Q: In this task, you are given text for US Congressional and California state bills, your task is to generate a summary for this bill.
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ''Year 2000 Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

The Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Electronic data exchanges are used extensively to
transfer information between computer systems. Federal agencies
now depend on electronic data exchanges to execute programs and
facilitate commerce. Consequently, as computer systems are
converted to process Year 2000 dates, the associated data
exchanges must also be made Year 2000 compliant.
(2) The testing and implementation of new data exchanges
must be closely coordinated with exchange partners to be
completed effectively. If Year 2000 data exchanges do not
function properly, data will not be exchanged between systems,
or invalid data could cause receiving computer systems to
malfunction or produce inaccurate computations.
(3) The United States 381,000 small manufacturers
contribute more than half of the country's total value in
manufacturing. However, as of 1997, 88 percent of all companies
with fewer than 2,000 employees had not yet started Year 2000
remediation projects.
(4) As small manufacturers are an integral part of the
business supply chain, it is imperative that their computer
systems are Year 2000 compliant to prevent disruption to the
country's manufacturing base.
(5) The economic well being of the United States is
interdependent with the economic well being of other nations of
the world. There is very little information on the level of
Year 2000 preparedness by other countries and the potential
impact on the United States economy. Therefore, to prevent
economic disruption in the United States, the Year 2000
computer problem must be addressed on a global scale.
(6) Consumer awareness of the potential and extent of
failure of computer hardware, software, and embedded microchips
found in many consumer products resulting from the Year 2000
problem is small.
(7) Currently, there is no information to guide consumers
in the purchase of Year 2000 compliant consumer goods or to
ensure that their existing goods are Year 2000 complaint.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

For purposes of this Act--
(1) the term ''end-to-end testing'' means testing data
exchange software with respect to--
(A) the initiation of the exchange by sending
computers;
(B) transmission through intermediate
communications software and hardware; and
(C) receipt and acceptance by receiving computers;
(2) the term ''small and medium-sized businesses'' means
businesses with less than 500 employees;
(3) the term ''Year 2000 compliant'' means, with respect to
information technology, that the information technology
accurately processes (including calculating, comparing, and
sequencing) date and time data from, into, and between the 20th
and 21st centuries and the years 1999 and 2000, and leap year
calculations, to the extent that other information technology
properly exchanges date and time data with it; and
(4) the term ''Year 2000 computer problem'' means the
potential problems that might be encountered in any level of
computer hardware and software from microcode to application
programs, files, and databases that need to correctly interpret
year date data represented in 2-digit-year format.

SEC. 4. FEDERAL AGENCY ACTIONS.

To ensure that all computer operations and processing can be
provided without interruption by Federal agencies after December 31,
1999, the head of each Federal agency shall--
(1) take actions necessary to ensure that all systems and
hardware administered by the agency are Year 2000 compliant, to
the extent necessary to ensure that no significant disruption
of the operations of the agency or of the agency's data
exchange partners occurs, including--
(A) establishing, before March 1, 1999, schedules
for testing and implementing new data exchange formats
for completing all data exchange corrections, which may
include national test days for end-to-end testing of
critical processes and associated data exchanges
affecting Federal, State, and local governments;
(B) notifying data exchange partners of the
implications to the agency and the exchange partners if
they do not make appropriate date conversion
corrections in time to meet the Federal schedule for
implementing and testing Year 2000 compliant data
exchange processes;
(C) giving priority to installing filters necessary
to prevent the corruption of mission-critical systems
from data exchanges with noncompliant systems; and
(D) developing and implementing, as part of the
agency's continuity and contingency planning efforts,
specific provisions for data exchanges that may fail,
including strategies to mitigate operational
disruptions if data exchange partners do not make
timely date conversion corrections;
(2) beginning not later than 30 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, convene meetings at least quarterly with
representatives of the agency's data exchange partners to
assess implementation progress; and
(3) after each meeting convened pursuant to paragraph (2),
transmit to the Congress a report summarizing--
(A) the results of that meeting; and
(B) the status of the agency's completion of key
data exchange corrections, including the extent of data
exchange inventoried, an assessment of data exchange
formats agreed to with data exchange partners, testing
and implementation schedules, and testing and
implementation completed.

SEC. 5. ASSISTANCE FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED BUSINESSES.

To ensure that the Nation's small and medium-sized businesses are
prepared to meet the Year 2000 computer problem challenge, the National
Institute of Standards and Technology, in conjunction with the Small
Business Administration, shall develop a Year 2000 compliance outreach
program to assist small and medium-sized businesses. Such program shall
include--
(1) the development of a Year 2000 self-assessment
checklist;
(2) an explanation of the Year 2000 computer problem and an
identification of best practices for resolving the problem;
(3) a list of Federal Government Year 2000 information
resources; and
(4) a list of Year 2000 compliant products provided by the
General Services Administration.

SEC. 6. INTERNATIONAL ASSESSMENT.

Within 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology, in conjunction with other
relevant Federal agencies, shall transmit to the Congress a report
assessing the international implications of the Year 2000 computer
problem. Such report shall include--
(1) an assessment of Year 2000 compliance by the United
States major trading partners;
(2) a description of efforts by the United States to share
best practices with other countries;
(3) the economic implications on world trade and the United
States economy of the Year 2000 computer problem, including an
identification of impacted United States industrial sectors and
Federal agencies; and
(4) a summary of participation by Federal agencies in
international fora addressing the Year 2000 computer problem.

SEC. 7. CONSUMER AWARENESS.

To ensure that the Nation's consumers are aware of and prepared to
meet the Year 2000 computer problem challenge, the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Technology shall develop a Year 2000 consumer awareness
program to assist the public in becoming aware of the implications of
the Year 2000 computer problem. Such program shall include--
(1) the development of a Year 2000 self-assessment
checklist;
(2) a list of Federal Government Year 2000 computer problem
information resources;
(3) a list of Year 2000 compliant products provided by the
General Services Administration;
(4) a series of public awareness announcements or seminars
on the impact of the Year 2000 computer problem on consumer
products and services; and
(5) a series of public awareness announcements or seminars
on the potential effect that the Year 2000 computer problem
could have on the provision of services by the Federal
Government to the public, and the progress made in resolving
the problem by the Federal agencies providing those services.
A:
Year 2000 Act - Requires the head of each Federal agency to: (1) take actions necessary to ensure that all systems and hardware administered by the agency are Year 2000 compliant to the extent necessary to ensure that no significant disruption of the agency's operations or data exchange partners occurs; and (2) convene, at least quarterly, and report to the Congress on, meetings with representatives of the agency's data exchange partners to assess implementation progress.
Directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology, in conjunction with the Small Business Administration, to develop a Year 2000 compliance outreach program to assist the Nation's small and medium-sized businesses to ensure that such businesses are prepared to meet the Year 2000 computer problem (Y2K problem) challenge.
Requires the Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology: (1) in conjunction with other relevant Federal agencies, to transmit to the Congress a report assessing the international implications of the Year 2000 computer problem; and (2) to develop a Year 2000 consumer awareness program to assist the public in becoming aware of the implications of such problem.