Part of risk management involves having the vision to plan for contingencies. I assume that at that unhappy point in time, government agency heads will be ready to contract with private sector firms specializing in Y2K remediation and testing to expedite the necessary repairs. Such electronic handshakes must be made with state governments, municipalities, foreign nations, and private sector firms. The smooth functioning of government depends on the ability of these highly integrated systems to operate without date errors. While Mr. Koskinen and the Federal CIO Council are making attempts to build the list of external interfaces with state governments, I suggest that Congress make this cross-cutting project its own, spending whatever funds are necessary to acquire the private sector expertise necessary to perform quickly and effectively the work.
Public education is critical.
I mentioned the public service advertising campaign launched in Australia. I urge Congress to make Year 2000 a the top priority issue of the U.S. government for at least the next two years. Your conviction to hold this hearing today is a stake in the ground. Now build on this good start by continuing to hold Y2K hearings. Also, as you get public and private sector CEOs, CFOs, and CIOs in these witness seats, whether or not the hearing is specifically related to Year 2000, ask about Y2K status.