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Informational Memorandum
Subject:Reporting Year 2000 Status
Date of Memorandum:10/06/1999
Expiration Date:
Office:OE
Signed By:Smith, Roland
FCA Contact Person:Holland, Tom
Contact Phone:703-883-4484
List of Attachments:Amendment to Executive Order 13073
Year 2000 Conversion


INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM


October 6, 1999


To: The Chief Executive Officer
All Farm Credit System Institutions

From: Roland E. Smith, Director /s/
Office of Examination

Subject: Reporting Year 2000 Status


Purpose
The purpose of this memorandum is to explain the requirement for each Farm Credit System (FCS) institution to report Year 2000 (Y2K) problems that occur with the transition to the New Year. President Clinton recently issued the attached amendment to Executive Order 13073, which established a Y2K Information Coordination Center (ICC). The role of the ICC is to get a quick assessment of the Y2K situation on January 1, 2000, and after, both in the United States and throughout the world. The ICC will promote gathering and exchanging information among Federal agencies and key industrial sectors (i.e., electric power, telecommunications, banking and finance, transportation, water supply, health care, etc.).

Background
The unique nature of the Y2K conversion represents an all-encompassing challenge with the potential for several widespread incidents occurring simultaneously, some potentially cascading through related sectors of the U.S. and world economy. The Federal government will use the ICC to identify Y2K problems, quickly assess the severity of each problem and respond to those problems that adversely affect national interests. FCS institutions, as well as other financial institutions, are expected to participate. Our Y2K assessments have disclosed that FCS institutions have made commendable progress in meeting the challenges presented by the Y2K problem. But even if your internal systems are Y2K “ready,” you must be prepared to manage through operational disruptions that might be caused by external events.

Reporting Process
The Farm Credit Administration (FCA) will be responsible for reporting to the ICC for the Farm Credit System. The following reporting procedures are provided to help in your planning. These procedures are subject to change pending additional instruction from the ICC.

· The appropriate FCA Field Office will contact your institution on either January 3 or January 4, 2000, depending on which date is the first business day for your institution. We do not intend to request an extensive amount of information, but your institution should be able to respond to the following questions:

1. Has a Y2K problem been identified?
2. How severe is the problem and is it mission critical?
3. What is the nature of the problem?
4. When do you estimate the problem will be corrected?
5. What is the impact of the problem on others (i.e., customers, other businesses, etc.)?
6. Are external resources needed to correct the problem?

· Since not all Y2K problems are likely to be either readily identifiable or occurring on January 1, 2000, we will also contact each institution after the first business day in 2000. How often we contact an institution will depend on individual circumstances.

· If an FCS institution identifies a Y2K problem, it should contact the appropriate FCA Field Office immediately and not wait for us to call. Should the problem be detected during the weekend of January 1 or 2, 2000, the institution should first attempt to reach the appropriate FCA Field Office. However, if this is unsuccessful, please immediately contact Tom Glenn at the number shown below. We will have staff at our field offices and the McLean headquarters during most of that weekend.

Thank you in advance for helping us comply with the President’s Executive Order. If you have any questions about this memorandum, please call Thomas M. Glenn at (703) 883-4412, or correspond on the Internet at e-mail address glennt@fca.gov.

Attachment





THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
June 14, 1999

AMENDMENT TO EXECUTIVE ORDER 13073, YEAR 2000 CONVERSION

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, and in order to create the Information Coordination Center to assist the Chair of the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion in addressing year 2000 conversion problems both domestically and internationally, it is hereby ordered
that Executive Order 13073 is amended as follows:

Section 1. A new section 5 is added to the order and shall read "Sec. 5. Information Coordination Center. (a) To assist the Chair in the Y2K response duties included under section 2(c) of this order, there shall be established the Information Coordination Center (ICC) in the General Services Administration.

(b) At the direction of the Chair, the ICC will assist in making preparations for information sharing and coordination within the Federal Government and key components of the public and private sectors, coordinating agency assessments of Y2K emergencies that could have an adverse affect on U.S. interests at home and abroad, and, if necessary, assisting Federal agencies and the Chair in reconstitution processes
where appropriate.

(c) The ICC will:

(1) consist of officials from executive agencies, designated by agency heads under subsection 3(a)(2) of this order, who have expertise in important management and technical areas, computer hardware, software or security systems, reconstitution and recovery, and of additional personnel hired directly or by contract, as required, to carry out the duties described under section 5 of this order;

(2) work with the Council and the Office of Management and Budget to assure that Federal efforts to restore critical systems are coordinated with efforts managed by Federal agencies acting under existing emergency response authorities."

(d) The Chair of the President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion shall designate a Director of the ICC.

Sec. 2. The preexisting section 5 of Executive Order 13073 shall be renumbered as section 6.



WILLIAM J. CLINTON
THE WHITE HOUSE
June 14, 1999