The European Economic and Monetary Union is now expected to come into effect on schedule on January 1, 1999 and to include most members of the European Union (the likely exceptions are the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark and Greece). For a transitional period national currencies such as the German mark and the French franc will continue to be used but at fixed exchange rates with the new European currency, known as the "euro". After January 1, 2002, the euro will be the sole currency for use in member countries of the monetary union. The European Union has adopted Council Regulation 1103/97 to provide for legal certainty of contracts denominated in the old currencies. The Regulation contains two main provisions. The first provides that in all contracts where obligations are expressed in european currency units, reference to these units will automatically be replaced by references to the euro. The second provision is that for contracts in which obligations are expressed in national currencies which will be replaced by the euro, unless the parties agree otherwise, the contract will continue in force with obligations henceforth payable in euros at that rate of exchange that is fixed (to six "relevant" digits) for the original currency to the euro at the point at which the euro comes into use. Similar legislation maintaining the validity of contracts expressing obligations in european currencies has been adopted in several of the states of the United States including Illinois (Public Act 90-268) and New York (1997 Laws Chapter 311). Similar legislation is pending in California (Assembly Bill A.B. 185).