Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Division of Energy Assistance/OCS/ACF

Revised Information on ACF Preparations for Y2K

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THIS CONTAINS INFORMATION ISSUED BY THE U.S. ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND
FAMILIES IN LIHEAP ACTION TRANSMITTAL NO. LIHEAP-AT-2000-4, DATED 12/20/99


TO:              LOW INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (LIHEAP)
                 GRANTEES AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES

SUBJECT:         Revised Information on ACF Preparations for Y2K

RELATED
REFERENCES:      Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act, Title XXVI of the
                 Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981, Public Law
                 97-35, as amended by the Human Services Reauthorization
                 Act of 1984 (Public Law 98-558), the Human Services
                 Reauthorization Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-425), and the
                 Augustus F. Hawkins Human Services Reauthorization Act of
                 1990 (Public Law 101-501).

PURPOSE:         To provide revised information to grantees on ACF
                 preparations to minimize problems arising from potential
                 Y2K disruptions on January 1, 2000, and to inform State
                 grantees that ACF is not requesting that they report to us
                 the status of their programs on January 1.

BACKGROUND:      Processes that depend on computers or embedded computer
                 chips may be vulnerable to problems that arise if the
                 computer uses two digits to indicate year (e.g., 99 for
                 1999) fails to register the year 2000.  The consequences
                 of such failures could be serious for LIHEAP program
                 operations and the households who depend on LIHEAP.

                 The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has
                 worked diligently to minimize the potential for Y2K
                 disruptions and the impact to programming should any
                 occur.  We have remediated and tested our own systems and
                 prepared business continuity and contingency plans for
                 each of our mission critical systems and processes.

                 In action transmittal LIHEAP-AT-2000-1, dated October 26,
                 1999, we described plans for the ACF Coordinated Response
                 Center which was to operate on "Day 1" (i.e., January 1,
                 2000).  These plans have changed.

CONTENT:         Year 2000 is just a couple of weeks away and the
                 Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has
                 continued its efforts to ensure smooth operations - the
                 continued provision of services - and to minimize the
                 potential for Y2K disruptions in our programs.  We
                 congratulate the LIHEAP grantees on the amount of hard
                 work that has been invested, and the progress that has
                 been made in this endeavor.

                 We have also been working with other federal entities to
                 streamline reporting processes and requirements to reduce
                 the impact of Year 2000 reporting on the States.  This
                 transmittal is to update you on changes that have occurred
                 in the reporting process since our previous transmittal,
                 and expectations regarding ACF's role during the Day One
                 period (December 30, 1999 through January 7, 2000).

                 Reporting
                 States are being still asked to report on the status of
                 their LIHEAP programs as it relates to Y2K issues.
                 However, in order to simplify State reporting processes,
                 Day One reporting for the "high impact programs" (Child
                 Care, Child Welfare, Child Support Enforcement, TANF, and
                 LIHEAP) will occur through the use of the Federal
                 Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reporting process.
                 These reports will be sent directly to the Federal
                 government's Information Coordination Center (ICC).  (See
                 attachment.)  The ICC will be operating on a short-term
                 basis.  Problems arising after the ICC closes should be
                 reported to the ACF Coordinated Response Center, as
                 discussed below.

                 LIHEAP tribal grantees will not be asked to report to the
                 ICC managed by FEMA.  However, we encourage tribal
                 grantees to get in touch with ACF, as discussed below, if
                 Y2K-related problems arise.

                 ACF's Role
                 While the FEMA reporting process is in place, our ACF
                 office in Washington, DC will be monitoring the
                 information submitted by the States to the Federal ICC on
                 these "high impact programs", as well as responding to
                 reports of disruptions from tribal grantees.

                 This information will be used to:
                 o Monitor the delivery of services to clients;
                 o Coordinate the Federal response to issues concerning our
                   programs;
                 o Provide support to national, state, territory and local partners and
                   clients; and
                 o Assess the overall national impact of Y2K on the children and
                   families that we serve.

                 If we become aware of a Y2K-related problem through the
                 ICC or from other sources, we may contact you for more
                 information.  In addition, it is our expectation that
                 after the FEMA reporting process has been discontinued,
                 State agencies will report on continuing or new Y2K
                 problems in all ACF programs directly to the ACF
                 Coordinated Response Center.

