§ 211. Employees. The superintendent may appoint such employees as may be necessary and fix their compensation within such sum as may be appropriated by law. Persons appointed to competitive positions within the division who meet the definition of veteran or disabled veteran as defined in section eighty-five of the civil service law shall be entitled to additional credit and preference as conferred by that law and in the same manner, except that, notwithstanding any law to the contrary, with respect to any candidate applying for credit in a competitive examination for original appointment as a disabled or non-disabled veteran, such candidate may apply provisionally for such credit while still an active member of the armed forces. The application for provisional credit may be made at any time between the date of his or her application for the competitive examination and the date the eligible list is established. In cases where there has been a provisional application, the superintendent shall grant final credit only if the candidate renews his or her application within ninety days following termination of the candidate's military duty, and the candidate's period of eligibility on the list has not expired, and the candidate satisfies the appropriate statutory requirements for eligibility. Pending the granting of final credit, the candidate's ranking on any eligible list shall reflect the provisional credit.