I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3186
To establish and maintain geospatial preparedness for the Nation with the 
National Spatial Data Infrastructure and integrated applications and 
systems required for homeland security, national defense, electronic gov-
ernment, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 25, 2003
Mr. CLAY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Science 
A BILL 
To establish and maintain geospatial preparedness for the 
Nation with the National Spatial Data Infrastructure 
and integrated applications and systems required for 
homeland security, national defense, electronic govern-
ment, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Geospatial Preparedness Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes. 
Sec. 3. Definitions. 
Sec. 4. Homeland security and national geospatial preparedness. 
Sec. 5. Security policy and guidelines for geospatial data. 
Sec. 6. Office of Geospatial Management and Geospatial Information Officer. 
Sec. 7. Authorization of appropriations.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. 
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 
(1) Geospatial technologies and geospatial data 
can provide all levels of government and the private 
sector with proven capabilities to carry out detection, 
planning, preparedness, mitigation, response, and re-
covery activities for homeland security purposes that 
save lives and protect property. 
(2) The completion and maintenance of the Na-
tional Spatial Data Infrastructure with integrated 
applications and systems will provide the level of 
geospatial preparedness required to protect critical 
infrastructure, strategic assets, the economic base, 
and persons. 
(3) Geospatial technology and information have 
proven to be essential to enabling more informed de-
cisionmaking, greater efficiency, increased account-
ability, and better management in all levels of gov-
ernment and the private sector. 
(4) Building spatial data once and then sharing 
it many times between all levels of government and 
the private sector increases the ability of information
technology applications and systems to provide bet-
ter services to the public in a cost-effective manner. 
(5) The use of international, national, and in-
dustry consensus standards to develop and deploy 
interoperable geospatial data and geospatial tech-
nologies assists the commercial geospatial industry 
to provide products that make it easier, faster, and 
less expensive for all levels of government and the 
private sector to share, integrate, and use geospatial 
data for decisionmaking. 
(6) Establishing a new Federal Government 
program to provide financial incentives to State, re-
gional, local, and tribal governments will greatly ac-
celerate adoption of international, national, and in-
dustry consensus standards. 
(7) Geospatial technologies and geospatial data 
can be essential tools for virtually all functions of 
government and business. 
(8) Geospatial preparedness in the United 
States is not adequate due to a variety of factors in-
cluding inadequate geospatial data compatibility, in-
sufficient geospatial data sharing, technology inter-
operability barriers, institutional and organizational 
resistance to new ways of doing business, lack of fi-
nancial incentives to improved use of geospatial
technologies, and inefficient geospatial data collec-
tion and sharing. 
(9) Interoperable geospatial technology and 
geospatial data capabilities are emerging and incen-
tives are needed for full adoption and for collabo-
rative use to meet community and national needs. 
(10) Geospatial technologies and geospatial 
data are maintained by all levels of government and 
the private sector. A comprehensive nationwide pro-
gram is necessary to build and maintain a stand-
ards-based geospatial spatial data infrastructure and 
geographic information systems required to respond 
to increasing demands. 
(11) State, regional, local, and tribal govern-
ments, the private sector, and other non-government 
organizations are investing in geospatial technologies 
and geospatial data. Incentives are necessary to le-
verage these investments for more effective use to 
meet community and national needs. 
(12) Establishing the Office of Geospatial Man-
agement, administered by a Geospatial Information 
Officer, within the Department of Homeland Secu-
rity will ensure the most effective and efficient man-
agement of programs and activities involving 
geospatial technologies and geospatial data.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS SOFT-
WARE AND HARDWARE.—The term ‘‘geographic in-
formation systems software and hardware’’ means 
computer software and hardware required to iden-
tify, depict, visualize, analyze, maintain, or otherwise 
utilize geospatial data. 
(2) GEOSPATIAL
APPLICATIONS.—The term 
‘‘geospatial applications’’ means computer software 
and systems that extend the capabilities of geo-
graphic information systems software and hardware 
to identify, depict, visualize, analyze, maintain, or 
otherwise utilize geospatial data. 
(3) GEOSPATIAL DATA.—The term ‘‘geospatial 
data’’ means information that identifies, depicts, or 
describes the geographic locations, boundaries, or 
characteristics of inhabitants and natural or con-
structed features on the Earth, including such infor-
mation derived from, among other sources, socio-de-
mographic analysis, economic analysis, land informa-
tion records and land use information processing, 
statistical analysis, survey and observational meth-
odologies, environmental analysis, critical infrastruc-
ture protection, satellites, remote sensing, airborne 
imagery collection, mapping, engineering, construc-
tion, global positioning systems, and surveying tech-
nologies and activities. 
(4) GEOSPATIAL
PREPAREDNESS.—The term 
‘‘geospatial preparedness’’ means the level of overall 
capability and capacity necessary to enable all levels 
of government and the private sector to utilize 
geospatial data, geographic information systems 
software and hardware, and geospatial applications 
to perform essential emergency management func-
tions, including detection, planning, mitigation, re-
sponse, and recovery, in order to minimize loss of 
life and property from weapons of mass destruction, 
terrorist threats, major man-made accidents, and 
natural disasters. 
