II 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 740 

To improve the coordination and use of geospatial data. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 16, 2015 

Mr. HATCH (for himself and Mr. WARNER) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

Transportation 

A BILL 

To improve the coordination and use of geospatial data. 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Geospatial Data Act 

5 of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 In this Act— 

8 (1) the term ‘‘Advisory Committee’’ means the 

9 National Geospatial Advisory Committee described 

10 in section 4(a); 


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1 (2) the term ‘‘Committee’’ means the Federal 

2 Geographic Data Committee described in section 

3 3(a); 

4 (3) the term ‘‘covered agency’’ means an agen5 cy, as defined in section 551 of title 5, United States 

6 Code, that collects, produces, acquires, maintains, 

7 distributes, uses, or preserves geospatial data on 

8 paper or in electronic form to fulfill the mission of 

9 the agency, either directly or through a relationship 

10 with another organization, including a State, local 

11 government, Indian tribe, institution of higher edu12 cation, business partner or contractor of the Federal 

13 Government, and the public; 

14 (4) the term ‘‘GeoPlatform’’ means the 

15 GeoPlatform described in section 8(a); 

16 (5) the term ‘‘geospatial data’’— 

17 (A) means information that is tied to a lo18 cation on the Earth, including by identifying 

19 the geographic location and characteristics of 

20 natural or constructed features and boundaries 

21 on the Earth, and that is generally represented 

22 by points (for example a well), lines (for exam23 ple a road), polygons (for example a forest), or 

24 other complex geographic features or phe25 nomena (for example a forest fire, the spread of 


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1 West Nile virus, or the infestation of pine-bark 

2 beetles); 

3 (B) may be derived from, among other 

4 things, remote sensing, mapping, and surveying 

5 technologies; 

6 (C) includes images and raster data sets, 

7 aerial photographs, and other forms of 

8 geospatial data or data sets in digitized or non9 digitized form; and 

10 (D) does not include— 

11 (i) geospatial data activities of an In12 dian tribe not carried out, in whole or in 

13 part, using Federal funds, as determined 

14 by the tribal government; 

15 (ii) classified national security-related 

16 geospatial data activities of the Depart17 ment of Defense, unless declassified under 

18 Executive Order 12951, as determined by 

19 the Secretary of Defense; 

20 (iii) classified national security-related 

21 geospatial data activities of the Depart22 ment of Energy, unless declassified under 

23 Executive Order 12951, as determined by 

24 the Secretary of Energy; or 


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1 (iv) intelligence geospatial data activi2 ties, as determined by the Director of Na3 tional Intelligence; 

4 (6) the term ‘‘Indian tribe’’ has the meaning 

5 given that term under section 4 of the Indian Self6 Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 

7 U.S.C. 450b); 

8 (7) the term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ 

9 has the meaning given that term under section 102 

10 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

11 1002); 

12 (8) the term ‘‘lead covered agency’’ means a 

13 lead covered agency for an NGDA data theme des14 ignated under section 6(b)(1); 

15 (9) the term ‘‘local government’’ means any 

16 city, county, township, town, borough, parish, vil17 lage, or other general purpose political subdivision of 

18 a State; 

19 (10) the term ‘‘metadata for geospatial data’’ 

20 means information about geospatial data, including 

21 the content, source, vintage, accuracy, condition, 

22 projection, responsible party, contact phone number, 

23 method of collection, and other characteristics or de24 scriptions of the geospatial data; 


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1 (11) the term ‘‘NGDA data theme’’ means the 

2 National Geospatial Data Asset core geospatial 

3 datasets (including electronic records and coordi4 nates) relating to a topic or subject designated 

5 under section 6; 

6 (12) the term ‘‘National Spatial Data Infra7 structure’’ means the technology, policies, criteria, 

8 standards, and employees necessary to promote 

9 geospatial data sharing throughout the Federal Gov10 ernment, State, tribal, and local governments, and 

11 the private sector (including nonprofit organizations 

12 and institutions of higher education); and 

13 (13) the term ‘‘proven practices’’ means meth14 ods and activities that advance the use of geospatial 

15 data for the benefit of society. 

