I 

112TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4233 

To establish the National Geospatial Technology Administration within the 

United States Geological Survey to enhance the use of geospatial data, 

products, technology, and services, to increase the economy and efficiency 

of Federal geospatial activities, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 21, 2012 

Mr. LAMBORN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Government Reform, Science, Space, and Technology, and Agriculture, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 

each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To establish the National Geospatial Technology Administration within the United States Geological Survey to enhance the use of geospatial data, products, technology, 

and services, to increase the economy and efficiency of 

Federal geospatial activities, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Map It Once, Use It Many Times Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Purposes. 

Sec. 4. Definitions. 

TITLE I—NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY ADMINISTRATION 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. National Geospatial Technology Administration. 

Sec. 103. Establishment and maintenance of National Geospatial Database. 

Sec. 104. Reorganization of geospatial and land management activities. 

Sec. 105. Promulgation of standards for Federal geospatial data. 

Sec. 106. Protection of geospatial data. 

Sec. 107. Assumption of geospatial functions of other Federal agencies. 

Sec. 108. Acquisition of geospatial data from public sources. 

Sec. 109. Acquisition of geospatial data from commercial sources. 

TITLE II—NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL POLICY COMMISSION 

Sec. 201. Establishment; primary duties. 

Sec. 202. Requirements for National Geospatial Data Plan. 

Sec. 203. Membership. 

TITLE III—CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE OF FEDERAL 

GEOSPATIAL ACTIVITIES 

Sec. 301. Policy. 

Sec. 302. Definitions. 

Sec. 303. Conversion to contractor performance. 

Sec. 304. Requirement for performance in United States. 

TITLE IV—ENCOURAGING PRIVATE ENTERPRISE 

Sec. 401. Findings; purposes. 

Sec. 402. Strategy for encouraging Federal use of private geospatial firms. 

TITLE V—GEOSPATIAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 501. Purposes. 

Sec. 502. Definitions. 

Sec. 503. Geospatial Research Plan. 

Sec. 504. Policy directives for research and development. 

Sec. 505. Annual report. 

3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

4 Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) Geospatial data is necessary and essential 

6 to— 


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1 (A) the management of natural resources; 

2 (B) economic development; 

3 (C) the management, adjudication, and 

4 prevention of future disruptions in the home 

5 mortgage system; 

6 (D) the development and implementation 

7 of a smart energy grid; 

8 (E) the deployment of universal domestic 

9 broadband service; 

10 (F) the management of Federal real prop11 erty assets; 

12 (G) emergency preparedness and response; 

13 (H) homeland security; 

14 (I) the delivery of efficient health care and 

15 other services provided, financed, or regulated 

16 by the Federal Government; and 

17 (J) the maintenance, rehabilitation, and 

18 enhancement of public works, transportation, 

19 and other infrastructure of the United States. 

20 (2) The geospatial technology field is a high 

21 growth, high demand, and economically vital sector 

22 of the economy of the United States. 

23 (3) The United States is the leader in the glob24 al geospatial technology field. The thousands of 

25 geospatial firms in the United States, which include 


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1 many small businesses, are among the most capable 

2 and qualified geospatial firms in the international 

3 market. 

4 (4) Geospatial technologies can enhance the op5 erations of government in planning and analysis, 

6 asset management, situation awareness, workforce 

7 empowerment, citizen engagement, transparency, 

8 education, and other services. 

9 (5) The full use and exploitation of geospatial 

10 technologies can foster economic growth, contribute 

11 to environmental stewardship, and enable scientific 

12 and technological excellence. 

13 (6) Studies have indicated that Federal agen14 cies are not effectively using geospatial technologies 

15 and can improve the management of information re16 sources and other applications. 

17 (7) Efforts to reduce redundancies in geospatial 

18 investments have not been fully successful. Federal 

19 agencies are still independently acquiring and main20 taining potentially duplicative and costly data sets 

21 and systems and until these problems are resolved, 

22 duplicative geospatial investments are likely to per23 sist. 

24 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

25 The purposes of this Act shall be to— 


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1 (1) ensure that a centralized and comprehensive 

2 database of geospatial data for the United States is 

3 available for use by the Federal Government to— 

4 (A) improve the quality of services pro5 vided by the Federal Government; and 

6 (B) reduce the costs to the Federal Gov7 ernment of providing such services; 

8 (2) coordinate Federal agencies, State and local 

9 governments, and private entities to— 

10 (A) maximize the use of private geospatial 

11 firms for the performance of Federal geospatial 

12 activities; and 

13 (B) eliminate redundancy in the Federal 

14 performance of geospatial activities; 

15 (3) foster the establishment and growth of pri16 vate geospatial firms in the United States; and 

17 (4) facilitate the development of new geospatial 

18 technology in the United States. 

19 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

20 In this Act: 

21 (1) The term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad22 ministrator of the National Geospatial Technology 

23 Administration. 

24 (2) The term ‘‘geospatial activity’’ means— 


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1 (A) the collection of geospatial data, in2 cluding collection from terrestrial, ground3 based, airborne, or spaceborne platforms; 

4 (B) the organization of geospatial data, in5 cluding organization in a survey (including a 

6 GPS or field survey), map, chart, plan, report, 

7 or description; 

8 (C) the storage, dissemination, and re9 trieval of geospatial data; 

10 (D) the interpretation and use of 

11 geospatial data; 

12 (E) the development of products or tech13 nology to facilitate the activities described in 

14 subparagraphs (A) through (D); and 

15 (F) activities (other than exclusively busi16 ness-related activities) for the enhancement of 

17 geospatial data and its use. 

