More than 70 percent of firefighters who retired in the past five years did so on disabilities – hiking the cost of taxpayer-funded FDNY pensions to nearly $1 billion a year, a Post analysis shows.
At the same time, a rise in final-year overtime racked up by firefighters – even those retiring on disabilities – has boosted pension costs.
After working 20 years, firefighters can start collecting a pension of 50 percent of their final year’s pay, or the average of their last three years – including overtime.The pension is exempt from city and state income tax, but not federal.
But those with disability retirements receive three-quarters of their final pay, completely tax-free.
“Everybody has been getting a disability. They see it as an entitlement,” a top city official sniped. “People have been talking about this and it has become so outrageous.”
A Post probe found:
* Nearly three out of four of the FDNY’s 2,219 retirees since 2004 are collecting disability pensions.
* The 72 percent with disability pensions dwarfs the NYPD’s 19 percent, and that of other big cities. About 25 percent of Chicago firefighters retire on disability.
* Even before 9/11-related health woes devastated the department, the FDNY still ran up a 62 percent disability-pension rate in 2000.
* The average FDNY pension is now $84,944, including a $12,000 annual payment the city negotiated with police and firefighter unions years ago to share stock-market profits.
* Overtime helped retiring firefighters raise their final year’s pay an average 16 percent in fiscal year 2008. Those retiring on disability chalked up enough overtime, before or after their injuries, to boost their final year’s pay an average 6 percent.
Total FDNY retirement payments have skyrocketed to a projected $913 million for fiscal year 2009 and $973 million in 2010, the Independent Budget Office calculates.
“The city cannot afford a pension system designed in more prosperous times,” said Mayor Bloomberg’s spokesman, Jason Post. “We can honor our commitments, but we cannot sustain the current system.”
At Bloomberg’s request, Gov. Paterson included a proposal in the state budget to require new city cops, firefighters, sanitation workers and correction officers to serve 25 years instead of 20 before retirement. It would also raise the pension age to 50.
Several high-ranking city officials last week questioned the severity of disability injuries some firefighters have claimed, saying many have racked up hundreds of hours of overtime to inflate their pension checks.
But the FDNY lets injured firefighters or supervisors who are put on light duty to continue to work overtime.
“While you’re going through the injury process, you want the highest possible final salary you can get. There are lots of light-duty units and odd jobs with hidden overtime,” a source said.
Charles Brecher, spokesman for the watchdog Citizens Budget Commission, said FDNY managers condone a culture in which those about to retire get the most overtime.
“The city administration, including the FDNY commissioner, have been letting the system go along without aggressively trying to curb the boosting of pensions,” he said.
FDNY spokesman Frank Gribbon attributed the spike in disability pensions to 9/11.
While 264 firefighters retired with lung ailments from 1994 to September 2001, the number since has nearly tripled in the seven years since. Gribbon said. Before 9/11, seven firefighters were diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, but 75 were diagnosed since the terror attacks, he said.
In addition, 303 firefighters have disability pensions granted under post-9/11 state legislation that presumed many disabilities – from new cancers to respiratory and gastrointestinal disease – were caused after 40 hours of work at Ground Zero. Another 140 had orthopedic injuries. Even before 9/11, Gribbon said, the Legislature passed laws that “presume” that certain cancers, heart ailments and lung disease are job-related, making it easier to retire on disability.
“We are not embarrassed by this,” said Jack McDonnell, president of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association. Danger, injury and illness go along with the job, he said.
Pensions are funded with firefighter contributions of about 2 to 5 percent, the city contributions, and earnings from investments.
If a pension fund earns less than 8 percent a year, the city must make up the difference with more cash. City Comptroller Bill Thompson revealed Friday the city’s five pension funds plunged a total 20 percent in the last six months of 2008 – from $101.9 billion to $82.5 billion. Taxpayers will be forced to plug the gap for years to come.
Additional reporting by Susan Edelman
rblau@nypost.com