16 SEC. 3. FEDERAL GEOGRAPHIC DATA COMMITTEE. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—There is in the executive branch 

18 of the Federal Government an interagency committee to 

19 be known as the Federal Geographic Data Committee, 

20 which shall act as the lead entity in the executive branch 

21 for the development, implementation, and review of poli22 cies, practices, and standards relating to geospatial data. 

23 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

24 (1) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE CHAIRPERSON.— 

25 The Director of the Office of Management and 


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1 Budget and the Secretary of the Interior shall serve 

2 as Chairperson of the Committee and Vice Chair3 person of the Committee, respectively. 

4 (2) OTHER MEMBERS.—The President shall ap5 point the other members of the Committee from 

6 among the officers and employees of covered agen7 cies. 

8 (c) DUTIES.—The Committee shall— 

9 (1) lead the development and management of 

10 and operational decisionmaking for the National 

11 Spatial Data Infrastructure strategic plan and 

12 geospatial data policy in accordance with section 5; 

13 (2) designate NGDA data themes and oversee 

14 the coordinated management of the NGDA data 

15 themes in accordance with section 6; 

16 (3) establish and maintain geospatial data 

17 standards in accordance with section 7; 

18 (4) periodically review and determine the extent 

19 to which covered agencies comply with geospatial 

20 data standards; 

21 (5) ensure that the GeoPlatform operates in ac22 cordance with section 8; 

23 (6) direct and facilitate national implementation 

24 of the system of NGDA data themes; 


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1 (7) communicate with and foster communica2 tion among covered agencies and others entities and 

3 individuals relating to geospatial data technology de4 velopment, transfer, and exchange in order to— 

5 (A) identify and meet the needs of users of 

6 geospatial data; 

7 (B) promote cost-effective data collection, 

8 documentation, maintenance, distribution, and 

9 preservation strategies; and 

10 (C) leverage Federal and non-Federal re11 sources; 

12 (8) promote and guide cooperation and coordi13 nation among agencies of the Federal Government, 

14 State, tribal, and local governments, institutions of 

15 higher education, and the private sector in the col16 lection, production, sharing, and use of geospatial 

17 information, the implementation of the National 

18 Spatial Data Infrastructure, and the identification 

19 of proven practices; 

20 (9) coordinate with international organizations 

21 having an interest in the National Spatial Data In22 frastructure or global spatial data infrastructures; 

23 (10) make available online and update at least 

24 annually— 


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1 (A) a summary of the status for each 

2 NGDA data theme, based on the report sub3 mitted by the applicable lead covered agency 

4 under section 6(b)(3)(E)(ii)(I), which shall in5 clude— 

6 (i) an evaluation of the progress of 

7 each lead covered agency in achieving the 

8 requirements under subparagraphs (A), 

9 (B), (C), and (D) of section 6(b)(3); and 

10 (ii) a determination of whether, for 

11 each of subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and 

12 (D) of section 6(b)(3), each lead covered 

13 agency meets expectations, has made 

14 progress toward expectations, or fails to 

15 meet expectations; 

16 (B) a summary and evaluation of the 

17 achievements of each covered agency, based on 

18 the annual report submitted by the covered 

19 agency under section 9(b)(1), which shall in20 clude a determination of whether the covered 

21 agency meets expectations, has made progress 

22 toward expectations, or fails to meet expecta23 tions for each of paragraphs (1) through (14) 

24 of section 9(a); 


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1 (C) a collection of periodic technical publi2 cations, management articles, and reports re3 lated to the National Spatial Data Infrastruc4 ture; and 

5 (D) a membership directory for the Com6 mittee, including identifying members of any 

7 subcommittee or working group of the Com8 mittee; 

9 (11)(A) make available to and request com10 ments from the Advisory Committee regarding the 

11 summaries and evaluations required under subpara12 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10); 

13 (B) if requested by the Advisory Committee, re14 spond to any comments by the Advisory Committee; 

15 and 

16 (C) not less than once every 2 years, submit to 

17 Congress a report that includes the summaries and 

18 evaluations required under subparagraphs (A) and 

19 (B) of paragraph (10), the comments of the Advi20 sory Committee, and the responses of the Committee 

21 to the comments; 

22 (12)(A) make available to and request com23 ments from covered agencies regarding the sum24 maries and evaluations required under subpara25 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10); and 


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1 (B) not less than once every 2 years, submit to 

2 Congress a report that includes the comments of the 

3 covered agencies and the responses of the Committee 

4 to the comments; and 

5 (13) support and promote the infrastructure of 

6 networks, systems, services, and standards that pro7 vide a digital representation of the Earth to users 

8 for many applications. 

