A New York City Department of Investigation review found that at least five NYPD officials moved into positions that were not eligible for police pension coverage but continued participating in the police pension system during the Adams administration. DOI also found three cases in which agreed limits on the effect of later civilian salary increases were not applied when pensions were calculated.
A Special Rule Meant for Temporary Moves
The findings center on Section 821, a provision that allows qualified employees on temporary assignments in exempt or unclassified positions to retain competitive-class rights connected to their prior service. The DOI report says nine people were designated for such positions while retaining those rights during the Adams administration, according to amNewYork.
DOI investigators reviewed records from the NYPD, the Police Pension Fund, the Department of Citywide Administrative Services and other agencies. The report identified at least five cases in which officials moved from pension-eligible NYPD positions into roles that should not have qualified while remaining in the police pension system. DOI also found three agreements intended to limit the effect of civilian salary increases on eventual pension payments; the Police Pension Fund did not apply those limits when it calculated the benefits, according to the report.
What the pension rules cover
The New York City Police Pension Fund’s Tier 3 Summary Plan Description says the fund is a defined-benefit plan, with payments determined by formulas in state and city laws and fund rules. It lists pensionable earnings as base salary, overtime, night differential, holiday pay, worked vacation, portal-to-portal pay and allowable longevity. The plan description does not establish a case-specific correction procedure for improperly included service or compensation. In this matter, DOI’s proposed remedy is recalculation, along with a written policy for future designations. The issue also differs from a separate June 30, 2010 audit in which the New York City Comptroller’s Office said 16 people received $296,202 in city pension payments during 2008 that appeared to violate state or city law. That earlier review concerned post-retirement reemployment and pension-earnings restrictions, not Section 821 designations.
The Louis Molina Case
Louis Molina, whom former Mayor Eric Adams appointed correction commissioner in 2022, is among the officials identified in the findings. Molina later retired as commissioner of Citywide Administrative Services in December 2025 and began receiving his NYPD pension on January 21, 2026. The pension included a Section 821 designation, the report states. DOI recommended that the Police Pension Fund recalculate the pensions of Molina, Eugene Whyte and Edelle James without counting their Section 821 designations.
The report also recommended excluding time spent as NYPD assistant commissioners when calculating the pensions of Kenneth Morgan and Lamona Knight. The NYPD made its last Section 821 designation in February 2025, according to DOI.
Agencies Sign Off on Fixes
DOI Commissioner Nadia Shihata said the agencies need clearer communication, written policies and closer compliance with the rules governing Section 821 designations. The report attributed the problems to shortcomings in those areas under the prior mayoral administration…