1. (1) Effective January 1, 1986, this section shall apply only to persons who were in State service on December 31, 1985, including persons on an authorized leave of absence on such date and to persons who were in State service prior to December 31, 1985, who prior to such date resigned, retired or who were otherwise separated from their positions who are reemployed or reinstated to State service on or after January 1, 1986, who have creditable State service prior to January 1, 1986, who are eligible for but decline to participate in the Income Protection Plan established pursuant to the provisions of Part 78 of this Title (President's Regulations) and any such persons who are not otherwise eligible to participate in said plan. For the purpose of this section, an employee has prior creditable service if such person is reemployed within one year of resignation, retirement or termination or is reinstated by the Civil Service Department or Commission or by court order or is reemployed from or while eligible to be reemployed from a preferred list.
2. (2) Sick leave is absence with pay necessitated by the illness or disability of an employee, including illness or disability caused by pregnancy or childbirth.
3. (b) Employees shall earn sick leave credits at the rate of one-half day per biweekly pay period and may accumulate such credits up to a total of 225 days. Effective January 1, 2000, up to 225 days of such credits may be used to pay for health insurance in retirement in accordance with section 167(4) of the Civil Service Law and provided, however, that an employee shall not earn sick leave credit for any biweekly pay period unless such employee is in full pay status for at least seven workdays during such biweekly pay period. A part-time employee who is required to work a fixed number of hours on a fixed schedule five days per week, or who is required to work at least half-time each biweekly pay period for a fixed number of hours on a fixed schedule, shall also earn sick leave credit as provided herein, but total pay when absent on such leave shall be the amount which would have been due had such employee worked regularly at his/her usual hours for such period.
4. (c) An employee absent on sick leave shall notify his/her supervisor of such absence and the reason therefor on the first day of such absence and within two hours after the beginning of the employee's workday; provided, however, that where the work is such that a substitute may be required, the appointing authority may require earlier notification, but not more than two hours prior to the beginning of the employee's workday. Sick leave credits may be used in such units as the appointing authority may approve, but the appointing authority shall not require that sick leave credits be used in units greater than one-quarter hour.
5. (d) Before absence for personal illness may be charged against accumulated sick leave credits, the appointing authority may require such proof of illness as may be satisfactory to it, or may require the employee to be examined, at the expense of the department or agency, by a physician designated by the appointing authority. In the event of failure to submit proof of illness upon request, or in the event that, upon such proof as is submitted or upon the report of medical examination, the appointing authority finds that there is not satisfactory evidence of illness sufficient to justify the employee's absence from the performance of his/her duties, such absence may be considered as unauthorized leave and shall not be charged against accumulated sick leave credits. Abuse of sick leave privileges shall be cause for disciplinary action.
6. (e) The appointing authority may require an employee who has been absent because of personal illness, prior to and as a condition of return to duty, to be examined, at the expense of the department or agency, by a physician designated by the appointing authority, to establish that such employee is not disabled from the performance of his/her normal duties and that the return to duty will not jeopardize the health of other employees.

7. (f) In addition to personal illness of the employee, the following types of absence, when approved by the appointing authority, may be charged against accumulated sick leave credits:

   1. (1) illness or death in the employee's family; provided, however, that charge for such absence shall not exceed a maximum of 25 days in any one year;
   2. (2) absence of an employee, certified by an examining physician as benefiting from the use of a service animal in performing major life activities, or who is registered with the New York State Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped as legally blind, or certified by an examining physician or licensed optometrist as legally blind, as manifested by visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with best correction or a visual field of 20 degrees or less, or who has a hearing impairment manifested by a speech discrimination score of 40 percent or less in the better ear with appropriate correction as certified by an examining physician or by a licensed audiologist or otorhinolaryngologist, for the purpose of obtaining a guide dog or service animal and required training related thereto; provided, however, that charge for such absence shall not exceed a maximum of 26 days in any one calendar year; and

   3. (3) personal visits to doctor or dentist.

      Proof of the need for such absences, satisfactory to the appointing authority, may be required.

8. (g) When an employee is transferred, such employee's accumulated sick leave credits shall also be transferred. When an employee is separated from service for other than disciplinary reasons and is subsequently reinstated or reemployed within one year after such separation, or is reinstated by action of the State Civil Service Commission, or is reinstated or reemployed while eligible for reinstatement from a preferred list, sick leave credits accumulated and unused at the time of separation shall be restored; provided, however, that such sick leave credits shall not be restored except where leave records satisfactory to the appointing authority and the Department of Civil Service are available.
9. (h) Every per diem and hourly paid employee not otherwise allowed sick leave under this Chapter because of anticipated eligibility shall, on the date on which such employee becomes subject to this Chapter, be credited with the number of days of sick leave which would have been earned during the preceding nine months if such employee had been subject to this Chapter during such period, less the number of days of sick leave with pay which were granted during such nine- month period, except that no deduction shall be made for sick leave drawn during such nine- month period which was earned prior thereto in accordance with an established departmental policy.
10. (i) This section shall not be construed to require extension of any employment beyond the time at which it would otherwise terminate by operation of law, rule or regulation.

(a)