9 SEC. 4. NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is in the executive 

11 branch the National Geospatial Advisory Committee to 

12 provide advice and recommendations to the Chairperson 

13 of the Committee. 

14 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

15 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Advisory Committee 

16 shall be composed of 30 members who shall be— 

17 (A) appointed by the Chairperson of the 

18 Committee; 

19 (B) selected— 

20 (i) to generally achieve a balanced 

21 representation of the viewpoints of various 

22 interested parties involved in national 

23 geospatial activities and the development of 

24 the National Spatial Data Infrastructure; 

25 and 


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1 (ii) with consideration of a geographic 

2 balance of residence of the members; and 

3 (C) selected from among groups involved 

4 in the geospatial community, including— 

5 (i) States; 

6 (ii) local governments; 

7 (iii) regional governments; 

8 (iv) tribal governments; 

9 (v) private sector entities; 

10 (vi) geospatial information user indus11 tries; 

12 (vii) professional associations; 

13 (viii) scholarly associations; 

14 (ix) nonprofit organizations; 

15 (x) academia; and 

16 (xi) the Federal government. 

17 (2) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of the 

18 Committee shall appoint the Chairperson of the Ad19 visory Committee. 

20 (3) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 

21 (A) IN GENERAL.—Members shall be ap22 pointed for a term of 3 years, with the term of 

1 23 ⁄3 of the members expiring each year. 

24 (B) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Ad25 visory Committee shall not affect its powers, 


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1 but shall be filled in the same manner as the 

2 original appointment. 

3 (4) LIMIT ON TERMS.—An individual— 

4 (A) may not be appointed to more than 2 

5 consecutive terms as a member of the Advisory 

6 Committee; and 

7 (B) after serving for 2 consecutive terms, 

8 is eligible to be appointed as a member of the 

9 Advisory Committee on and after the date that 

10 is 2 years after the end of the second consecu11 tive term of the individual as a member of the 

12 Advisory Committee. 

13 (5) ETHICAL REQUIREMENTS.—A member of 

14 the Advisory Committee may not participate in any 

15 specific-party matter (including a lease, license, per16 mit, contract, claim, agreement, or related litigation) 

17 with the Department of the Interior in which the 

18 member has a direct financial interest. 

19 (6) INCUMBENTS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—An individual serving 

21 on the day before the date of enactment of this 

22 Act as a member of the National Geospatial 

23 Advisory Committee established by the Sec24 retary of the Interior may serve as a member 


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1 of the Advisory Committee until the end of the 

2 term of the individual under the appointment. 

3 (B) LIMIT ON TERMS.—Any period of serv4 ice as a member of the National Geospatial Ad5 visory Committee established by the Secretary 

6 of the Interior shall be considered a period of 

7 service as a member of the Advisory Committee 

8 for purposes of paragraph (4). 

9 (c) SUBCOMMITTEES.—A subcommittee of the Advi10 sory Committee— 

11 (1) may be formed for the purposes of com12 piling information or conducting research; 

13 (2) shall be composed of members appointed by 

14 the Chairperson of the Advisory Committee; 

15 (3) shall act only under the direction of the 

16 Chairperson of the Advisory Committee; 

17 (4) shall report the recommendations of the 

18 subcommittee to the Advisory Committee for consid19 eration; and 

20 (5) shall meet as necessary to accomplish the 

21 objectives of the subcommittee, subject to the ap22 proval of the Chairperson of the Advisory Committee 

23 and the availability of resources. 

24 (d) MEETINGS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Committee 

2 shall meet at the call of the Chairman, not less than 

3 1 time each year and not more than 4 times each 

4 year. 

5 (2) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

6 the Advisory Committee shall constitute a quorum, 

7 but a lesser number of members may hold hearings. 

