IN RE: the Arbitration between William W. BARNES (1997)

Appeal from an order of the Supreme Court (Lynch, J.), entered October 30, 1995 in Schenectady County, which granted petitioner's application pursuant to CPLR 7503 to stay arbitration between the parties.

Petitioner's denial of an employee's application for disability benefits pursuant to General Municipal Law § 207-c falls within the discretionary authority vested exclusively within municipalities by the statute (see, Matter of De Poalo v. County of Schenectady, 200 A.D.2d 277, 280, 613 N.Y.S.2d 492, affd 85 N.Y.2d 527, 626 N.Y.S.2d 737, 650 N.E.2d 395;  Matter of Schenectady County Sheriff's Benevolent Assn. v. McEvoy, 124 A.D.2d 911, 912, 508 N.Y.S.2d 663).   Inasmuch as the denial of benefits involves petitioner's application and/or interpretation of General Municipal Law § 207-c, it is not premised upon a provision of the collective bargaining agreement (see, Matter of County of Dutchess, 144 A.D.2d 463, 533 N.Y.S.2d 990, lv denied 75 N.Y.2d 701, 551 N.Y.S.2d 905, 551 N.E.2d 106).   The mere fact that the collective bargaining agreement specifically recognizes the employees' rights to the benefits provided by the statute does not, in our view, convert petitioner's determination from one of statutory application and/or interpretation to one of contractual application and/or interpretation.   In the absence of a specific agreement between the parties evidencing an intent to arbitrate such claims, petitioner's application to stay arbitration was properly granted (see, id.).

ORDERED that the order is affirmed, with costs.

CASEY, Justice.

MIKOLL, J.P., and CREW, WHITE and PETERS, JJ., concur.