(5) NATIONAL
SPATIAL
DATA
INFRASTRUC-
TURE.—The term ‘‘National Spatial Data Infra-
structure’’ means the combination of the geographic 
information 
systems 
software 
and 
hardware, 
geospatial applications, geospatial data, standards, 
policies, programs, and human resources necessary 
to acquire, process, analyze, store, maintain, dis-
tribute, and otherwise utilize geospatial data as a 
strategic asset for the Nation. 
(6) OFFICE OF GEOSPATIAL MANAGEMENT.—
The term ‘‘Office of Geospatial Management’’ means
the administrative organization responsible for de-
signing, managing, coordinating, and implementing 
comprehensive geospatial initiatives. 
(7) STANDARDS.—The term ‘‘standards’’ means 
documented international, national, or industry con-
sensus agreements containing technical specifications 
or other precise criteria to be used consistently as 
rules, guidelines, or definitions to ensure that mate-
rials, products, processes, or services are proper for 
their purposes. 
SEC. 4. HOMELAND SECURITY AND NATIONAL GEOSPATIAL 
PREPAREDNESS. 
The Secretary shall direct the Chief Information Offi-
cer to work, consistent with Office of Management and 
Budget Circular A–16, Executive Order 12906, and sec-
tion 216 of the Electronic Government Act, with the De-
partment of the Interior, the Department of Justice, the 
Federal Geographic Data Committee, the National Im-
agery and Mapping Agency, other appropriate Federal 
agencies, and members of the Steering Committee and Co-
ordination Group of the Federal Geographic Data Com-
mittee, to use and enhance the National Spatial Data In-
frastructure for homeland security purposes, by—
(1) developing a comprehensive national enter-
prise strategy, incorporating industry and govern-
ment standards, for the coordinated acquisition, 
building, storage, maintenance, and use of Federal 
Government, non-Federal Government, and private 
sector geospatial data with, when feasible and appro-
priate, integrated and interoperable commercially-
provided geographic information systems software 
and hardware, geospatial applications, geospatial 
data, and services in order to achieve an adequate 
level of national geospatial preparedness; 
(2) providing grants, technical assistance, and 
cooperative agreements to State, regional, local, and 
tribal government as well as non-profit organizations 
in order to increase geospatial preparedness by ac-
tions such as analyzing requirements, performing 
strategic planning, sharing geospatial data, devel-
oping agreements for sharing geospatial data, inte-
grating geospatial data, developing standards, inte-
grating systems, and acquiring, when feasible and 
appropriate, interoperable commercially-provided ge-
ographic information systems software and hard-
ware, geospatial applications, geospatial data, and 
Global Positioning System equipment and procuring 
services in order to achieve an adequate level of na-
tional geospatial preparedness;
(3) coordinating with, and assisting, the Fed-
eral Geographic Data Committee, the Office of Man-
agement and Budget, and the commercial geospatial 
industry to establish national standards for the de-
velopment, acquisition, storage, maintenance, dis-
tribution, utilization, and application of geospatial 
data; 
(4) coordinating with, and assisting, the com-
mercial geospatial industry to establish national 
standards for the development, distribution, and uti-
lization of geographic information systems software 
and hardware and geospatial applications; and 
(5) utilizing, when feasible and appropriate, 
commercially-provided interoperable geographic in-
formation systems software and hardware, geospatial 
applications, geospatial data, and services to carry 
out the responsibilities, activities, and programs au-
thorized by this section. 
SEC. 
5. 
SECURITY 
POLICY 
AND 
GUIDELINES 
FOR 
GEOSPATIAL DATA. 
The Chief Information Officer of the Department of 
Homeland Security shall establish, within 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act and consistent with 
overall homeland security goals of the Department of 
Homeland Security, security policy and guidelines for the
acquisition, processing, and dissemination of geospatial 
data depicting critical infrastructure and strategic assets 
located in the United States. 
SEC. 
6. 
OFFICE 
OF 
GEOSPATIAL 
MANAGEMENT 
AND 
GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION OFFICER. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu-
rity shall establish the Office of Geospatial Management 
within the Office of the Chief Information Officer. The 
Office of Geospatial Management shall be administered by 
the Geospatial Information Officer under the direction of 
the Chief Information Officer. 
(b) 
GEOSPATIAL
INFORMATION
OFFICER.—The 
Geospatial Information Officer—
(1) shall be appointed by the Secretary from 
among individuals who are skilled in geographic in-
formation technology and systems management; and 
(2) shall be responsible for—
(A) designing, managing, coordinating, and 
implementing comprehensive geospatial initia-
tives; and 
(B) working with the Chief Information 
Officer to carry out section 4 and section 5. 
SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
For the purpose of carrying out this Act, there are 
authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec-
essary for each of the fiscal years 2004 through 2008. 
Such authorization is in addition to other authorizations 
of appropriations that are available for such purpose.
Æ