GovernmentExecutive.com

The Social Security Administration touted its Y2K readiness in October 1998, and on Tuesday top officials reconfirmed that the agency does not expect any problems during the date changeover.

SSA Commissioner Kenneth Apfel said that those beneficiaries scheduled to receive payments Jan. 3 would receive them as expected.

The agency was the first in the federal government to complete its Y2K preparedness, having spent 10 years working on the problem. John Koskinen, the Clinton Administration's Y2K czar, commended the agency for fixing its own systems and for leading a cross-agency movement to complete Y2K-readiness actions. SSA has worked closely with the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve and Postal Service to ensure that all benefits will be received as planned.

"Fortunately, we began early and finished early," Apfel said.

Now the agency is gearing up for its watch during the date changeover. SSA will operate its own Y2K command center out of its Baltimore headquarters and will link to the Information Coordination Center in Washington, DC, to monitor potential problems. Moments before the clock strikes midnight, the Baltimore data center will switch to special generators until it receives notification from the power company that it can switch back to its traditional electric source.

The agency also has mapped out a schedule of testing its systems starting seconds into the new year. Building infrastructure, telecommunications networks, a nationwide toll-free telephone number, software and hardware will be tested at specific intervals Jan. 1 to ensure their functionality. Additionally, the agency has developed an extensive contingency plan for errors and will have checks available to its field offices for emergency funds.

And after involving 700 programmers, hundreds of federal workers, a decade and $48.3 million, agency officials say they are confident they will ring in the New Year with success. "The bottom line is that we're ready," Apfel said.