18 (3) The term ‘‘geospatial data’’ means data— 

19 (A) relating to natural and human-made 

20 physical features and phenomena on or below 

21 the surface of the Earth or in the space above 

22 the Earth, which may include data on the size, 

23 shape, and location of such features, and data 

24 on the legal boundaries relating to such fea25 tures; and 


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1 (B) developed by professionals, including 

2 surveyors, photogrammetrists, hydrographers, 

3 geodesists, and cartographers. 

4 (4) The term ‘‘private geospatial firm’’ means 

5 a private individual, firm, partnership, corporation, 

6 association, or other legal entity organized and per7 mitted by law to engage in geospatial activities, that 

8 engages in such activities— 

9 (A) as a regular course of trade or busi10 ness; and 

11 (B) with the principal objective of liveli12 hood and profit. 

13 (5) The term ‘‘real property’’ means land and— 

14 (A) crops, forests, and other resources at15 tached to or contained in the land; 

16 (B) buildings or other structures on the 

17 land; and 

18 (C) improvements to the land, including 

19 fixtures permanently attached to the land or to 

20 structures on the land. 

21 (6) The term ‘‘State’’ means each of the several 

22 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth 

23 of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, 

24 Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the 


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1 Northern Mariana Islands, and any other territory 

2 or possession of the United States. 

3 TITLE I—NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL 

4 TECHNOLOGY ADMINISTRATION 

5 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

6 In this title: 

7 (1) The term ‘‘cadastral information’’ means 

8 information on real property that includes informa9 tion on— 

10 (A) the location, boundaries, and size of 

11 the property; and 

12 (B) the use, value, ownership (including 

13 any interest, benefit, right, or privilege in the 

14 property), and assets of the property. 

15 (2) The term ‘‘cadastral parcel’’ means a single 

16 area of land or, more particularly, a volume of 

17 space, under homogeneous real property rights, 

18 unique ownership, subdivision, or description, and 

19 address. 

20 (3) The term ‘‘geodetic control information’’ 

21 means information on the coordinate positions of ge22 ographic data established using a common reference 

23 system. 

24 (4) The term ‘‘orthoimagery’’ means georefer25 enced image maps prepared from an aerial photoVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:34 Mar 22, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4233.IH H4233

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1 graph or remotely sensed data from which displace2 ments of images caused by sensor orientation and 

3 terrain relief have been removed. 

4 SEC. 102. NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY ADMINIS5 TRATION. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—To carry out the purposes of 

7 this Act, there is established within the Department of the 

8 Interior the National Geospatial Technology Administra9 tion. 

10 (b) ADMINISTRATOR.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The National Geospatial 

12 Technology Administration shall be headed by an 

13 Administrator, who shall report directly to the Sec14 retary of the Interior. 

15 (2) APPOINTMENT.—The Administrator shall 

16 be appointed by the President, by and with the ad17 vice and consent of the Senate. 

18 SEC. 103. ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF NA19 TIONAL GEOSPATIAL DATABASE. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall es21 tablish and maintain a comprehensive database of 

22 geospatial data for all lands owned or managed by the 

23 United States (including public lands), all Indian trust 

24 parcels, and, to the extent possible, all non-Federal lands 


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1 in each State. The database shall be known as the ‘‘Na2 tional Geospatial Database’’. 

3 (b) CONTENTS OF DATABASE.—The National 

4 Geospatial Database shall include, for all lands described 

5 in subsection (a), the following geospatial data (as applica6 ble): 

7 (1) Cadastral information, organized on large 

8 scale maps— 

9 (A) using a geodetic network as a ref10 erence frame; 

11 (B) with a cadastral boundary overlay de12 lineating all cadastral parcels; and 

13 (C) with a system for indexing and identi14 fying each cadastral parcel. 

15 (2) Geodetic control information. 

16 (3) Orthoimagery. 

17 (4) Elevation and bathymetry. 

18 (5) Information on transportation networks. 

19 (6) Hydrography. 

20 (7) Information on underground infrastructure, 

21 including the location, type, size, composition, and 

22 use of underground structures including tunnels and 

23 pipelines, including through reference to— 

24 (A) aerial photogrammetric maps; 

25 (B) GPS and field surveys; 


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1 (C) as-built drawings; 

2 (D) service connection cards; and 

3 (E) historical maps and documents. 

4 (8) Information on the geographic areas of gov5 ernmental and administrative units. 

6 (9) In the case of Federal property, any deter7 mination the Administrator has made about the 

8 property under section 103(b). 

