WASHINGTON-The Senate last week, after an arduous process, passed a bill to limit lawsuits resulting from the millennium bug. The action sets up what promises to be difficult negotiations with the House and the Clinton administration.
The goal of both the House and Senate bills is to limit the liability high-tech companies may face if systems fail with the rollover to the year 2000, but the two bills are different so a conference committee is required before the bill can be sent to the White House.
The House passed its version last month, but it took the Senate several tries to get over objections of Democrats, who were concerned about the impact the bill would have on tort law.
In the end, 12 Democrats voted in favor of the bill, led by Sens. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, Ron Wyden of Oregon and Dianne Feinstein of California. The final vote was 62-37 which, according to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), is enough to hold off a filibuster of final passage of the bill. It is not enough to overturn a veto by the White House.
The White House has said it is opposed to both versions of the bill. None of the leading Democrats have spoken with the Clinton administration as to what needs to be changed to make it acceptable, but Dodd told reporters he was willing to negotiate on everything.
The Republicans agreed with Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), saying negotiators were waiting for good ideas from everyone, including the trial lawyers.
As the senators who favored the bill repeatedly told reporters following the vote, the Y2K bill is a one-time-one-event bill. It sunsets in 2003.
The bill contains a 90-day cooling off period where a high-tech company could attempt to fix the problem or enter into mediation before a lawsuit could be filed.
Following passage of the bill on Tuesday, the Senate Thursday announced its conferees, including Dodd, Hatch, McCain, Wyden and Sens. Robert Bennett (R-Utah), Ernest Hollings (R-S.C.) and Ted Stevens (R-Alaska).
Reaction to the bill has focused on what, if any, influence Vice President Al Gore-who formally announced he is running for president last week-will have on its outcome. The vice president has presented himself as a friend of high tech, but the Clinton White House has been a friend of the trial lawyers. The main question seems to be whether the vice president can convince the White House that this is a good bill without upsetting the trial lawyers. Dodd told reporters that he doesn’t think Gore has a conflict.