                 Contacting ACF/Requesting Assistance
                 Throughout the Day One period, the ACF Coordinated
                 Response Center will be tracking information and
                 responding to State/grantee requests for assistance or
                 information. The following number is provided for direct
                 contact with the ACF Coordinated Response Center during
                 Day One:  (202) 401-9242.

                 To support your ongoing Y2K efforts prior to Day One,
                 please feel free to discuss any concerns or problems you
                 may have related to this issue with your normal contacts
                 in the regional or program offices.  For technical
                 assistance only, you may want to call the Human Services
                 Sector Y2K Hotline at 1-888-HHS-Y2K1.  An associated
                 Internet site is also available at
                 http://y2k.acf.dhhs.gov.

                 If you have issues unrelated to Y2K during this period,
                 please contact the Division of Energy Assistance staff as
                 usual.  We will be in operation every business day except
                 the Federal holidays, December 24 and December 31.

                 We appreciate the dedication and efforts of all those who
                 have worked to ensure a seamless transition to the Year
                 2000 for the children and families we serve, and we wish
                 you all a safe and happy New Year.


ATTACHMENT:      Memorandum to State Y2K Coordinators from John A.
                 Koskinen, Chair, President's Council on Year 2000
                 Conversion

INQUIRIES TO:    Janet M. Fox, Director
                 Division of Energy Assistance
                 Office of Community Services, ACF, HHS
                 370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
                 Washington, D.C.  20447
                 Telephone:  (202) 401-9351
                 Fax:  (202) 401-5718
                 E-mail:  jmfox@acf.dhhs.gov




                                       _______________/s____________
                                       Janet M. Fox
                                       Director
                                       Division of Energy Assistance
                                       Office of Community Services



                                                  ATTACHMENT

                                                  December 8, 1999



MEMORANDUM TO:              State Y2K Coordinators

CC:                         Kevin Thurm and John Callahan, Department of
                            Health and Human Services; Anne Reed, Department of
                            Agriculture and Edward Hugler, Department of Labor

FROM:                       John A. Koskinen, Chair
                            President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion

SUBJECT:                    State Government Reports to Information
                            Coordination Center and Federal Agencies During
                            the Y2K Transition

DATE:                       December 2, 1999

      During the rollover to the Year 2000, individual state governments
will be reporting on the Y2K status of information systems, program
delivery mechanisms, and critical infrastructures within their states
through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).  The states will
fulfill this requirement by utilizing the Information Collection and
Reporting System (ICRS) developed by the Information Coordination Center
(ICC).  A critical component of these reports will be the status of the
so-called Federal "high-impact" programs.  Although these individual State
reports on "high-impact" programs will be delivered through FEMA, the
reports will also be available to-and viewable by-individual Federal agency
representatives in the ICC as soon as those reports are forwarded by the
states.

      Recently, a number of states have reported that they have also been
asked by individual Federal agencies to provide additional general status
reports during the roll over regarding these "high-impact" programs.  The
states are concerned about the burdens created by a dual reporting system
as well as the possibility of conflicting reports during a period of high
stress.

      Because the ICRS will capture basic information on the operation of
"high-impact" programs, I earlier discussed this matter with the
President's Council.  We agreed that we needed to avoid the collection of
additional, program-specific, general status reports from the states and
would rely for this information on the reports provided through the ICRS.
Should a state report indicate that there is a problem with the operation
of a specific program, additional information and details can -and
should-be requested by the Federal agency overseeing the program to allow
the parties to work together to insure the continuity of benefits.

      The state coordinators should note that the other side of this coin
is that they need to insure that the relevant state departments know where
and when to send their status reports.  Some Federal agencies have received
indications from their state program contacts that it is not clear what
they are supposed to report to whom.  We appreciate your cooperation in
this regard.

      As we discussed with state coordinators at our recent summit in
Indianapolis, the exception to this principle of reliance on ICRS reports
is state Medicaid programs-which, because of their complexity, operate with
ongoing contact with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
HHS has developed a distinct report on the status of this program that
should be sent to HHS from each state and has recently issued formats and
guidance on such reports.  (As we discussed on our monthly call this week,
it would be helpful if the states could summarize their medicaid report to
HHS in their ICRS report as well so that we'd have all the state
information in one place.)

      Both General Kind and I appreciate everyone's help in smoothing our
transition into the Year 2000.  Please contact either of us should you wish
to discuss this issue in more detail.

      Best wishes.

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