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The panel, cochaired by Fellows Ed David
and Gerry Riso, advocates merging some federal GI activities
and creating a new organization to oversee the creation and
maintenance of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. The
NSDI is the emerging network of materials, technology, and
people necessary to acquire, process, store, and distribute
geographic data. According to the report "the federal
government should ensure full and rapid implementation of
the NSDI in a cost-effective and cooperative manner."
The study, requested by the Bureau of Land
Management, U.S. Geological Survey, Forest Service, and National
Ocean Service, assesses the economic importance of GI, the
allocation of responsibilities to different levels of government
and the private sector, and opportunities for consolidation
of GI functions in the federal government. Although positive
about steps taken so far, the panel acknowledges that the
"challenges of getting to an NSDI fully populated with
current, accurate, and readily accessible data are daunting,
complex, and time consuming."
The report's most significant recommendation
is that Congress create a new private, nonprofit organization,
the National Spatial Data Council (NSDC), as a forum for all
organizations engaged in developing and maintaining the NSDI.
The NSDC's charter and activities would complement those of
the Federal Geospatial Data Committee (FGDC), but would better
provide for "full participation by all the major parties
and interests." The panel recommended that the FGDC,
a multiagency committee established by the Office of Management
and Budget, concentrate on coordinating GI functions within
the federal government. As outlined in the report, the goals
of the NSDC would include the following:
- provide a national forum for developing
and maintaining the NSDI
maintain state-of-the-art knowledge about advances in GI
and related technologies
- help ensure that goals set for the NSDI
are actually carried out by serving as a catalyst for implementation
- build a comprehensive and user friendly
clearinghouse for GI
- provide a forum for discussion by all
parties on national standards and possibly, over time, assume
these responsibilities from the FGDC
- provide training and education on the
utility of and techniques for fostering the NSDI
While noting that the FGDC has been "instrumental
in much of the progress over the past few years," the
report offers several recommendations to encourage greater
participation and cooperation among all parties involved:
- until the NSDC is established, increase
state and local government participation in the FGDC and
encourage stronger involvement by the private sector
- encourage active participation in FGDC
by all agencies with major GI-related programs, including
NASA and the Department of Defense
- rapidly grow the current FGDC clearinghouse
to (1) identify as much geospatial data as possible, including
that derived from states, local governments, and the private
sector, and (2) evolve toward user friendly, online data
access as technology permits
The report also addresses whether certain
federal agencies that provide GI resources should be abolished,
privatized, or devolved to the states as proposed by some
members of Congress. The panel found that "the goals
of an NSDI will continue to require intergovernmental coordination
and cooperation as opposed to unilateral product responsibilities"
and that it would be reckless to devolve or privatize major
federal responsibilities.
However, the report also notes that the
role of the federal government with regard to GI has been
permanently altered. Advances in IT such as satellite navigation
systems, remote-sensing capabilities, and the Internet have
allowed greater use of GI by industry, state and local governments,
and consumers. The panel found that "the GI functions
that need to be retained as 'inherently governmental' are
limited." To fully realize the potential of the NSDI
and to increase efficiency, the report recommends transferring
the National Geodetic Survey from the National Ocean Service
to USGS and creating a new Geographic Data Service.
The new Geographic Data Service would "support
the full development of the NSDI and ensure that U.S. economic,
governmental, and societal needs for GI are met in cooperation
with all levels of government and the private sector."
As proposed, the new agency could eventually be composed of
some or all functions of each of the four major agencies involved
with base GI. To further meet the needs of states, localities,
and industry, the report recommends realignment of the field
structure for federal GI functions to more closely match state
boundaries. This change would allow field offices to act as
the primary focal point in relations with states and cities.
According to the panel, the appropriate
role for the federal government in providing GI resources
will continue to change. A more collaborative approach among
levels of government and the private sector is needed. The
panel recommends that agency managers "increasingly emphasize
multilateral partnerships-interagency, intergovernmental,
and with the private sector-both to promote a robust NSDI
and as a source of savings."
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