MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1999 Regular Session

To: Judiciary

By: Senator(s) Burton, Hall

AN ACT TO DIRECT STATE AGENCIES TO ASSURE THAT THERE IS NO DISRUPTION OF CRITICAL SERVICES BECAUSE OF THE YEAR 2000 COMPUTER CONVERSION PROBLEM AND TO COOPERATE WITH OTHER STATE AGENCIES AND PRIVATE SECTOR OPERATORS AS NECESSARY; TO PRESCRIBE THE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF AGENCY HEADS REGARDING TIMELY YEAR 2000 COMPUTER CONVERSION; TO DIRECT THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES TO DEVELOP AGENCY COMPUTER CONVERSION STATUS REPORTS; TO AMEND SECTION 11-46-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE IMMUNITY UNDER THE MISSISSIPPI TORT CLAIMS ACT FROM CLAIMS BASED ON CERTAIN COMPUTER FAILURES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. The Legislature hereby finds and declares that because of a design feature in many electronic systems, a large number of activities in the public and private sectors could be at risk beginning in the Year 2000. Some computer systems and other electronic devices will misinterpret the year "00" as 1900, rather than 2000. Unless appropriate action is taken, this flaw, known as the Year 2000 conversion problem, hereafter referred to as the "Y2K problem," may cause systems that support critical government functions dependent on electronic systems to compute erroneously or simply not operate. Minimizing the Y2K problem will require a major technological and managerial effort, and it is critical that Mississippi government do its part in addressing this challenge.

SECTION 2. (1) For purposes of this act, "agency" shall mean any state board, commission, council, community college, junior college, university, department or unit thereof created by the Constitution or statutes if such board, commission committee, council, university, department, unit or the head thereof is authorized to appoint subordinate staff by the Constitution or statute, except a legislative or judicial board, commission, committee, council, department or unit thereof.

(2) All agencies shall:

(a) Assure that no critical state program experiences disruption because of the Y2K problem;

(b) Assist and cooperate with other federal, state and local governments to address the Y2K problem where those governments depend on Mississippi information or information technology or where Mississippi government is dependent on those governments to perform critical missions; and

(c) Cooperate with the private sector operators of critical national and local systems, including the banking and financial system, the telecommunications system, the public health system, the transportation system, and the electric power generation system, in addressing the Y2K problem.

SECTION 3. (1) The administrative head of each agency shall:

(a) Assure that efforts to address the Y2K problem receive the highest priority attention in the agency;

(b) Monitor progress on agency's mission critical applications and associated interfaces with other government or business entities to assure timely Year 2000 compliance; and

(c) Provide status reports on Year 2000 compliance for mission critical applications and interfaces as requested by the Department of Information Technology Services.

(2) The Department of Information Technology Services shall develop status reporting procedures and schedules and shall report periodically to the Governor and the Legislature.

(3) The appropriate management committees of the Mississippi Legislature and the Administrative Office of Courts under the direction of the Mississippi Supreme Court are fully authorized in their discretion to participate in and cooperate with the activities established under this act.

SECTION 4. This act is intended only to improve the internal management of the executive branch of government and does not create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or equity by a party against the State of Mississippi, its agencies, or instrumentalities, its officers or employees, or any other person.

SECTION 5. Section 11-46-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

11-46-9. (1) A governmental entity and its employees acting within the course and scope of their employment or duties shall not be liable for any claim:

(a) Arising out of a legislative or judicial action or inaction, or administrative action or inaction of a legislative or judicial nature;

(b) Arising out of any act or omission of an employee of a governmental entity exercising ordinary care in reliance upon, or in the execution or performance of, or in the failure to execute or perform, a statute, ordinance or regulation, whether or not the statute, ordinance or regulation be valid;

(c) Arising out of any act or omission of an employee of a governmental entity engaged in the performance or execution of duties or activities relating to police or fire protection unless the employee acted in reckless disregard of the safety and well-being of any person not engaged in criminal activity at the time of injury;

(d) Based upon the exercise or performance or the failure to exercise or perform a discretionary function or duty on the part of a governmental entity or employee thereof, whether or not the discretion be abused;

(e) Arising out of an injury caused by adopting or failing to adopt a statute, ordinance or regulation;

(f) Which is limited or barred by the provisions of any other law;

(g) Arising out of the exercise of discretion in determining whether or not to seek or provide the resources necessary for the purchase of equipment, the construction or maintenance of facilities, the hiring of personnel and, in general, the provision of adequate governmental services;

