The many problems surrounding the Y2K bug are rearing their ugly heads.

Even in Iowa we are finding out that the problems are not simply technological but legal and social as well.

Recently, Iowa legislators proposed a bill to prevent consumers from taking businesses to court over damages caused by the so-called “Millennium Bug.”

The bill passed the Senate unanimously, but Governor Tom Vilsack plans to veto the proposal.

According to an article in the April 17 Des Moines Register, Gov. Vilsack maintains that the bill is overly protective of the rights of business owners while it offers no protection to consumers.

Gov. Vilsack stated that nuisance suits wouldn’t hold up in court against properly prepared businesses.

He also stated in the same article that consumers should be able to sue business that didn’t attempt to be compliant.

Even the Iowa Trial Lawyers are against this one.

In the next eight months, concern and paranoia over the millennium will heat up. It is nice to see our governor help keep heads cool in the capitol.

As the countdown continues, more and more attempts to prepare for the unknown will crop up. Fear of the future can lead to bad decisions.

While it is easy to see the good intentions many lawmakers may have had in proposing protection from frivolous lawsuits, this bill could have been disastrous for Iowa consumers.

Let’s face it; while the potential for the people of Iowa to decide to get rich off the potential disaster is quite real, the potential for businesses to decide they don’t have to do anything to comply with Y2K is great as well.

It would have been easy enough to side with the majority and score a few points with businesses at the same time.

But Gov. Vilsack has shown that logic can be a guide in politics and not just opinion polls.

That bodes well for the future.

It is commendable for Gov. Vilsack to take the side of consumers.

Besides the technical corrections that businesses have been required to make, there are plenty of old-fashioned back-up measures which could be taken to guarantee that a family’s savings account isn’t electronically wiped out at midnight on Dec. 31, 1999.

Individuals should not be left out in the cold without legal options.