Hearing on Year 2000 Project Initiative

RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD
Statement by
Robert T. Rose
Chief Information Officer
on Status of Year 2000 Initiative 

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:

Good morning. My name is Robert Rose and I am the Chief Information Officer for the Railroad Retirement Board. I am pleased to have this opportunity to testify about the status of our Year 2000 project.

The RRB is an independent agency in the executive branch of the United States Government which administers the Railroad Retirement and the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Acts. Under the Railroad Retirement Act, the Board pays retirement, disability, and survivor benefits based on employment with the railroad industry. During fiscal year 1997, the RRB paid $8.2 billion in retirement and survivor benefits to nearly 800,000 beneficiaries.

The agency has designated the Year 2000 issue as its highest priority project. Our primary goal is to complete the implementation of 100 percent of our mission-critical systems by the end of this calendar year, 3 months earlier than the goal established by the Office of Management and Budget. To demonstrate the strength of our commitment to this project, this goal is included as one of our key objectives in the agency's Strategic Plan. We have also established a goal to complete the implementation of virtually all of our non-mission-critical systems by the end of fiscal year 1999.

At this time, we are making very good progress and are on, or ahead of, schedule for meeting these goals. The RRB has 124 mission-critical systems, of which 87, or 70 percent, are now Y2K-compliant. Those 87 completed include 60 mainframe systems and 27 PC-based systems. All remaining mission-critical systems are scheduled for conversion by the end of this calendar year. Our most recent achievement was the completion of the renovation of all mission-critical systems by September 30, as scheduled.

Beginning in January 1999, we are planning a series of comprehensive integration tests for all major information systems. These tests, performed after each individual system has been revised and reintroduced into the production environment, will be geared toward ensuring that all interfaces, connections, and links between the various systems remain in sync and are fully functional.

We have also developed an inventory of external data exchanges for both mission-critical and non-mission-critical systems. These exchanges are generally conducted with other Federal and State agencies, railroads, and financial institutions. We have contacted all of these organizations and, with few exceptions, have developed all required Y2K data formats. In the event that all data received from external sources is not fully compliant before the year 2000, we plan to implement "bridge" programs which will temporarily reformat the information as required. Most of these bridge programs have already been developed and tested.

In addition to the application systems area, we are also taking action to ensure Y2K compliance in three other areas. First, all proprietary system software packages used in our data center will be tested and certified to be compliant by the end of fiscal year 1999. Second, in the area of desktop computing, we are testing the agency's entire inventory of personal computers for Y2K compliance. The agency's goal is to equip each employee with a compliant PC prior to the end of fiscal year 1999, and funds have been identified in the President's 1999 budget specifically for this purpose. In the third area, which concerns office facilities such as telephones and elevators, we are taking follow-up actions on those few systems found to be non-compliant.

The RRB's most significant external interface, which supports the payment of both Social Security benefits and Railroad Retirement benefits, is with the Social Security Administration. We have a close working relationship with SSA, and have exchanged test files with them to ensure that these interfaces will work smoothly in the year 2000. We also exchange information with the Department of the Treasury, related to the issuance of benefit checks, direct deposit transactions, returned payments, and other financial matters. They serve as the conduit for most transactions between the RRB and the Federal Reserve Bank and other banks. Treasury officials have assured us that no revisions are required in the formats of our file exchanges with them. The RRB does not have an international direct deposit program, and therefore, is not concerned with Y2K banking issues outside of this country. The Department of the Treasury has requested that we transmit our monthly benefit file via electronic data communication instead of by tape media to accommodate their Y2K conversion. We are complying with that request, and expect a smooth transition in that area.

In summary, we are confident in our ability to achieve the agency's goals for the Year 2000, and that our transition to the next century will offer uninterrupted service and continuous, high-quality operations.

Thank you. That concludes my remarks. I would be happy to answer any questions you may have.