9 (10) Other geospatial data determined by the 

10 Administrator, in consultation with the National 

11 Geospatial Policy Commission, to be useful in car12 rying out national priorities including— 

13 (A) economic development; 

14 (B) the management, adjudication, and 

15 prevention of future disruptions in the home 

16 mortgage system; 

17 (C) the development and implementation of 

18 a smart energy grid; 

19 (D) the deployment of universal domestic 

20 broadband service; 

21 (E) the management of Federal real prop22 erty assets; 

23 (F) emergency preparedness and response; 

24 (G) homeland security; 


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1 (H) the delivery of efficient health care 

2 and other services provided, financed, or regu3 lated by the Federal government; and 

4 (I) the maintenance, rehabilitation and en5 hancement of the public works, transportation, 

6 and other infrastructure of the United States. 

7 (c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided by para9 graph (2), the National Geospatial Database shall be 

10 available to the public. 

11 (2) EXCEPTION FOR NATIONAL SECURITY.— 

12 The Administrator shall withhold from public disclo13 sure any information the disclosure of which reason14 ably could be expected to cause damage to the na15 tional security of the United States. 

16 (d) FUNDING STRATEGY.—The Administrator shall 

17 develop and implement a strategy to fund the establish18 ment and maintenance of the National Geospatial Data19 base through means that may include— 

20 (1) the use of appropriated funds; 

21 (2) the establishment of user fees for the Na22 tional Geospatial Database; 

23 (3) the establishment of a revolving fund with 

24 respect to the user fees; 


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1 (4) interagency and intergovernmental partner2 ships; and 

3 (5) public-private partnerships. 

4 SEC. 104. REORGANIZATION OF GEOSPATIAL AND LAND 

5 MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES. 

6 (a) IMPLEMENTATION OF NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL

7 DATA PLAN.—The Administrator shall carry out the rec8 ommendations of the National Geospatial Data Plan de9 veloped by the National Geospatial Policy Commission 

10 under section 202(c). 

11 (b) DETERMINATION WITH RESPECT TO MANAGE12 MENT OF FEDERAL PROPERTY.—The Administrator shall 

13 determine whether any property owned or managed by the 

14 United States may be better managed through ownership 

15 by a non-Federal entity, including a State or local govern16 ment, a tribal government, a nonprofit organization, or a 

17 private entity. 

18 SEC. 105. PROMULGATION OF STANDARDS FOR FEDERAL 

19 GEOSPATIAL DATA. 

20 (a) PROMULGATION.—The Administrator, in con21 sultation with the Administrator of the Office of Elec22 tronic Government, shall promulgate standards to ensure 

23 the interoperability of geospatial data collected by or with 

24 the support of the Federal Government. Such standards 

25 shall be consistent with— 


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1 (1) standards applicable to geospatial data in 

2 the Federal Real Property Profile established under 

3 section 4(c) of Executive Order No. 13327 of Feb4 ruary 4, 2004; and 

5 (2) protocols for the collection of geospatial 

6 data developed under section 216 of the E–Govern7 ment Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–347; 44 U.S.C. 

8 3501 note). 

9 (b) CONFORMANCE WITH STANDARDS.— 

10 (1) REQUIREMENT FOR FEDERAL CONFORM11 ANCE.—The head of each agency of the Federal 

12 Government shall coordinate with the Administrator 

13 to ensure that all geospatial data collected by or 

14 with the support of the agency conforms with the 

15 standards promulgated under subsection (a), includ16 ing geospatial data collected under the following au17 thorities: 

18 (A) Office of Management and Budget Cir19 cular A–16. 

20 (B) Executive Order No. 12906 of April 

21 11, 1994. 

22 (C) The Real Estate Settlement Proce23 dures Act of 1974 (12 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.). 

24 (D) The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 

25 1975 (12 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.). 


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1 (2) ENCOURAGEMENT OF NON-FEDERAL CON2 FORMANCE.—The Administrator shall encourage 

3 conformance of all other geospatial data collected for 

4 lands in the United States with the standards pro5 mulgated under paragraph (1). 

6 SEC. 106. PROTECTION OF GEOSPATIAL DATA. 

7 The Administrator shall promulgate regulations and 

8 carry out activities to prevent any inmate in a Federal 

9 Prison Industries program under chapter 307 of title 18, 

10 United States Code, or a work program operated by a 

11 prison or jail of a State or subdivision thereof from having 

12 access to any geospatial data regarding the location of— 

13 (1) surface and subsurface infrastructure pro14 viding communications or water or electrical power 

15 distribution or transmission; 

16 (2) pipelines for the distribution or trans17 mission of natural gas, bulk petroleum products, or 

18 other commodities; 

19 (3) other utilities; or 

20 (4) any personal or financial information about 

21 any individual private citizen, including information 

22 relating to such person’s real property however de23 scribed. 


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1 SEC. 107. ASSUMPTION OF GEOSPATIAL FUNCTIONS OF 

2 OTHER FEDERAL AGENCIES. 

3 (a) FUNCTIONS OF DEPARTMENT OF THE INTE4 RIOR.—All geospatial functions vested by law in the De5 partment of the Interior are hereby transferred to the Ad6 ministrator, including the following: 

7 (1) The responsibilities for the survey of public 

8 lands and related functions vested by chapter 1 of 

9 title 32 of the Revised Statutes of the United States 

10 (43 U.S.C. 52–59). 

11 (2) All geospatial functions of the Geography 

12 Division of the United States Geological Survey, in13 cluding functions vested by the Act of June 4, 1897 

14 (16 U.S.C. 474). 