(h) Arising out of the issuance, denial, suspension or revocation of, or the failure or refusal to issue, deny, suspend or revoke any privilege, ticket, pass, permit, license, certificate, approval, order or similar authorization where the governmental entity or its employee is authorized by law to determine whether or not such authorization should be issued, denied, suspended or revoked unless such issuance, denial, suspension or revocation, or failure or refusal thereof, is of a malicious or arbitrary and capricious nature;

(i) Arising out of the assessment or collection of any tax or fee;

(j) Arising out of the detention of any goods or merchandise by any law enforcement officer, unless such detention is of a malicious or arbitrary and capricious nature;

(k) Arising out of the imposition or establishment of a quarantine, whether such quarantine relates to persons or property;

(l) Of any claimant who is an employee of a governmental entity and whose injury is covered by the Workers' Compensation Law of this state by benefits furnished by the governmental entity by which he is employed;

(m) Of any claimant who at the time the claim arises is an inmate of any detention center, jail, workhouse, penal farm, penitentiary or other such institution, regardless of whether such claimant is or is not an inmate of any detention center, jail, workhouse, penal farm, penitentiary or other such institution when the claim is filed;

(n) Arising out of any work performed by a person convicted of a crime when the work is performed pursuant to any sentence or order of any court or pursuant to laws of the State of Mississippi authorizing or requiring such work;

(o) Under circumstances where liability has been or is hereafter assumed by the United States, to the extent of such assumption of liability, including, but not limited to, any claim based on activities of the Mississippi National Guard when such claim is cognizable under the National Guard Tort Claims Act of the United States, 32 USC 715 (32 USCS 715), or when such claim accrues as a result of active federal service or state service at the call of the Governor for quelling riots and civil disturbances;

(p) Arising out of a plan or design for construction or improvements to public property, including, but not limited to, public buildings, highways, roads, streets, bridges, levees, dikes, dams, impoundments, drainage channels, diversion channels, harbors, ports, wharfs or docks, where such plan or design has been approved in advance of the construction or improvement by the legislative body or governing authority of a governmental entity or by some other body or administrative agency, exercising discretion by authority to give such approval, and where such plan or design is in conformity with engineering or design standards in effect at the time of preparation of the plan or design;

(q) Arising out of an injury caused solely by the effect of weather conditions on the use of streets and highways;

(r) Arising out of the lack of adequate personnel or facilities at a state hospital or state corrections facility if reasonable use of available appropriations has been made to provide such personnel or facilities;

(s) Arising out of loss, damage or destruction of property of a patient or inmate of a state institution;

(t) Arising out of any loss of benefits or compensation due under a program of public assistance or public welfare;

(u) Arising out of or resulting from riots, unlawful assemblies, unlawful public demonstrations, mob violence or civil disturbances;

(v) Arising out of an injury caused by a dangerous condition on property of the governmental entity that was not caused by the negligent or other wrongful conduct of an employee of the governmental entity or of which the governmental entity did not have notice, either actual or constructive, and adequate opportunity to protect or warn against; provided, however, that a governmental entity shall not be liable for the failure to warn of a dangerous condition which is obvious to one exercising due care;

(w) Arising out of the absence, condition, malfunction or removal by third parties of any sign, signal, warning device, illumination device, guardrail or median barrier, unless the absence, condition, malfunction or removal is not corrected by the governmental entity responsible for its maintenance within a reasonable time after actual or constructive notice; * * *

(x) Arising out of the administration of corporal punishment or the taking of any action to maintain control and discipline of students, as defined in Section 37-11-57, by a teacher, assistant teacher, principal or assistant principal of a public school district in the state unless the teacher, assistant teacher, principal or assistant principal acted in bad faith or with malicious purpose or in a manner exhibiting a wanton and willful disregard of human rights or safety; or

(y) Any claim arising from the failure of a computer, software program, database, network, information system, firmware or any other device, whether operated by or on behalf of the governmental entity, to interpret, produce, calculate, generate, or account for a date which is compatible with the "Year 2000" date change.

(2) A governmental entity shall also not be liable for any claim where the governmental entity:

(a) Is inactive and dormant;

(b) Receives no revenue;

(c) Has no employees; and

(d) Owns no property.

(3) If a governmental entity exempt from liability by subsection (2) becomes active, receives income, hires employees or acquires any property, such governmental entity shall no longer be exempt from liability as provided in subsection (2) and shall be subject to the provisions of this chapter.

SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.