6 Florida United Methodist Review Online

Credit Union Y2K ready

President offers suggestions for personal preparation.

By Michael Wacht

LAKELAND — While predictions for the beginning of the year 2000 run the gamut, from minor inconveniences to the end of Western Civilization, customers of the Florida United Methodist Credit Union can rest assured their finances will be unaffected by the Y2K bug, according to Credit Union President Joan Beierle.

"Your credit union board of directors and staff have been working on the year 2000, Y2K, issue since early 1998," Beierle said. "A Y2K plan has been drawn up to ensure that we will continue to operate well beyond the year 2000."

Concern over the start of the new millennium arises from fear of the so-called "millennium bug," also known as "Y2K," an abbreviation for "Year 2000." The letter K stands for kilo, meaning 1,000.

The problem began in the 1960s when computers were programmed to assume that all years begin with "19." When the calendar rolls over to 2000, computers around the world that are not Y2K compliant will assume the year is 1900, causing potential data loss and computer crashes.

The credit union’s data processor, Fiserv, has installed new equipment and programs that are Y2K compliant and have been successful in tests, according to Beierle. The State of Florida Comptroller’s Office is monitoring the credit union’s progress on its Y2K compliance plan. Credit unions are also required to keep backup records of transactions that can be used to recover information in an emergency, according to the National Credit Union Administration.

Although the credit union does not anticipate any problems, Beierle says there are steps people can take to protect themselves from any temporary problems the Y2K bug might cause in other industries.

Keep paper records. Starting now and continuing through the year 2000, people should save all paper records — credit reports; Social Security records; credit card statements; medical records; child support payment records; and stock, insurance and other financial records.

Ask about compliance efforts. Customers should now contact insurance companies, airlines, travel agencies, investment firms, utility companies, local government offices and any others "that immediately impact your life" to assess their compliance efforts.

Plan ahead. Travelers should contact airlines, hotels and travel agencies to confirm that their systems are functioning and check with credit card providers to make sure they will be compliant. People who are concerned about the availability of services in the new year should get a full tank of gas and a few extra groceries in the last week of December.

Don’t Panic. "In our sensationalistic media society, there are bound to be some panic-riddled headlines the last week of December 1999," Beierle said. While people should not withdraw all of their money from financial institutions, she says that anyone who wants extra cash for the new year should withdraw funds in traveler’s checks. "They’re as good as cash, and if anything happens to them they can be replaced, whereas cash can’t be replaced," she said. The credit union will be offering traveler’s checks midyear.