15 (3) The responsibilities, vested by the revised 

16 Office of Management and Budget Circular A–16, 

17 dated August, 19, 2006, for stewardship by the Bu18 reau of Land Management of cadastral and Federal 

19 land ownership spatial data themes. 

20 (b) FUNCTIONS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRI21 CULTURE.—All geospatial functions vested by law in the 

22 Department of Agriculture with respect to the National 

23 Forest System are hereby transferred to the Adminis24 trator, including the authority to survey and map lands 

25 in and around the National Forest System lands vested 

26 by authorities, including the following: 


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1 (1) Public Law 85–569 (7 U.S.C. 1012a). 

2 (2) Public Law 97–465 (16 U.S.C. 521d et 

3 seq.). 

4 (c) FUNCTIONS OF NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOS5 PHERIC ADMINISTRATION.—All geospatial functions vest6 ed by law in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad7 ministration are hereby transferred to the Administrator, 

8 including all functions of the National Geodetic Survey 

9 and other geospatial functions vested by authorities, in10 cluding the following: 

11 (1) Section 4685 of the Revised Statutes of the 

12 United States (33 U.S.C. 884). 

13 (2) The Act entitled ‘‘An Act to define the 

14 functions and duties of the Coast and Geodetic Sur15 vey, and for other purposes’’, approved August 6, 

16 1947 (33 U.S.C. 883a et seq.). 

17 (3) Reorganization Plan No. 4 of 1970 (84 

18 Stat. 2090). 

19 (4) Section 6082 of the Consolidated Omnibus 

20 Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (33 U.S.C. 883j). 

21 (5) The Hydrographic Services Improvement 

22 Act of 1998 (33 U.S.C. 892a et seq.). 

23 (6) Section 206 of the Department of Com24 merce and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 

25 2003 (33 U.S.C. 883l). 


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1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effec2 tive on the date that is 270 days after the date of the 

3 enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 108. ACQUISITION OF GEOSPATIAL DATA FROM PUB5 LIC SOURCES. 

6 (a) FEDERAL AGENCIES.—At the request of the Ad7 ministrator, the head of each Federal agency shall make 

8 available to the Administrator for inclusion in the Na9 tional Geospatial Database geospatial data collected by the 

10 agency subject to privacy protections, including— 

11 (1) all geospatial data collected under the Real 

12 Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974 (12 

13 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.); 

14 (2) all geospatial data collected under the Home 

15 Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 (12 U.S.C. 2801 

16 et seq.); and 

17 (3) notwithstanding sections 9 and 214 of title 

18 13, United States Code, and to the extent consistent 

19 with individual privacy protections, all data on build20 ing addresses and geographical coordinates collected 

21 by the Director of the Bureau of the Census. 

22 (b) NON-FEDERAL ENTITIES.— 

23 (1) COST-SHARING AGREEMENTS.—The Admin24 istrator may enter into cost-sharing agreements 

25 with, and provide other financial incentives to, State 


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1 and local governments and private entities and indi2 viduals to collect and share with the Administrator 

3 geospatial data for inclusion in the National 

4 Geospatial Database. 

5 (2) LIMITATIONS ON AMOUNT.—The Federal 

6 share of any cost-sharing agreement under para7 graph (1) shall not exceed 50 percent of the total 

8 cost to the State of collecting and sharing the data. 

9 SEC. 109. ACQUISITION OF GEOSPATIAL DATA FROM COM10 MERCIAL SOURCES. 

11 (a) COMMERCIAL SOURCES.—The Administrator 

12 shall, to the maximum extent practicable, enter into con13 tracts to obtain geospatial data from commercial sources. 

14 (b) LICENSED DATA.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this Act, the 

16 Administrator may acquire licensed geospatial data 

17 from commercial sources. 

18 (2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In determining whether 

19 to acquire licensed geospatial data from commercial 

20 sources, the Administrator shall take into account— 

21 (A) existing law; 

22 (B) the quality of the data relative to the 

23 intended use; 

24 (C) the preferences of the intended (as op25 posed to incidental) beneficiaries of the data; 


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1 (D) any restrictions on redistribution of 

2 the licensed data, and their effect on— 

3 (i) the ability of each agency using the 

4 data to carry out a mandate of the agency; 

5 and 

6 (ii) the benefit of the geospatial data 

7 to its intended users. 

8 TITLE II—NATIONAL 

9 GEOSPATIAL POLICY COM10 MISSION 

11 SEC. 201. ESTABLISHMENT; PRIMARY DUTIES. 

12 There is hereby established a commission, to be 

13 known as the ‘‘National Geospatial Policy Commission’’ 

14 (referred to hereinafter as the ‘‘Commission’’). The Com15 mission shall— 

16 (1) develop and periodically amend a com17 prehensive plan, to be known as the ‘‘National 

18 Geospatial Data Plan’’; 

19 (2) coordinate Federal agencies, State and local 

20 governments, and private entities to eliminate redun21 dancy in the performance of geospatial activities; 

22 (3) convert geospatial activities to performance 

23 by private geospatial firms when possible; and 


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1 (4) reduce the costs to the Federal Government 

2 of geospatial activities not eliminated or converted to 

3 performance by private geospatial firms. 

