Thank you Chairman, for holding this important hearing. It is imperative, given the closing in of the new century, that all government agency and private industry computer systems are prepared for the problems that the Year 2000 creates.
As federal regulators of our financial services and industries, you are responsible to make certain that not only your computer systems are prepared for the problems of the new millennium, but also make sure the private financial industries under your purview are prepared. I am eager to hear the testimony to find out why some institutions are not better prepared, because it is not that the Year 2000 is now approaching at an unexpected velocity. As far as I know, the year 2000 has always been in sight -- a fixed date, known at least as long as I have been on this earth.
It disturbs me when I see reports, such as The Washington Post, July 10, 1997 article that states that "of the nearly 4,500 'mission critical' computer systems the government needs to repair... only 6 percent have been fixed." Even though the private sector seems to be ahead of the aforementioned government agencies in their compliance, there is still much progress to be made. Any private sector financial institution that is not compliant will likely have a detrimental impact on the banks that are compliant. An impact on our banks and financial providers will inevitably have a consequence on the average American consumer, with even a simple credit card transaction being at risk,
I look forward to hearing not only what the respective regulators are doing to
overt the looming crisis with their own internal computer systems, but also how
they are preparing for non-compliance of financial institutions.
Home | Menu | Links | Info | Chairman's Page