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91_HB0487eng
HB0487 Engrossed LRB9102441WHdv
1 AN ACT concerning electronic computing devices and the
2 year 2000 date change.
3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
4 represented in the General Assembly:
5 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
6 Year 2000 Citizens' Protection Act.
7 Section 5. Legislative declaration.
8 (1) The General Assembly finds that society is heavily
9 reliant upon computers, technology, and the rapid electronic
10 transfer and exchange of accurate information and data. The
11 General Assembly further finds that society relies heavily
12 upon computer technology for most aspects of daily living and
13 business, including but not limited to financial
14 transactions. The General Assembly further finds that the
15 rapid growth of technology has often outpaced the
16 capabilities of the electronic equipment, software, and
17 hardware that our society uses for the exchange and transfer
18 of data and other information. The General Assembly finds
19 that recently developed computer technology is the
20 operational basis for much of our current hardware and
21 software, and yet it may not recognize the year 2000 date
22 change. The General Assembly finds that the result may be
23 that in the year 2000, many computer-based systems may fail
24 or cause incorrect data or other information to be processed.
25 This potentially world-wide deficiency in computers is often
26 referred to as the "Y2K bug" and may cause significant
27 problems in the transfer and exchange of data and information
28 in the year 2000 and beyond.
29 (2) Accordingly, the General Assembly determines that,
30 to protect the citizens of the State of Illinois, it is
31 appropriate to limit their liability against adverse
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1 financial ramifications resulting from electronic computing
2 device failures associated with the year 2000 date change.
3 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the
4 context otherwise requires:
5 (1) "Electronic computing device" means any
6 computer hardware or software, computer chip, embedded
7 chip, process control equipment, or other information
8 system that:
9 (A) is used to capture, store, manipulate, or
10 process data; or
11 (B) controls, monitors, or assists in the
12 operation of physical apparatus that is not
13 primarily used as a computer but that relies on
14 automation or digital technology to function,
15 including but not limited to vehicles, vessels,
16 buildings, structures, facilities, elevators,
17 medical equipment, traffic signals, and factory
18 machinery.
19 (2) "Small business" means a corporation or a
20 concern, including its affiliates, that is independently
21 owned and operated, not dominant in its field, and
22 employs fewer than 50 full-time employees or has gross
23 annual sales of less than $4,000,000.
24 (3) "Individual" means a natural person.
25 Section 15. Limitation on actions against citizens for
26 electronic failures associated with the year 2000.
27 (1) Except as otherwise provided by federal law, no
28 person or entity who transacts business with the citizens of
29 this State on matters directly or indirectly affecting real
30 or personal property, whether tangible or intangible,
31 mortgages, credit accounts, banking and financial
32 transactions, or property interests in this State may
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1 initiate or cause to be initiated any foreclosure proceeding,
2 default, or other enforcement action or impose any late
3 payment charge or similar penalty against any individual or
4 small business until April 1, 2000 due to the improper or
5 incorrect transmission of data or resulting from the
6 inability of a financial transaction to occur in a timely
7 manner, as a result of a failure of an electronic computing
8 device in the possession or control of a person or entity
9 other than the individual or small business owing on the
10 obligation to accurately compute, recognize, or timely
11 process the year 2000 date change.
12 (2) Except as otherwise provided by federal law, the
13 prohibitions set forth in subsection (1) of this Section
14 apply but are not limited to the following types of
15 transactions: mortgages, contracts, landlord and tenant
16 relations, consumer credit obligations, utilities, and
17 banking transactions.
18 (3) The prohibitions set forth in subsection (1) of this
19 Section may be raised as an affirmative defense to any
20 actions or charges initiated in violation of subsection (1)
21 provided:
22 (A) the individual or small business establishes
23 that the default, failure to pay, breach, or other
24 omission that is the basis of the enforcement action or
25 late payment charge was caused by the failure of an
26 electronic computing device in the possession or control
27 of a person or entity other than the individual or small
28 business to accurately compute, recognize, or timely
29 process the year 2000 date change, and, if it were not
30 for this failure, the individual or small business would
31 have been able to satisfy the underlying obligation that
32 is the basis of the enforcement action or late payment
33 charge; and
34 (B) the individual or small business establishes
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1 that the individual or small business notified the person
2 or entity bringing the enforcement action or imposing the
3 late payment charge of the information in subdivision
4 (3)(A) in writing within 21 days of the date the
5 individual or small business received actual or
6 constructive notice of the failure.
7 (4) This Section does not affect transactions upon which
8 a default occurred before any disruption of financial or data
9 transfer operations attributable to the year 2000 date
10 change.
11 (5) This Section does not dissolve but only suspends the
12 enforcement of the underlying obligations to which it
13 applies.
14 (6) An individual may dispute directly with a credit
15 reporting agency operating in this State any negative credit
16 information resulting from the failure of an electronic
17 computing device in the possession or control of a person or
18 entity other than the individual owing on the obligation to
19 transmit data or timely process a financial transaction due
20 to the failure of the electronic computing device in the
21 possession or control of a person or entity other than the
22 consumer to accurately compute, recognize, or timely process
23 the year 2000 date change. If requested by the individual
24 pursuant to this subsection (6), the credit reporting agency
25 shall include a statement prepared by the individual of no
26 more than 100 words in the individual's consumer file
27 explaining an item of information relating to the year
28 2000-related failure of an electronic computing device as
29 described in the preceding sentence that the consumer
30 reporting agency denies is inaccurate. The credit reporting
31 agency shall include the individual's statement in any report
32 it provides to any person or entity regarding the individual.
33 The credit reporting agency shall not charge the individual a
34 fee for the inclusion of this statement in the individual's
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1 consumer file.
2 (7) This Section shall apply only to claims, actions, or
3 late payment charge accruing on or after January 1, 2000.
4 Section 90. Application. If there is a conflict between
5 this Act and any other law of this State, this Act shall
6 control.
7 Section 95. Repeal. This Act is repealed on January 1,
8 2007.
9 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
10 becoming law.
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