4 SEC. 202. REQUIREMENTS FOR NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL 

5 DATA PLAN. 

6 (a) IDENTIFICATION OF ALL GEOSPATIAL ACTIVI7 TIES PERFORMED BY OR FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERN8 MENT.—The Commission shall identify in the National 

9 Geospatial Data Plan each geospatial activity performed 

10 by or for the Federal Government, and— 

11 (1) the nature and purpose of the activity; 

12 (2) the authority under which the activity is 

13 performed; and 

14 (3) the amount expended by the Federal Gov15 ernment in fiscal year 2009 for the activity. 

16 (b) IDENTIFICATION OF REDUNDANT, INEFFICIENT, 

17 AND UNNECESSARY GEOSPATIAL ACTIVITIES.—The Com18 mission shall identify in the National Geospatial Data 

19 Plan each geospatial activity under subsection (a)— 

20 (1) the performance of which is unnecessary; 

21 and 

22 (2) that may be converted to performance by a 

23 private geospatial firm. 

24 (c) IDENTIFICATION OF BEST MEANS OF ACQUIRING

25 GEOSPATIAL DATA.—The Commission shall develop and 


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1 include in the National Geospatial Data Plan rec2 ommendations (including, as applicable, recommendations 

3 for changes in existing law) for— 

4 (1) elimination of geospatial activities identified 

5 under subsection (b)(1); 

6 (2) conversion of geospatial activities identified 

7 under subsection (b)(2) to performance by a private 

8 geospatial firm; 

9 (3) conversion of performance of geospatial ac10 tivities identified under subsection (b)(3)(A) to per11 formance by a State or local government; and 

12 (4) consolidation of geospatial activities identi13 fied under subsection (b)(3)(B). 

14 (d) ESTIMATE OF COST SAVINGS FROM ADOPTING

15 RECOMMENDATIONS.—The Commission shall include in 

16 the National Geospatial Data Plan an estimate of the sav17 ings to the United States that would result from adopting 

18 the recommendations in subsection (c). 

19 (e) DEADLINE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF NATIONAL

20 GEOSPATIAL DATA PLAN.—Not later than 1 year after 

21 funds are made available for this purpose, the Commission 

22 shall complete the National Geospatial Data Plan in ac23 cordance with this section. 


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1 SEC. 203. MEMBERSHIP. 

2 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission 

3 shall be composed of the following members: 

4 (1) The Administrator of the National 

5 Geospatial Technology Administration or designee. 

6 (2) The Director of the Office of Management 

7 and Budget or designee. 

8 (3) The Director of the Office of Science and 

9 Technology Policy or designee. 

10 (4) The Director of the National Economic 

11 Council or designee. 

12 (5) The Director of the National Geospatial In13 telligence Agency or designee. 

14 (6) The Chairman of the Committee on Home15 land Security and Governmental Affairs of the Sen16 ate or designee. 

17 (7) The Chairman of the Committee on Over18 sight and Government Reform of the House of Rep19 resentatives or designee. 

20 (8) Eleven citizens with experience in geospatial 

21 activities appointed by the President, including— 

22 (A) two employed in State government; 

23 (B) two employed in regional or local gov24 ernment; 

25 (C) one employed in tribal government; 


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1 (D) one employed by a nonprofit organiza2 tion; 

3 (E) one employed by a university; and 

4 (F) four employed by a private geospatial 

5 firm. 

6 (b) TERMS.— 

7 (1) FEDERAL OFFICIALS.—Each member ap8 pointed under subparagraphs (1) through (7) of sub9 section (a) shall be appointed for the life of the 

10 Commission. 

11 (2) MEMBERS APPOINTED BY THE PRESI12 DENT.—Each member appointed under subsection 

13 (a)(8) shall be appointed for a term of six years. 

14 (c) VACANCIES.—Any member appointed to fill a va15 cancy occurring before the expiration of the term for which 

16 the member’s predecessor was appointed shall be ap17 pointed only for the remainder of that term. 

18 (d) PAY AND EXPENSES.—Each member appointed 

19 under subsection (a)(8) shall be entitled to $100 a day 

20 when performing duties vested in the Commission and re21 imbursement for necessary expenses incurred in per22 forming those duties. 

23 (e) CHAIR AND OFFICERS.—The President shall des24 ignate the Chair of the Commission from among the nonVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:34 Mar 22, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4233.IH H4233

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1 Federal members. The Commission may elect from among 

2 its members other officers as it considers desirable. 

3 (f) PERSONNEL.—The Commission may employ a Di4 rector, an executive officer, and other technical and ad5 ministrative personnel as it considers necessary. Without 

6 regard to section 3709 of the Revised Statues (41 U.S.C. 

7 5) and section 3109, chapters 33 and 51, and subchapter 

8 III of chapter 53, of title 5, the Commission may employ, 

9 by contract or otherwise, the temporary or intermittent 

10 (not more than one year) services of city planners, archi11 tects, engineers, appraisers, and other experts or organiza12 tions of experts, as may be necessary to carry out its func13 tions. The Commission shall fix the rate of compensation 

14 so as not to exceed the rate usual for similar services. 

