ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook June 25, 1999 Volume 4, No. 24 Published by the Information Technology Association of America, Arlington, VA Bob Cohen, Editor bcohen@itaa.org Read in over 80 countries around the world ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook is published every Friday to help all organizations deal more effectively with the Year 2000 software conversion. To create a subscription to this free publication, please visit ITAA on the web at https://www.itaa.org/transact/2ko utlooksub.htm. To cancel an existing subscription, visit https://www.itaa.org/transact/2kremove.htm. ITAA's Year 2000 Outlook is sponsored in part by CACI International Inc., DMR Consulting Group Inc and Y2Kplus. In this Issue: · Y2K Bill in Washington: A Matter of Nicks and Spurs · Poll Finds Concerns Waning as Calendar Counts Down · Counties Improve on Y2K Planning · Contingency Plans Could Tap Out Federal Y2K Fund · Business to Business · ITAA Y2K Information Center · Sponsor Advertising Y2K Bill in Washington: A Matter of Nicks and Spurs Call it the Y2K NBA. House and Senate leaders began meeting towards the end of this week to hammer out the kinks in the Y2K liability bill--an on again/off again process with more inside moves than the San Antonio Spur's Avery Johnson. At the start of the week, the House leadership appeared to be sticking to its decision not to go to conference, but rather to recede to the Senate version of Y2K Act. This fast break back to the Senate set the stage for a showdown with the White House, w hich had already lobbed veto threats over the McCain-Dodd version of the bill. The legislation encourages businesses to remediate Y2K-related computer problems while discouraging legal actions when companies take proper actions to fix problems. The provisions of the Y2K Act would discourage frivolous lawsuits related to Y2K by pres erving the enforceability of existing contracts, establishing a cure period for Y2K disputes and allowing a reasonable efforts claim into evidence in contractual disputes. The Clinton Administration objects to the legislation, claiming that many of its provisions are overly broad, providing undue protections to companies who act irresponsibly, while not providing any protections for consumers. The real ball handling finesse began to appear on Monday. By failing to hold a conference, Republicans saw an opportunity to drive the lane with a piece of legislation highly prized by a wide cross-section of the business community. Blocking the bill without so much as attempting to compromise would screen out the Administration's overtures to the high tech community, right at the start of a difficult presidential election year. With the clock ticking down, the White House continued its threats to bounce the Y2K bill; just the sort of verbal dribble fine with the House Republican leadership, who were more than ready to take a parting shot by passing the Senate version. By Tuesday, industry was screaming for a time-out. The Year 2000 Coalition, representing everyone from boiler manufacturers to community bankers (and ITAA), wrote Speaker J. Dennis Hastert and Republican leaders to huddle with their Democrat rivals. "We are convinced," the group wrote, "that if such a bill were vetoed, the momentum to legislate on this important matter would be lost. A legislative process that terminates in a veto would be viewed as a complete failure, and would pose substantial ris k to the American economy and could result in a serious economic set-back." Late Wednesday evening, the House announced it would participate in a bill conference after all - but only a one-hour conference. Again, the Capitol Hill foot work proved interesting. By conferencing, the Republicans made a fast break for the political high ground, laying claim to a willingness to play ball while avoiding the need to do so. By limiting the conference to one hour, they would give the White House almost no time to get its legal team on the court and, as a result, would assure that the Y 2K Act went bouncing to the President's desk essentially unchanged. Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) tipped the situation back into play yesterday. Lofgren maneuvered to extend the time period House and Senate conferees would spend on the bill, from a matter of minutes to several days. The extra time proved the difference between a slam-dunk conference and certain veto and an opportunity to keep the bill in play. Today, the President's lobbyists signaled their willingness to negotiate by presenting Congressional conferees with specific language suggestions. So the stage is now set for the final showdown next week: attempts at an easy political victory checked; a handful of moderate Democratic lawmakers - the handful of swing votes necessary to overcome a veto - beginning to play ball control; the White Hou se caught between a high tech rock and a trial bar hard place. All of which leaves Y2K fans wondering: Will a three-point play (House, Senate and White House) ever produce a victory? Poll Finds Concerns Waning as Calendar Counts Down A poll released this week finds Y2K strides and lapses among large corporations, including the fact that only 30 percent are currently implementing contingency plans. Released by CIO Magazine, the Information Systems Audit and Control Association and Dr. Ed Yardeni's Y2K Center, the survey data is culled from the responses of 892 respondents active in Y2K projects and working for large, global concerns. Eighty-two percent said they anticipate Y2K having little impact on their organizations. Seventy-two percent indicated that they are more than three-quarters complete with Y2K projects. Even with the end of this work in sight, the survey uncovered interesting anomalies. For instance, 35 per cent of large firms say they are still waiting for mission critical software to be delivered by suppliers. Little better than one in ten firms mak e site visits to verify supplier compliance, most relying on questionnaires instead. Half of firms polled are still in the process of developing contingency plans. More than half called lawsuits against their firms unlikely. Counties Improve on Y2K Planning Counties are making progress on Y2K, but one-quarter still lack a plan to address the issue. A new survey released by the National Association of Counties (NACO) says the 74 percent now making preparations is a 24 percent improvement over the results of a poll last December. Luckily, those counties making the least progress also have the least people. Contingency Plans Could Tap Out Federal Y2K Fund Federal agencies acting on their Y2K contingency plans could be costly. With less than $700 million remaining from a $3.25 billion supplemental appropriation, the need to go to such plans could force agencies back to Congress for new funding. The Office of Management and Budget now estimates that the Y2K conversion will cost taxpayers more than $8 billion, up almost four times 1997 estimates. The Senate Appropriations Committee and Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem held a hear ing this week to delve into the money issue. Business to Business CCD Online Systems Inc., Los Angeles, CA, has been awarded a Y2K IV&V contract by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Agency. MatriDigm Corporation, San Jose, CA, in partnership with their prime contractor, SRA International, Inc., has announced the selection of their MARC2000 solution by the Health Care Financing Administration. VERITAS Software Corporation, Mountain View, CA, has announced the availability of their desktop management product, VERITAS Desktop Management Suite (DMS), version 3.5. ITAA Y2K Information Center Solution Providers Directory http://www.itaa.org/script/2000vend.cfm ITAA*2000 Certification Program http://www.itaa.org/2000cert.htm Outlook Archive http://www.itaa.org/script/get2klet.cfm Legislative and Litigation Table http://www.itaa.org/year2000/legis.htm Calendar http://www.itaa.org/y2kcal.htm Vendor/User Status Questionnaires http://www.itaa.org/questmain1.htm Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) http://www.itaa.org/year2000/adr.htm Statement of Intention to Use ADR http://www.itaa.org/year2000/soi.htm, Y2K Mediators Seminar http://www.technologymediation.com/Y2K_seminar.htm Copyright ITAA 1999. All rights reserved. The Information Technology Association of America, 1616 N. Fort Myer Drive, Suite 1300