8 (e) DUTIES OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.—The 

9 Advisory Committee shall— 

10 (1) provide advice and recommendations relat11 ing to— 

12 (A) the management of Federal and na13 tional geospatial programs; 

14 (B) the development of the National Spa15 tial Data Infrastructure; and 

16 (C) implementation of this Act; 

17 (2) review and comment on geospatial policy 

18 and management issues; and 

19 (3) ensure the views of representatives of non20 Federal interested parties involved in national 

21 geospatial activities are conveyed to the Committee. 

22 (f) POWERS OF THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE.— 

23 (1) HEARINGS.—The Advisory Committee may 

24 hold such hearings, sit and act at such times and 

25 places, take such testimony, and receive such eviVerDate Sep 11 2014 07:23 Mar 18, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S740.IS S740

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1 dence as the Advisory Committee considers advisable 

2 to carry out this Act. 

3 (2) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

4 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Com5 mittee may secure directly from any Federal 

6 agency such information as the Advisory Com7 mittee considers necessary to carry out this Act. 

8 Upon request of the Chairperson of the Advi9 sory Committee, the head of such agency shall 

10 furnish such information to the Advisory Com11 mittee. 

12 (B) NONCOOPERATION.—The Advisory 

13 Committee shall include in the comments of the 

14 Advisory Committee submitted under section 

15 3(c)(11) a discussion of any failure by a Fed16 eral agency to furnish information in response 

17 to a request under subparagraph (A) of this 

18 paragraph. 

19 (3) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Advisory Com20 mittee may use the United States mails in the same 

21 manner and under the same conditions as other 

22 agencies of the Federal Government. 

23 (4) GIFTS.—The Advisory Committee— 

24 (A) may accept, use, and dispose of gifts 

25 or donations of services or property; and 


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1 (B) shall establish rules for the acceptance, 

2 use, and disposition of gifts and donations that 

3 avoid any conflict of interest or appearance of 

4 a conflict of interest. 

5 (g) ADVISORY COMMITTEE PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

6 (1) NO COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.— 

7 (A) NON-FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—A mem8 ber of the Advisory Committee who is not an 

9 officer or employee of the Federal Government 

10 shall serve without compensation. 

11 (B) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—A member of 

12 the Advisory Committee who is an officer or 

13 employee of the Federal Government shall serve 

14 without compensation in addition to the com15 pensation received for the services of the mem16 ber as an officer or employee of the Federal 

17 Government. 

18 (2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—The members of the 

19 Advisory Committee shall be allowed travel expenses, 

20 including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates 

21 authorized for employees of agencies under sub22 chapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United States 

23 Code, while away from their homes or regular places 

24 of business in the performance of services for the 

25 Advisory Committee. 


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1 (3) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.— 

2 Any Federal Government employee may be detailed 

3 to the Advisory Committee without reimbursement, 

4 and such detail shall be without interruption or loss 

5 of civil service status or privilege. 

6 (h) APPLICABILITY OF FACA.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graph (2), the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

9 U.S.C. App.) shall apply to the Advisory Committee. 

10 (2) NO TERMINATION.—Section 14(a)(2) of the 

11 Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) 

12 shall not apply to the Advisory Committee. 

13 (i) TERMINATION.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para15 graph (2), the Advisory Committee shall terminate 

16 10 years after the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 (2) CONTINUATION.—The Advisory Committee 

18 may be continued for successive 10-year periods by 

19 action taken by the Director of the Office of Man20 agement and Budget to renew the Advisory Com21 mittee before the date on which the Advisory Com22 mittee would otherwise terminate. 

23 SEC. 5. NATIONAL SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURE. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Spatial Data Infra25 structure shall ensure that geospatial data from multiple 


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1 sources (including the Federal Government, State, local, 

2 and tribal governments, the private sector, and institu3 tions of higher education) is available and easily inte4 grated to enhance the understanding of the physical and 

5 cultural world. 