15 TITLE III—CONTRACTOR PER16 FORMANCE OF FEDERAL 

17 GEOSPATIAL ACTIVITIES 

18 SEC. 301. POLICY. 

19 It is the policy of the United States, consistent with 

20 the U.S. Commercial Remote Sensing Policy, to— 

21 (1) rely to the maximum practical extent on the 

22 private sector in the United States for the acquisi23 tion of geospatial data; and 

24 (2) develop a long-term, sustainable relationship 

25 with the private geospatial community. 


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1 SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this title, the term ‘‘agency head’’ means the Sec3 retary, the Administrator, or head of a department, agen4 cy, or bureau of the Federal Government. 

5 SEC. 303. CONVERSION TO CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE. 

6 (a) CONVERSION OF ACTIVITIES IDENTIFIED BY

7 COMMISSION.—Each agency head shall convert, to the 

8 maximum extent possible, to performance by private 

9 geospatial firms, all activities identified by the National 

10 Geospatial Policy Commission for conversion under section 

11 202(b)(2) that are performed by or for the agency. 

12 (b) SOLICITATION OF OFFERS FOR CONTRACTOR

13 PERFORMANCE OF ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES.— 

14 (1) NOTICE.—Each agency head shall issue a 

15 notice soliciting offers for the performance of each 

16 activity described in subsection (a). The notice shall 

17 include a description of qualifications and experience 

18 determined by the agency head to be necessary for 

19 performance of the activity, and such other criteria 

20 as the agency head determines to be appropriate. 

21 (2) SUBMISSION OF OFFERS.—To be considered 

22 for performance of an activity, a private geospatial 

23 firm shall submit to the agency head an offer that 

24 addresses the criteria described in paragraph (1), in25 cluding a statement of qualifications and perform26 ance data. 


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1 (3) SELECTION.— 

2 (A) FIRST STAGE.—Of the private 

3 geospatial firms that submit offers under para4 graph (2), the agency head shall select the 

5 three (or more) private geospatial firms deter6 mined by the agency head to be most qualified 

7 for performance of the activity, based on the 

8 private geospatial firms’ offers and such other 

9 information related to the qualifications and ex10 perience of the private geospatial firms as the 

11 agency head determines to be appropriate. 

12 (B) SECOND STAGE.—The agency head 

13 shall discuss with each private geospatial firm 

14 selected under subparagraph (A) different tech15 nologies and professional approaches to fur16 nishing the required services. Based on the dis17 cussion, the agency head shall rank each such 

18 private geospatial firm in order of most to least 

19 qualified. 

20 (C) THIRD STAGE.—The agency head shall 

21 negotiate with each private geospatial firm de22 termined to be the most qualified to perform 

23 the activity required by the agency, for a con24 tract for performance of the activity. 


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1 (D) FINAL SELECTION.—The agency head 

2 shall enter into a contract with each private 

3 geospatial firm that, in negotiations under sub4 paragraph (C), agrees to a price determined by 

5 the agency head to be fair and reasonable, 

6 based on the value of the services to be ren7 dered and the scope, complexity, and specialized 

8 nature of the activity. 

9 (E) SELECTION OF ADDITIONAL FIRMS.— 

10 If the agency head cannot enter into a contract 

11 with a private geospatial firm under subpara12 graph (D), the agency head shall determine the 

13 next most qualified private geospatial firms for 

14 performance of the activity in accordance with 

15 subparagraph (A) and enter into discussions 

16 and negotiations with such private geospatial 

17 firms under subparagraphs (B) and (C), respec18 tively. 

19 SEC. 304. REQUIREMENT FOR PERFORMANCE IN UNITED 

20 STATES. 

21 (a) FEDERAL CONTRACTS.—All Federal contracts for 

22 performance of a geospatial activity shall include— 

23 (1) a condition that the geospatial activity be 

24 performed in the United States; and 


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1 (2) a written certification that the funds will 

2 not be used for geospatial activities performed out3 side the United States. 

4 (b) EXCEPTIONS.—The requirements of this section 

5 shall not apply with respect to a geospatial activity— 

6 (1) that was converted to performance by a pri7 vate geospatial firm under section 303 and was pre8 viously performed outside the United States by the 

9 Federal Government; 

10 (2) required by law (including a treaty or trade 

11 agreement) to be performed outside the United 

12 States; 

13 (3) required by geographical necessity to be 

14 performed outside the United States; 

15 (4) determined by the Administrator after a 

16 competitive procurement process under section 

17 303(b) to be unavailable in the United States; or 

18 (5) for which the President has issued a deter19 mination in writing that performance outside of the 

20 United States is necessary for national security. 

21 TITLE IV—ENCOURAGING 

22 PRIVATE ENTERPRISE 

23 SEC. 401. FINDINGS; PURPOSES. 

24 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that the competitive 

25 enterprise system, characterized by individual freedom and 


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1 initiative, is the primary source of the economic strength 

2 of the United States, and the Federal Government should 

3 not perform geospatial functions better suited for perform4 ance by the private sector. 

5 (b) PURPOSES.—The purpose of this title is to pro6 mote the establishment and growth of private geospatial 

7 firms in the United States by— 

8 (1) encouraging the use by the Federal Govern9 ment of geospatial data, products, technology, and 

10 services to accomplish national priorities; 

11 (2) encouraging the acquisition of geospatial 

12 data, products, technology, and services from private 

13 geospatial firms; 

14 (3) encouraging the development, and ensuring 

15 the continued employment, of a workforce that will 

16 meet future employment demands in the geospatial 

17 field; and 

18 (4) fostering an environment in which all pri19 vate geospatial firms may compete effectively and 

20 grow to their full potential. 

