary, are not subject to salary increases, and are not pensionable.
Effective Dates:
The PEF 2023 Dental Stipend will be processed in Administration checks dated 03/13/2024 and Institution checks dated 03/21/2024 using an effective date of 07/28/2023 (PEF Contract Agreement Ratification Date).
Eligibility Criteria:
Employees who meet the following criteria are eligible to receive the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend:
- On 07/28/2023, employees must:
- Be in a PEF BU05 position in PayServ.
- Have an Employee Status of Active, Leave With Pay, or Leave of Absence in PayServ.
- Be enrolled in the NYSHIP Dental Plan and have completed the 56-day waiting period.
- On 02/21/2024 (Administration Extra-Lag), 02/28/2024 (Administration Lag and Institution Extra-Lag), or 03/06/2024 (Institution Lag), employees must have an Employee Status of Active, Leave With Pay, Leave of Absence, Terminated, Retired, or Deceased in PayServ.
- Employees whose NYS Position Number in Position Data has a Reg/Temp field status of Temporary or Seasonal must have six months of service in a PEF BU05 position as of 02/21/2024 (Administration Extra-Lag), 02/28/2024 (Administration Lag and Institution Extra-Lag), or 03/06/2024 (Institution Lag).
OSC Actions:
Earnings Codes
OSC has created the following Earnings Code to process the PEF Dental Stipend:
| New Earnings Code | Description |
|---|---|
| PDS | PEF Dental Stipend |
In addition, OSC has modified the following Time Entry Earnings Code to pay the additional overtime monies owed to hourly employees for overtime hours worked between the PEF Dental Stipend Effective Date and End Date:
| Earnings Code | Description |
|---|---|
| BO2 | DentalStipOvertimeHRY$400 2080 |
Automatic Processing
OSC will process the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend for employees who meet the eligibility criteria and whose NYS Position Number in Position Data has a Reg/Temp field status of Regular on 07/28/2023.
OSC will also process the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend for employees who meet the eligibility criteria and whose NYS Position Number in Position Data has a Reg/Temp field status of Temporary or Seasonal on 07/28/2023 with the following exceptions:
- Employees with a Comp Rate Code of HRY on 07/28/2023 who have not been paid using Earnings Code RGH with earnings dates that fall within 13 consecutive pay periods as of 02/21/2024 (Administration Extra-Lag), 02/28/2024 (Administration Lag and Institution Extra-Lag), or 03/06/2024 (Institution Lag).
- Employees with a Comp Rate Code of FEE on 07/28/2023 who have not been paid using Earnings Codes FEE, FRC or FNC with earnings dates that fall within 13 consecutive pay periods as of 02/21/2024 (Administration Extra-Lag), 02/28/2024 (Administration Lag and Institution Extra-Lag), or 03/06/2024 (Institution Lag).
Creation of Time Entry Record
The PEF 2023 Dental Stipend will be paid for eligible employees on the Time Entry page as follows:
| Earnings Begin Date: | 07/28/2023 |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | 07/28/2023 |
| Earn Code: | PDS |
| Amount: | $400.00 |
Creation of Additional Pay Record
Subsequent to processing the Time Entry payment in the Administration check dated 03/13/2024 and the Institution check dated 03/21/2024, it was determined that the PEF Dental Stipend should be included in the calculation of overtime. Therefore, OSC will also create an Additional Pay record in an upcoming pay period using the information below for all employees who received a PEF 2023 Dental Stipend on the Time Entry page using Earnings Code PDS. The Additional Pay record will automatically calculate retroactive overtime adjustments for annualized employees.
| Earnings Code: | PDS |
|---|---|
| Effective Date: | 07/28/2023 |
| OT Eff Date: | Same as Effective Date |
| Annual Addl Earnings: | $400 |
| End Date: | Administration – 03/27/2024 or last date in an eligible position Institution – 04/03/2024 or last date in an eligible position |
| Goal Balance: | $400 |
Please Note: Populating the Goal Balance with $400 will prevent the employee from receiving an additional PEF 2023 Dental Stipend.
Agency Actions – Payments Not Processed Automatically:
Agencies must review Temporary or Seasonal employees who meet the eligibility criteria but were not processed automatically as explained above in the OSC Actions-Automatic Processing section.
OSC has created Q92_DENTAL_EMPL_EXCEPTIONS in PS Query which will provide agencies with a list of employees who require further review to determine if the employee was continually employed during 13 consecutive pay periods as of 02/21/2024 (Administration Extra-Lag), 02/28/2024 (Administration Lag and Institution Extra-Lag), or 03/06/2024 (Institution Lag). When running the query, agencies will be prompted to enter Dept ID. Please note, it is possible an agency may not have any results.
If the agency deems an employee appearing on the query results is eligible to receive the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend, they must manually enter the transaction into PayServ.