6 (b) GOALS.—The goals of the National Spatial Data 

7 Infrastructure are to— 

8 (1) ensure— 

9 (A) the privacy and security of the per10 sonal data of individuals and accuracy of statis11 tical information on individuals, both in raw 

12 form and in derived information products; 

13 (B) free access for the public to geospatial 

14 data, information, and interpretive products, in 

15 accordance with Office of Management and 

16 Budget Circular A–130, or any successor there17 to; 

18 (C) the protection of proprietary interests 

19 related to licensed information and data; and 

20 (D) the interoperability of Federal infor21 mation systems to enable the drawing of re22 sources from covered agencies and partners of 

23 covered agencies; and 

24 (2) support and advance the establishment of a 

25 Global Spatial Data Infrastructure, consistent with 


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1 national security, national defense, national intel2 ligence, and international trade requirements, in3 cluding insuring that covered agencies develop inter4 national geospatial data in accordance with inter5 national voluntary consensus standards, as defined 

6 in Office of Management and Budget Circular A– 

7 119, or any successor thereto. 

8 (c) STRATEGIC PLAN.—The Committee shall prepare 

9 and maintain a strategic plan for the development and im10 plementation of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure 

11 in a manner consistent with national security, national de12 fense, and emergency preparedness program policies re13 garding data accessibility. 

14 (d) ADVISORY ROLE.—The Committee shall advise 

15 Federal and non-Federal users of geospatial data on their 

16 responsibilities relating to implementation of the National 

17 Spatial Data Infrastructure. 

18 SEC. 6. NGDA DATA THEMES. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall designate as 

20 NGDA data themes the primary topics and subjects for 

21 which the coordinated development, maintenance, and dis22 semination of geospatial data will benefit the Federal Gov23 ernment and the interests of the people of the United 

24 States, which shall— 


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1 (1) be representations of conceptual topics de2 scribing digital spatial information for the Nation; 

3 and 

4 (2) contain associated datasets (with attribute 

5 records and coordinates)— 

6 (A) that are documented, verifiable, and 

7 officially designated to meet recognized stand8 ards; 

9 (B) that may be used in common; and 

10 (C) from which other datasets may be de11 rived. 

12 (b) LEAD COVERED AGENCIES.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each NGDA data 

14 theme, the Committee shall designate 1 or more cov15 ered agencies as the lead covered agencies for the 

16 NGDA data theme. 

17 (2) GENERAL RESPONSIBILITY.—The lead cov18 ered agencies for an NGDA data theme shall be re19 sponsible for ensuring the coordinated management 

20 of the data, supporting resources (including tech21 nology and personnel), and related services and 

22 products of the NGDA data theme. 

23 (3) SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES.—To assist in 

24 fulfilling the responsibilities under paragraph (2) 


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1 with respect to an NGDA data theme, the lead cov2 ered agencies shall— 

3 (A) provide leadership and facilitate the 

4 development and implementation of geospatial 

5 data standards for the NGDA data theme, with 

6 a particular emphasis on a data content stand7 ard for the NGDA data theme, including by— 

8 (i) assessing existing standards; 

9 (ii) identifying anticipated or needed 

10 data standards; and 

11 (iii) developing a plan to originate and 

12 implement needed standards with relevant 

13 community and international practices— 

14 (I) in accordance with Office of 

15 Management and Budget Circular A– 

16 119, or any successor thereto; and 

17 (II) consistent with or as a part 

18 of the plan described in subparagraph 

19 (B); 

20 (B) provide leadership and facilitate the 

21 development and implementation of a plan for 

22 nationwide population of the NGDA data 

23 theme, which shall— 

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1 tions of higher education, private sector 

2 entities, other Federal agencies, and local 

3 governments; 

4 (ii) meet the needs of users of 

5 geospatial data; 

6 (iii) address human and financial re7 source needs; 

8 (iv) identify needs relating to stand9 ards, metadata for geospatial data within 

10 the NGDA data theme, and the 

11 GeoPlatform; and 

12 (v) expedite the development of nec13 essary NGDA data themes; 

14 (C) establish goals that support the stra15 tegic plan for the National Spatial Data Infra16 structure prepared under section 5(c); 

17 (D) as necessary, collect and analyze infor18 mation from users of geospatial data within the 

19 NGDA data theme regarding the needs of the 

20 users for geospatial data and incorporate the 

21 needs of users in strategies relating to the 

22 NGDA data theme; and 

23 (E) as part of administering the NGDA 

24 data theme— 


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1 (i) designate a point of contact within 