21 SEC. 402. STRATEGY FOR ENCOURAGING FEDERAL USE OF 

22 PRIVATE GEOSPATIAL FIRMS. 

23 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF STRATEGY.—Not later than 

24 one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 

25 Administrator shall cooperate with private geospatial 


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1 firms, and any associations composed exclusively of such 

2 firms, to develop a comprehensive strategy to encourage 

3 and enhance the use of private geospatial firms by Federal 

4 agencies and other entities that receive Federal funds, in5 cluding State and local governmental agencies, univer6 sities, nonprofit organizations, and foreign governments. 

7 (b) INFORMATION GATHERING.—In developing the 

8 strategy described in subsection (a), the Administrator 

9 shall— 

10 (1) examine the current role of private 

11 geospatial firms, including small businesses, in the 

12 economy of the United States; 

13 (2) States expending Federal funds; 

14 (3) assess the contribution such firms may 

15 make in the future to the growth of the economy of 

16 the United States; 

17 (4) evaluate the efforts of each Federal agency 

18 to use private geospatial firms, including the pro19 curement strategies, policies, and methodologies of 

20 each Federal agency; and 

21 (5) assemble statistical information on the use 

22 of private geospatial firms by Federal agencies. 

23 (c) ENHANCEMENT OF FEDERAL AGENCY USE OF

24 PRIVATE GEOSPATIAL FIRMS.— 


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1 (1) The Administrator shall develop and com2 municate to each Federal agency recommendations 

3 to encourage and enhance the use by the Federal 

4 agency of private geospatial firms. 

5 (2) The Administrator shall establish training 

6 programs and facilitate knowledge sharing among 

7 Federal agencies on the use of geospatial data, prod8 ucts, technology, and services and the process for 

9 procurement of such activities from the private sec10 tor. 

11 (3) The Administrator shall cooperate with pub12 lic and private agencies, businesses, and other orga13 nizations to disseminate information about the use 

14 and application of geospatial data, products, tech15 nology, and services, the capabilities of private 

16 geospatial firms, and the ways in which private 

17 geospatial firms may benefit Federal agencies. 

18 (d) ADVOCACY AND ASSISTANCE FOR PRIVATE

19 GEOSPATIAL FIRMS AFFECTED BY FEDERAL POLICIES

20 AND ACTIVITIES.— 

21 (1) The Administrator shall receive, and, as ap22 propriate, address or otherwise act upon complaints, 

23 criticisms, and suggestions from private geospatial 

24 firms regarding the policies and activities of Federal 

25 agencies. 


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1 (2) If the policies and activities of a Federal 

2 agency affect or may affect private geospatial firms, 

3 the Administrator shall represent the views and in4 terests of the private geospatial firms to the Federal 

5 agency. 

6 (3) The Administrator shall make counseling 

7 available to private geospatial firms on how to re8 solve questions and problems concerning the rela9 tionship of such firms to the Federal Government. 

10 (e) DEVELOPMENT OF STANDARD CLAUSES, CON11 TRACTS, AND FORM LICENSES.—The Administrator shall, 

12 in consultation with trade associations and public interest 

13 groups, develop and promote standard clauses, contracts, 

14 and form licenses for use by the Federal Government in 

15 the acquisition of geospatial data. 

16 (f) STANDARDS FOR ASSESSMENT OF PROGRESS.— 

17 To evaluate and increase the effectiveness of the strategy, 

18 the Administrator shall develop standards (including 

19 metrics, benchmarks, and measures of performance) by 

20 which to assess— 

21 (1) the state of geospatial activities in the 

22 United States; and 

23 (2) progress in the development of private 

24 geospatial enterprise in the United States. 


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1 TITLE V—GEOSPATIAL 

2 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

3 SEC. 501. PURPOSES. 

4 The purposes of this title are to encourage innovation 

5 and entrepreneurship in the geospatial field by— 

6 (1) promoting the advancement of geospatial 

7 products and technologies, and value-added services 

8 related to such products and technologies; 

9 (2) providing an avenue through which new and 

10 untested geospatial products and services may be 

11 brought to the marketplace. 

12 SEC. 502. DEFINITIONS. 

13 (a) In this title: 

14 (1) The term ‘‘Geospatial Research Plan’’ 

15 means the plan developed under section 503(a). 

16 (2) The term ‘‘research and development’’— 

17 (A) means— 

18 (i) a systematic study directed specifi19 cally toward applying new knowledge to 

20 meet a recognized need; 

21 (ii) a systematic application of knowl22 edge toward the production of useful mate23 rials, devices, and systems or methods, in24 cluding design, development, and improveVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:34 Mar 22, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00034 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4233.IH H4233

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1 ment of prototypes and new processes to 

2 meet specific requirements; or 

3 (iii) development of data, products, 

4 technology, or services not currently avail5 able in the marketplace and that cannot 

6 otherwise be procured commercially 

7 through ordinary business channels; and 

8 (B) may include— 

9 (i) research in the physical and nat10 ural sciences; 

11 (ii) applied research; 

12 (iii) technology development; and 

13 (iv) social science research. 

