Continued Costs of the September 11th Terrorist Attacks Act on Public Employee Pension Systems H.R.10361/S. 5385
What is the Issue?
Regrettably we are all aware of the fight over the years to get the federal government to recognize the impact that Ground Zero toxins have had upon responders and survivors of 9/11 and its aftermath.
There’s still unfinished business—a hidden cost of 9/11 that is still not fully recognized: New York State and City Public Employee Pension Systems that have had to bear the direct costs of 9/11 for payment of death and disability claims for responders and other public employees.
Unpaid costs of 9/11 that Federal Government should reimburse
The federal government did initially recognize some of the impact on the State and City Pension Systems in 2002, when the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) reimbursed the pension systems for $290 million for unanticipated costs of the payment of death and disability claims that resulted from that day.
But that was then. To this day, FEMA has not yet recognized the costs to the State and City of the public employees who became sick and and who, in too many cases, have died and left their families too soon.
The increased costs to both the City and State Pension Systems was calculated as of August 2026 by the NYS Comptroller and NYC Actuary to now be nearly $6 billion.
In 2002, when FEMA paid $290 million based on the disaster declarations made by President Bush, it denied New York State’s request for an additional $460 million in then-projected costs–at the same time that the Bush administration was flat out denying the impact of the toxins and refusing to even study that impact.
Twenty-five years after the attacks, the issue is whether the Federal government will reimburse the State and City Pension Systems for these costs or will New York State and City Public Employees or Taxpayers will be forced to carry the burden of these costs.
If these costs are not covered, there will have to be future reductions in pensions for those that will be retiring in the years to come. Responders, other Public Employees and their families will pay the price.
On September 15, 2026, for the 25 Anniversary of the September 11th attacks, Congressman Andrew R. Garbarino (R-NY-02) and Senator Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY) introduced legislation H.R.10361/S. 5385 “to require the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reimburse public employee retirement systems for accidental disability retirements and accidental deaths resulting from the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center.”
This bipartisan legislation would authorize the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) to reimburse the State and City pension systems for up to 5.9 billion dollars, for the costs in these pension systems have made due to the deaths and disability payments made for those public employees who responded to the terrorist attacks and who participated in the clean-up in the weeks following the attacks and became ill from the toxins at Ground Zero and the surrounding Community.
Senator Gillibrand was joined in sponsoring the Legislation in the Senate by Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY).
Congressman Garbarino was joined cosponsoring the legislation in the House of Representatives by Congressman Jerry Nadler (D-NY-12), Dan Goldman (D-NY-10), Pat Ryan (D-NY-18), Grace Meng (D-NY-06), Mike Lawler (R-NY-17), Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY-11), Yvette Clarke (D-NY-09), Nick LaLota (R-NY-01), Rep. George Latimer (D-NY-16), Rep. Laura Gillen (D-NY-4), Rep. Thomas Suozzi (D-NY-3) and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY-5).
Bill Text
Cosponsors of Legislation
Press Releases
September 15, 2026, Rep. Garbarino Press Release on Bill Introduction
September 15, 2026, Senator Gillibrand Press Release on Bill Introduction
September 11, 2024, Garbarino, Nadler, D’Esposito, Goldman Introduce The ‘Continued Costs of the September 11th Terrorist Attacks Act’ To Aid FDNY and NYPD
Dear Colleagues
9/9/2024 Garbarino Nadler Dear Colleague
Documents
August 8, 2026 NYS Comptroller Memo
July 31, 2026 Fiscal Analysis by NYC Actuary
April 11, 2024 Fiscal Analysis by NYC Actuary
March 2, 2023 Memo on Pension Issues by NYS Comptroller
January 24, 2023 Congressional Research Service Memo on FEMA 911 Assistance
August 2003 Report by the GAO on FEMA Assistance
October 2003 Report by GAO on Assistance to NYC
2002- 2003 FEMA Project Work Sheets (PW’s) 404, 947, 1491, 1492, 1518
News Articles
September 15, 2026 — Newsday — Lawmakers seek federal help as 9/11 pension costs soar
New legislation would authorize more than $5.9 billion to reimburse eligible public employee retirement systems for costs of death and disability benefits that have resulted from the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on the World Trade Center.
September 14, 2024 – Newsday — NY lawmakers move to shore up 9/11-linked death benefits. Death benefits related to the 9/11 attacks have soared far above earlier estimates.
A rarely discussed cost of the 9/11 World Trade Center attack continues to soar year by year for the New York state and city pension systems — and it now totals about $3.4 billion, according to new estimates. After the attacks, the Federal Emergency Management Administration reimbursed the pension funds $290 million to cover the death benefits for 343 firefighters and 28 active-duty and retired NYPD officers. But since then, the federal government has not made any more payments as the costs to the pension systems have continued to mount.
Aug. 30, 2021 — New York Daily News — Toll of 9/11 illness deaths and disabilities to cost NYC $2 billion in pension funds
Analysis by the city’s Office of the Actuary estimates that the cost of 9/11-related retirements and deaths through June of this year has soared to $2.35 billion — and will keep growing by billions.