2 the lead covered agency who shall be re3 sponsible for developing, maintaining, co4 ordination relating to, and disseminating 

5 data using the GeoPlatform; 

6 (ii) submit to the Committee— 

7 (I) a performance report, at least 

8 annually, that documents the activi9 ties relating to and implementation of 

10 the NGDA data theme, including 

11 progress in achieving the requirements 

12 under subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), 

13 and (D); and 

14 (II) comments, as appropriate, 

15 regarding the summary and evalua16 tion of the performance report pro17 vided by the Committee under section 

18 3(c)(12); 

19 (iii) publish maps or comparable 

20 graphics online (in accordance with the 

21 mapping conventions specified by the Com22 mittee) showing the extent and status of 

23 the NGDA data themes for which the cov24 ered agency is a lead covered agency; 


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1 (iv) encourage individuals and entities 

2 that are a source of geospatial data or 

3 metadata for geospatial data for the 

4 NGDA data theme to provide access to 

5 such data through the GeoPlatform; 

6 (v) coordinate with the GeoPlatform; 

7 and 

8 (vi) identify and publish proven prac9 tices for the use and application of 

10 geospatial data of the lead covered agency. 

11 SEC. 7. GEOSPATIAL DATA STANDARDS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall establish 

13 standards for each NGDA data theme, which— 

14 (1) shall include— 

15 (A) rules, conditions, guidelines, and char16 acteristics for the geospatial data within the 

17 NGDA data theme and related processes, tech18 nology, and organization; and 

19 (B) content standards for metadata for 

20 geospatial data within the NGDA data theme; 

21 (2) to the maximum extent practicable, shall be 

22 consistent international standards and protocols; and 

23 (3) the Committee shall periodically review and 

24 update as necessary for the standards to remain cur25 rent, relevant, and effective. 


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1 (b) DEVELOPMENT OF STANDARDS.—The Committee 

2 shall— 

3 (1) develop and promulgate standards under 

4 this section— 

5 (A) in accordance with Office of Manage6 ment and Budget Circular A–119, or any suc7 cessor thereto; and 

8 (B) after consultation with a broad range 

9 of data users and providers; 

10 (2) to the maximum extent possible, use na11 tional and international standards adopted by vol12 untary standards consensus bodies; and 

13 (3) establish new standards only to the extent 

14 standards described in paragraph (2) do not exist. 

15 SEC. 8. GEOPLATFORM. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Committee shall operate an 

17 electronic service that provides access to geospatial data 

18 and metadata for geospatial data, to be known as the 

19 GeoPlatform. 

20 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—The GeoPlatform— 

21 (1) shall— 

22 (A) be available through the Internet and 

23 other communications means; 

24 (B) be accessible through a common inter25 face; and 


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1 (C) include all geospatial data collected by 

2 covered agencies, directly or indirectly; and 

3 (2) may include geospatial data from a source 

4 other than a covered agency, if determined appro5 priate by the Committee. 

6 SEC. 9. COVERED AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each covered agency shall— 

8 (1) prepare, maintain, publish, and implement a 

9 strategy for advancing geographic information and 

10 related geospatial data activities appropriate to the 

11 mission of the covered agency, in support of the 

12 strategic plan for the National Spatial Data Infra13 structure prepared under section 5(c); 

14 (2) collect, maintain, disseminate, and preserve 

15 geospatial data such that the resulting data, infor16 mation, or products can be readily shared with other 

17 Federal agencies and non-Federal users; 

18 (3) promote the integration of geospatial data 

19 from all sources; 

20 (4) ensure that data information products and 

21 other records created in geospatial data activities are 

22 included on agency record schedules that have been 

23 approved by the National Archives and Records Ad24 ministration; 


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1 (5) allocate resources to fulfill the responsibil2 ities of effective geospatial data collection, produc3 tion, and stewardship with regard to related activi4 ties of the covered agency, and as necessary to sup5 port the activities of the Committee; 

6 (6) use the geospatial data standards, including 

7 the standards for metadata for geospatial data, and 

8 other appropriate standards, including documenting 

9 geospatial data with the relevant metadata and mak10 ing metadata available through the GeoPlatform; 

