Special Senate Y2K Committee 1-year findings reportgreenspun.com : LUSENET : Lakes Area 2000 : One Thread |
(Thanks to Harlan Smith and Norman Kurland)From the front page Albany Times Union February 24, 1999
http://www.timesunion.com/todayspaperY2K work likely to fall short, panel warns: Efforts to correct computer glitch began too late to stave off disruption, Senate committee finds
ROBERT A. RANKIN Knight RidderWASHINGTON-After almost a year of systematic investigation, a special Senate committee warns in a report to be released this week that all segments of the U.S. economy-from hospitals to electric power plants -- remain at risk from the year 2000 computer shift.
The study-obtained by Knight Ridder Newspapers-concludes that while both government and business have worked hard to correct the Y2K problem, their efforts began late, remain insufficient and consequently some incalculable level of economic disruption is inevitable.
"The committee has no data to suggest that the United States will experience nationwide social or economic collapse," the Senate co-chairmen wrote, "but we believe that disruptions will occur that in some cases will be significant. The international situation will be more disturbing. Those who suggest that it will be nothing more than a 'bump in the road' are simply misinformed."
Chairman Robert F. Bennett, R-Utah, and Vice Chairman Christopher J. Dodd, D-Conn., intend to present their findings in Senate floor speeches, possibly as soon as Thursday. The Y2K problem, also known as "the millennium bug," stems from a defect in millions of computer programs used worldwide. To save space, early programmers recorded annual dates by using only two digits; 1999, for example, is programmed only as "99." The first two digits are assumed to be "19."
Here is how the Senate panel sees Y2K affecting various sectors:
UTILITIES
Only about 50 percent of electric utilities had repaired Y2K systems as of December. "Of greatest concern are about 1,000 small, rural electric utilities." Local and regional blackouts are "likely," but a "prolonged, nationwide blackout" is not.HEALTH CARE
Sixty-four percent of hospitals have no plans to test their Y2K fixes before the crunch date. Ninety percent of doctors' offices are unaware of how exposed they are to problems. Federal payment systems for Medicare and other health-insurance programs are behind schedule. "The health care industry is one of the worst-prepared for Y2K and carries a significant potential for harm."TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Ninety-five percent of telephone systems are expected to be ready. No reliable data exists on readiness to test data networks, cellular or satellite communications systems, or 1,400 regional carriers.TRANSPORTATION
"On average, the nation's 670 domestic airports started Y2K compliance too late," the report states. "Planes will not fall out of the sky, but flight rationing to some areas and countries is possible."FINANCE
Banks and automated tellers are expected to function. The Federal Reserve intends to expand available currency to cover withdrawals "and has other contingency arrangements available if needed," Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan said Tuesday.GOVERNMENT
Among the least prepared is the Department of Defense. Defense reported that only 72 percent of its "mission-critical systems" are ready; Transportation, only 53 percent. The Senate panel's "greatest concern is the ability of local communities to provide 911 emergency services."BUSINESS
Banking, insurance and finance "are furthest ahead," but "health care, oil, education, agriculture, farming, food processing and the construction industry are lagging behind."First published on Wednesday, February 24, 1999
Copyright 1999, Capital Newspapers
Division of The Hearst Corporation, Albany, N.Y.
Follow-up: Washington Post article
Study Says Y2K Risks Widespread
Firms, Many Nations Termed UnpreparedBy Stephen Barr
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, February 24, 1999; Page A01A report on the Year 2000 computer problem prepared by a special Senate panel warns that a number of foreign countries and U.S. economic sectors, especially the health care industry, appear at significant risk for technological failures and business disruptions.
The report, scheduled for release this week by Sens. Robert F. Bennett (R-Utah) and Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.), includes a letter to Senate colleagues describing the problem of computers' ability to recognize dates starting on Jan. 1, 2000, popularly known as Y2K, as a "worldwide crisis" and as "one of the most serious and potentially devastating events this nation has ever encountered."
Click here to read the story...
Special Senate Y2K Committee url/link: http://www.senate.gov/~y2k/index.htmlEmail address/link: Year2000@y2k.senate.gov
Washington Post story online as of Thursday, February 25, 1999 at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPcap/1999-02/24/063r-022499-idx.html
-- Bill (billdale@lakesnet.net), February 24, 1999
Follow-upTo read the executive summary of the actual report, click here . The other sections of the report can be downloaded (to your computer) from that page. They're "pdf" files and require Adobe Acrobat Reader to read or print them. If you don't have it, a link for downloading a free copy's on that page too.
-- Bill (billdale@lakesnet.net), March 02, 1999.
Follow-up: Washington Post articlea href="http:// search.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1999-03/03/093l-030399- idx.html
Senators Warn Of Y2K Glitch's Impact Abroad
By Stephen Barr Washington Post Staff Writer
Panel's Report Says Americans Needn't Panic
Wednesday, March 3, 1999; Page A04Countries that have not paid sufficient attention to the Year 2000 computer problem will likely face economic disruption and some nations could find electronic breakdowns setting off civil unrest, senators warned yesterday.