14 SEC. 503. GEOSPATIAL RESEARCH PLAN. 

15 (a) DEVELOPMENT.—Not later than one year after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

17 shall develop a plan, to be known as the ‘‘Geospatial Re18 search Plan’’, to provide a coordinated and integrated ap19 proach to the investment of the United States in 

20 geospatial research and development activities in the 5- 

21 year period beginning on the date of the issuance of the 

22 Plan. 

23 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In the Geospatial Research 

24 Plan, the Administrator shall collaborate with a wide 

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1 vestments in geospatial research and development activi2 ties that will— 

3 (1) facilitate the establishment the National 

4 Spatial Data Infrastructure; 

5 (2) facilitate the maintenance of a current and 

6 accurate National Spatial Data Infrastructure; 

7 (3) enhance the ability to store and archive 

8 geospatial data; 

9 (4) increase public access to and dissemination 

10 of stored and archived geospatial data; 

11 (5) improve sensor and other data collection 

12 technologies; 

13 (6) improve the ability to acquire, visualize, 

14 analyze, and apply geospatial data; 

15 (7) improve the durability and extend the life of 

16 geospatial infrastructure; 

17 (8) address geospatial requirements necessary 

18 to meet national needs, Government programs, and 

19 emerging public policy issues, including but not lim20 ited to— 

21 (A) protecting and enhancing the environ22 ment; 

23 (B) building and maintaining the physical 

24 infrastructure of the United States; 


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1 (C) managing land and real property as2 sets and resources related thereto; 

3 (D) providing for the national defense and 

4 homeland security; 

5 (E) managing housing and financial serv6 ices systems; 

7 (F) producing and utilizing energy in a 

8 safe and efficient manner; 

9 (G) preparing for, responding to, and re10 covering from natural and anthropogenic emer11 gencies; 

12 (H) conducting the Census; 

13 (I) administering the system of justice; and 

14 (J) providing for new forms of communica15 tion; and 

16 (9) meet any other research and development 

17 needs of the Federal Government and geospatial 

18 data producers and users. 

19 (c) ESTIMATED FUNDING LEVELS AND BENEFIT.— 

20 In the Geospatial Research Plan, the Administrator shall 

21 describe, for each activity identified under subsection 

22 (b)— 

23 (1) the anticipated annual funding levels for the 

24 activity for the period described in subsection (a); 

25 and 


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1 (2) the benefit the Administrator expects to 

2 gain from the activity by the end of the period de3 scribed in subsection (a). 

4 (d) CONSIDERATIONS.—The Administrator shall en5 sure that the Geospatial Research Plan— 

6 (1) includes and integrates the research and de7 velopment activities of the National Geospatial Tech8 nology Administration; 

9 (2) defines the respective roles and responsibil10 ities of Federal, State, local, regional, tribal, private 

11 sector, academic, and nonprofit institutions in 

12 geospatial research and development activities; and 

13 (3) takes into account the activities of other 

14 Federal, State, private sector, and nonprofit institu15 tions, and avoids unnecessary duplication with such 

16 activities. 

17 SEC. 504. POLICY DIRECTIVES FOR RESEARCH AND DEVEL18 OPMENT. 

19 (a) DEVELOPMENT OF POLICY DIRECTIVES.—Not 

20 later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 

21 this Act, the Administrator shall develop policy directives 

22 for implementation by the Federal Government of 

23 geospatial research and development activities through in24 novative partnerships, cooperative research and develop25 ment agreements, and other means. 


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1 (b) CONTENTS OF POLICY DIRECTIVES.—The policy 

2 directives developed under subsection (a) shall provide 

3 for— 

4 (1) simplified, standardized, and timely solicita5 tions; 

6 (2) a simplified, standardized funding process 

7 that provides for— 

8 (A) the timely receipt and review of pro9 posals; 

10 (B) outside peer review of proposals, if ap11 propriate; 

12 (C) protection of proprietary information 

13 provided in proposals; 

14 (D) selection of awardees; 

15 (E) retention of data rights generated in 

16 the performance of the contract by a business 

17 concern; 

18 (F) transfer of the right to intellectual 

19 property provided by the National Geospatial 

20 Technology Administration to the private sector 

21 partner; 

22 (G) cost sharing; and 

23 (H) cost principles and payment schedules; 

24 (3) ensuring that research and development ac25 tivities of government, universities, and nonprofit inVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:34 Mar 22, 2012 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4233.IH H4233

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1 stitutions do not duplicate or compete with those of 

2 the private sector; and 

3 (4) the prompt commercialization of the results 

4 of geospatial research and development activities. 

5 (c) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR LEGISLATION.—The 

6 Administrator shall propose to Congress any recommenda7 tions for legislation to authorize innovative partnerships 

8 not authorized under existing law. 

9 SEC. 505. ANNUAL REPORT. 

10 The Administrator shall submit to appropriate com11 mittees of Congress an annual report, in conjunction with 

12 the President’s annual budget request as set forth in sec13 tion 1105 of title 31, United States Code, describing the 

14 amount spent in the last completed fiscal year on 

15 geospatial research and development and the amount pro16 posed in the current budget for geospatial research and 

17 development. 

Æ 


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