Ranks of Finest Thinning

Economic boom & pension boost incentive to retire

By ALICE McQUILLAN Daily News Staff Writer

An increase in the number of cops eligible to retire, larger-than-ever pension benefits and the robust economy are setting the stage for a Police Department exodus — while it struggles to attract recruits.

A Daily News analysis of NYPD pension projections shows that one in every four cops will be able to retire by 2004 — five times the one in 20 officers eligible to quit with a half-pay pension today.

"It's the largest percentage ever, I think, over such a small span of time," said Thomas Scotto, president of the detectives union. "It's devastating. You are losing the most talented and most experienced."

At the same time, fewer people want to be cops.

The department spent an unprecedented $10 million last year advertising its exam, but it attracted just 15,027 applicants — half the 31,986, who signed up three years ago.

Cops calling it quits said the decision makes economic sense.

"Not only could I be as financially secure as I was, but come home with a lot less stress," said Capt. John Murolo, 44, who retired as commander of the 114th Precinct in Astoria, Queens, and now handles security at Columbia University.

"I don't have my beeper going off in the middle of the night every night with what's going on in my precinct," he added.

Murolo, the father of two college-age sons, gave up almost certain advancement and the Police Department he loved for the security job.

"The situation was just so good for my family," he said.

The booming economy means there are plenty of jobs for those who have proven themselves as cops.

Lt. John Marcone, 45, left in November after 20 years, without even lining up another job. A former Police Academy instructor, today he teaches at St. Francis Preparatory School in Queens.

"I just felt like I wanted to do something else," he said. "I was eligible for a pension, and I wanted to move on to a second career."

Paid $35,000 as a teacher, he takes home more than the $80,000 he earned as a lieutenant, thanks to pension benefits.

NYPD officials contend that the retirement numbers are only projections and there is no guarantee that everyone eligible to retire will leave. They say they are working to improve opportunities in the department.

Chief of Personnel Michael Markman said the department has increased the ranks of supervisors, creating more job diversity and higher salaries.

"There's never been as much job opportunity and advancement," he said.

But trends show that Markman and other brass face major challenges keeping the best cops in blue.

Last year, 888 cops retired, compared with 617 the year before.

Projections show the trend will continue — and even speed up. Another 1,000 officers are expected to leave this year, and 1,700 may depart in 2001 — about half those eligible for pensions that year.

The widening pool of potential retirees is the legacy of a massive hiring spree that began 20 years ago to make up for austerity during the city's 1970s fiscal crisis. By 2004, about 10,800 cops will be eligible to retire.

The financial benefits of retiring are especially enticing.

Cops can retire after 20 years on roughly half their $60,000 average salaries — but they don't pay city, state or Social Security taxes, pension contributions or union dues when they leave the force.

Something called a variable supplement — which began as a bonus of a few hundred dollars in 1977 and has swelled to $8,000 a year as pension portfolios increased — ups the annual pension payout to $38,000. It will increase to $12,000 annually by 2007.

The supplement and the tax benefits of retiring mean that someone who stays on the job is making just a few grand more than someone who retires. And new jobs send incomes skyrocketing.

"A police officer with 20 years on the job who has children approaching college, even if he loves his job, if he loves his family, he has to go," said Inspector Joseph Maccone, the department's pension expert. "Between his pension and variable supplement, he's working for very little."