"There is a high probability of economic impact in selected areas of the world, in particular parts of South America, [other parts of] Latin America, Africa and Asia, with subsequent consequences unknown," said Sen. Robert F. Bennett (R-Utah), chairman of a special Senate committee on Year 2000 technology issues.
Bennett and Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (Conn.), the panel's ranking Democrat, said the Year 2000 computer glitch, known as Y2K, would not harm the U.S. economy and stressed that any disruption of a vital service would be temporary.
"About 90 percent of the problems that we could face at home should be remediated or resolved within 72 hours," Dodd said. Bennett said: "I think we will have a bump in the road, but . . . it will not be crippling."
Bennett and Dodd released an "interim" committee report on the Y2K problem after the Senate met in a closed-door session for a briefing on Y2K risks. The briefing covered national defense issues, country-by-country assessments and the preparedness of the U.S. intelligence community, Bennett said.
At a news conference, Bennett said the United States must continue to work with Russia and other nations to ensure high-level cooperation to avoid the accidental launch of nuclear weapons. He warned that terrorists might try to exploit Y2K confusion.
Bennett acknowledged using "fuzzy terms" to describe potential Y2K risks. Noting he had no evidence of specific terrorist threats, he stressed that "we have come to no final conclusions" on any Y2K risks, here or abroad. "Indeed, we probably won't come to any final conclusions until it's finally concluded," he said.
Dodd said the Senate committee published its 160-page report "to discount what I call the Y2K survivalist mentality . . . that this is going to be Armageddon. We also want to discount those who suggest that there is no problem here whatsoever. That would equally be untrue. There is a problem here."
Bennett and Dodd said Americans should make copies of their financial statements and have sufficient food and water on hand for the New Year's holiday weekend, but they warned against stockpiling or hoarding products.
In particular, Americans should not react to Y2K with panic, said Sen. Gordon Smith (R-Ore.). Last week in Oregon, he said, "I heard the lamentable story of a man who listened to some of the scare-mongering, withdrew $30,000 of his money -- his life savings" -- from a financial institution and was later robbed.
"What we want to say to people is . . . prepare -- don't panic," Smith said.
Dodd singled out health care providers -- doctors, hospitals and nursing homes -- as especially lagging on Y2K repairs. "At this juncture, these medical delivery systems are in trouble," he said. More than 80 percent of doctors' offices are not Y2K ready, and 64 percent of the nation's 6,000 hospitals "still have serious problems," Dodd said.
But Fred L. Brown, chairman of the American Hospital Association, said hospitals have intensified their efforts over the past nine months and expect eventually to spend about $8 billion on the problem. "I feel the hospitals have made significant progress," he said.
The news conference was part of a daylong series of Y2K events on Capitol Hill, ranging from a House hearing on Defense Department readiness to Senate approval, on a 99 to 0 vote, to set up a $900 million loan program to help small businesses fix their computers before Jan. 1, when software using two-digit dates may interpret "00" not as 2000 but as 1900, causing systems to crash or spew out erroneous data.
The worrisome nature of the Y2K problem was underscored recently at the Peach Bottom Nuclear Power Plant in southern Pennsylvania. The plant was testing Y2K repairs to a computer system that feeds data into a monitoring system when part of the monitoring system stopped operating.
Technicians, for reasons that Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials could not explain, tried to restart the test, triggering a shutdown of the entire monitoring system, which, among other things, is designed to detect unsafe operating conditions. Plant operators then decided to manually shut down a reactor monitored by the system.
"That's not necessarily bad news -- much better have them do it when they're rolling the clocks ahead in a test mode than have it happen in real time," Bennett said. Still, he added, the computer crash "demonstrates that there are vulnerabilities in power plants, and that these tests are needed."
) Copyright 1999 The Washington Post Company
-- Bill (billdale@lakesnet.net), March 04, 1999.
Follow-up: Bruce Webster's Critique(Thanks again to Harlan Smith)
[snip]
Darker Than You Think: Comments on the Senate Report on Y2K
by Bruce Webster 3/3/99 Author: Bruce Webster.............
The following is an on-the-record, first-pass commentary by Y2K expert Bruce Webster on "Investigating the Impact of the Year 2000 Problem," a report issued on March 2, 1999 (but dated February 24, 1999) by the U.S. Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem.
Webster is the CTO of Object Systems Group, Co-Chair of the Washington, D.C. Year 2000 Group, and author of "The Y2K Survival Guide: Getting To, Getting Through, and Getting Past the Year 2000 Problem." He has written about Y2K in Newsweek, interviewed for NBC and CBN News, televised on PBS, MSNBC, and C-SPAN, and has been cited in Barron's, National Journal, American Banker, and a variety or articles and news reports.
Click here to read his comments.
-- Bill (billdale@lakesnet.net), March 04, 1999.