Please note: If 2023 Dental Stipend payments are entered in Pay Period 1 or later, agencies must notify their OSC auditors immediately after entering the payment as manual intervention will be needed to process the payment.
Submitting Payment
Agencies were originally instructed to process the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend for eligible employees not processed automatically, by submitting the following information on the Time Entry page or the Time Entry Interface (NPAY502):
| Earnings Begin Date: | 07/28/2023 |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | 07/28/2023 |
| Earn Code: | PDS |
| Amount: | $400.00 |
Since it has been determined that the PEF Dental Stipend should be included in the calculation of overtime, all subsequent transactions to process the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend for eligible employees not processed automatically must be submitted on the Additional Pay page or the Automated Interface (NHRP573) using the following information:
| Earnings Code: | PDS |
|---|---|
| Effective Date: | 07/28/2023 |
| OT Eff Date: | Same as Effective Date |
| Annual Addl Earnings: | $400 |
| End Date: | Administration – 03/27/2024 or last date in an eligible position Institution – 04/03/2024 or last date in an eligible position |
| Goal Balance: | Leave blank |
Please Note: Agencies do not need to make any changes to a previously entered Time Entry record and do not need to enter an Additional Pay record if the employee has already received the PEF 2023 Dental Stipend via the Time Entry page.
Overtime Calculation:
The PEF Dental Stipend must be included in the calculation of overtime compensation.
Annualized Employees
The PEF Dental Stipend 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 PDS.
Hourly Employees
The PEF Dental Stipend for hourly employees will not be included automatically in the calculation of overtime. Therefore, an overtime adjustment is required for all overtime hours earned between 07/28/2023 and 03/27/2024 (Administration) or 04/03/2024 (Institution) or the last date the employee was in an eligible position.
To pay the overtime adjustment to eligible hourly employees, the agency must submit the following information on the Time Entry page or the Time Entry Interface (NPAY502) using Earnings Code BO2.
| Earnings Begin Date: | The first overtime date to include PDS |
|---|---|
| Earnings End Date: | The last overtime date to include PDS |
| Earn Code: | BO2 |
| Hours/Units: | The number of overtime hours paid that should include PDS |
Ending Overtime Eligibility
If an employee has received the PEF Dental Stipend and is subsequently appointed to a position which is not eligible to receive the payment, the PEF Dental Stipend cannot be included in the compensation calculation of any overtime earned on or after the date of the appointment. Therefore, the agency must insert a row on the Additional Pay page or the Automated Interface file (NHRP573) at the Effective Date level of Earnings Code PDS and enter the following information:
| Effective Date: | Last date in an eligible position (date prior to appointment) |
|---|---|
| OT Eff Date: | Same as original OT Eff Date |
| Annual Addl Earnings: | Same as original amount (populates automatically) |
| End Date: | Same as Effective Date |
| Goal Balance: | Same as Annual Addl Earnings (to prevent making another payment) |
Retirement Information and General Deductions:
The PEF Dental Stipend is not included as salary for members of the New York State and Local Retirement System. Additionally, the payment is not subject to PEF union dues but deductions will be taken from the payment for garnishments and levies.
General Deductions:
All general deductions for employees with a Payroll Status of Terminated, Retired or Deceased will be automatically cancelled by OSC with the exception of percentage-based dues and the following:
| Code | Description |
|---|---|
| 406 | PEF Strike/Discip Fine |
| 410 | Health Care Spending Account |
| 416 | Deferred Comp |
| 420 | NY Dependent Care Contribution |
| 425 | Repay State Loans/Debt |
| 426 | Higher Ed Repay State Loan |
| 428 | Dependent Care |
| 433 | Total Unemployment Ins Owed |
| 442 | Pre-Tax Adoption |
| 500 | Medicare Deficiency |
| 501 | Social Security Deficiency |
| 502 | NYS SS/Medicare Deficiency |
| GARNSH | Garnishments |
| HIBTRG | Regular Before Tax Health |
| HIBTSP | Special Before Tax Health Adj |
Tax Information:
The PEF Dental Stipend monies are supplemental taxable income subject to all employment taxes and income taxes, will be included in the employee’s taxable gross, and reported on the employee’s Form W-2.
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 (PDS, BO2) and the amount paid will be displayed on the Payroll Register. The Earnings Description (PEF Dental Stipend, DentalStipOvertimeHRY$400 2080) and the amount paid will be displayed 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 an employee’s enrollment in the NYSHIP Dental Plan may be directed to the Department of Civil Service.
Questions regarding eligibility may be directed to the Office of Employee Relations.
Questions regarding this bulletin may be directed to the Payroll Earnings mailbox.
Questions regarding deductions may be directed to the Payroll Deduction mailbox.