11 (7) coordinate and work in partnership with 

12 other Federal agencies, agencies of State, tribal, and 

13 local governments, institutions of higher education, 

14 and the private sector to efficiently and cost-effec15 tively collect, integrate, maintain, disseminate, and 

16 preserve geospatial data, building upon existing non17 Federal geospatial data to the extent possible; 

18 (8) use geospatial information to— 

19 (A) make Federal geospatial information 

20 and services more useful to the public; 

21 (B) enhance operations; 

22 (C) support decisionmaking; and 

23 (D) enhance reporting to the public and to 

24 Congress; 


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1 (9) protect personal privacy and maintain con2 fidentiality in accordance with Federal policy and 

3 law; 

4 (10) support emergency response activities re5 quiring geospatial data in accordance with the Rob6 ert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency As7 sistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) and other gov8 erning law; 

9 (11) participate in determining, when applica10 ble, whether data declassified pursuant to Executive 

11 Order 12951 can contribute to and become a part 

12 of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure; 

13 (12) search all sources, including the 

14 GeoPlatform, to determine if existing Federal, State, 

15 local, or private geospatial data meets the needs of 

16 the covered agency before expending funds for 

17 geospatial data collection; 

18 (13) to the maximum extent practicable, ensure 

19 that a person receiving Federal funds for geospatial 

20 data collection provides high-quality data; and 

21 (14) appoint a contact to coordinate with the 

22 lead covered agencies for collection, acquisition, 

23 maintenance, and dissemination of the NGDA data 

24 themes used by the covered agency. 

25 (b) REPORTING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each covered agency shall 

2 submit to the Committee an annual report regarding 

3 the achievements of the covered agency in preparing 

4 and implementing the strategy described in sub5 section (a)(1) and complying with the other require6 ments under subsection (a). 

7 (2) BUDGET SUBMISSION.—Each covered agen8 cy shall include geospatial data as a capital asset for 

9 purposes of preparing the budget submission of the 

10 President under section 1105(a) of title 31, United 

11 States Code (including for purposes of the informa12 tion required under submissions under exhibits 53 

13 and 300 of Office of Management and Budget Cir14 cular A–11, relating to planning, budgeting, acquisi15 tion, and management of major information tech16 nology capital investments, or any successor there17 to). 

18 (3) DISCLOSURE.—Each covered agency shall 

19 disclose each contract, cooperative agreement, grant, 

20 or other transaction that deals with geospatial data, 

21 which may include posting information relating to 

22 the contract, cooperative agreement, grant, or other 

23 transaction on www.USAspending.gov, or any suc24 cessor thereto. 


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1 (4) OMB REVIEW.—In reviewing the annual 

2 budget justifications submitted by covered agencies, 

3 the Office of Management and Budget shall take 

4 into consideration the summary and evaluations re5 quired under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 

6 3(c)(10), comments, and replies to comments as re7 quired under paragraphs (11) and (12) of section 

8 3(c), in its annual evaluation of the budget justifica9 tion of each covered agency. 

10 (5) REPORTING.—The Office of Management 

11 and Budget shall include a discussion of the sum12 maries and evaluation of the progress in establishing 

13 the National Spatial Data Infrastructure in each E14 Government status report submitted under section 

15 3606 of title 44, United States Code. 

16 (c) AUDITS.—Not less than once every 2 years, the 

17 Inspector General or another senior ethics official of a cov18 ered agency shall submit to Congress an audit of the col19 lection, production, acquisition, maintenance, distribution, 

20 use, and preservation of geospatial data by the covered 

21 agency, which shall include a review of— 

22 (1) the compliance of the covered agency with 

23 the standards for geospatial data, including 

24 metadata for geospatial data, established under sec25 tion 7; 


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1 (2) the compliance of the covered agency with 

2 the requirements under subsection (a); and 

3 (3) the compliance of the covered agency on the 

4 limitation on the use of Federal funds under section 

5 10. 

6 SEC. 10. LIMITATION ON USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS. 

7 On and after the date that is 4 years after the date 

8 of enactment of this Act, Federal funds shall not be avail9 able for the collection, production, acquisition, mainte10 nance, or dissemination of geospatial data that does not 

11 comply with applicable standards established under sec12 tion 7, as determined by the Committee. 

Æ 


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