Republican Senator Bob Bennett of Utah said a Year 2000 "First Alert" system focused on what happens in New Zealand and other Pacific countries after midnight on December 31, 1999, would give the United States more than 17 hours notice of how utilities and transport services may be disrupted.

"It is absolutely foolish not to use this advance notice for the good of the nation," Bennett said at a hearing on emergency services planning for the Year 2000.

Bennett said that he looked forward to working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to establish the early warning system but was prepared to introduce legislation if necessary.

Older computers and software are expected to have difficulty in recognising the date change. The use of only two digits for the year in these oldersystems is expected to lead to errors or outright failure.

White House Year 2000 chief, John Koskinen, told the hearing that there would be problems, even with the best efforts of government and industry to update systems.

"We need to understand and expect that not every system and embedded chip will be found and fixed," said Koskinen.