State and local governments must do their part to keep both Y2K hysteria and complacency around the country in check, John Koskinen, chair of the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion said Friday.
"The problems and risks to the economy will not come from federal computers," Koskinen told state Y2K coordinators at the National Governors' Association's year 2000 state summit. The real risk, he argued, will come from overreactions to the crisis, such as a mass withdrawal of money due to fears that the banking system won't work.
On the other hand, Koskinen said state officials also need to battle complacency about Y2K problems. "We have serious problems that aren't as exotic as planes dropping out of the sky," he said.
Koskinen advised states to look out for small businesses that may wait until after Jan. 1 to conquer Y2K problems. The "wait to see if its broke and then fix it" attitude, he said, will only result in long waiting lists for Y2K tune-ups.
Bolstering public confidence at the local level will help the federal government deal with Y2K conversion, because "people ultimately analyze a problem as it affects them," Koskinen said.
The federal government and the states got a lesson in Y2K coordination in January, when the unemployment insurance program was forced to convert its systems. Because states, which administer unemployment insurance benefits for the Labor Department, establish one-year accounts for initial claims, new beneficiaries' files processed year 2000 dates on Jan. 4, 1999, the first business day of 1999.
Koskinen said the experience with unemployment insurance showed the importance of backups and contingency plans. Although not all 50 states had completed their Y2K conversion by the deadline, no beneficiaries were denied checks or the ability to qualify for unemployment insurance. Koskinen said the case showed that systems can continue to work even if they are not 100 percent Y2K compliant.
The President's Council on Y2K Conversion plans to hold a "Y2K Action Week" at the end of March to provide free Y2K technical information at seminars and meetings across the country. Koskinen urged state governments to organize community conversations about Y2K preparedness and said the federal government is preparing a list of programs with major public impact that will be monitored.
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