43 U.S.C. § 2802 (PUBLIC LANDS)
§ 2802. Federal Geographic Data Committee
(a) In general
There is established within the Department of the Interior an interagency committee to be known as the Federal Geographic Data Committee, which shall act as the lead entity in the executive branch for the development, implementation, and review of policies, practices, and standards relating to geospatial data.
(b) Membership
(1) Chairperson and Vice Chairperson
The Secretary of the Interior and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall serve as Chairperson of the Committee and Vice Chairperson of the Committee, respectively.
(2) Other members
(A) In general
The head of each covered agency and the Director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency shall each designate a representative of their respective agency to serve as a member of the Committee.
(B) Requirement for appointments
An officer appointed to serve as a member of the Committee shall hold a position as an assistant secretary, or an equivalent position, or a higher ranking position.
(3) Guidance
Not later than 1 year after October 5, 2018, and as needed thereafter, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall update guidance with respect to membership of the Committee and the roles of members of the Committee.
(c) Duties
The Committee shall—
(1) lead the development and management of and operational decision making for the National Spatial Data Infrastructure strategic plan and geospatial data policy in accordance with section 2804 of this title;
(2) designate National Geospatial Data Asset data themes and oversee the coordinated management of the National Geospatial Data Asset data themes in accordance with section 2805 of this title;
(3) establish and maintain geospatial data standards in accordance with section 2806 of this title;
(4) periodically review and determine the extent to which covered agencies comply with geospatial data standards;
(5) ensure that the GeoPlatform operates in accordance with section 2807 of this title;
(6) direct and facilitate national implementation of the system of National Geospatial Data Asset data themes;
(7) communicate with and foster communication among covered agencies and other entities and individuals relating to geospatial data technology development, transfer, and exchange in order to—
(A) identify and meet the needs of users of geospatial data;
(B) promote cost-effective data collection, documentation, maintenance, distribution, and preservation strategies; and
(C) leverage Federal and non-Federal resources, such as promoting Federal shared services and cross-agency coordination for marketplace solutions;
(8) define roles and responsibilities and promote and guide cooperation and coordination among agencies of the Federal Government, State, tribal, and local governments, institutions of higher education, and the private sector in the collection, production, sharing, and use of geospatial information, the implementation of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure, and the identification of proven practices;
(9) coordinate with international organizations having an interest in the National Spatial Data Infrastructure or global spatial data infrastructures;
(10) make available online and update at least annually—
(A) a summary of the status for each National Geospatial Data Asset data theme, based on the report submitted by the applicable lead covered agency under section 2805(b)(3)(E)(ii)(I) of this title, which shall include—
(i) an evaluation of the progress of each lead covered agency in achieving the requirements under subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of section 2805(b)(3) of this title; and
(ii) a determination of whether, for each of subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of section 2805(b)(3) of this title, each lead covered agency meets expectations, has made progress toward expectations, or fails to meet expectations;
(B) a summary and evaluation of the achievements of each covered agency, based on the annual report submitted by the covered agency under section 2808(b)(1) of this title, which shall include a determination of whether the covered agency meets expectations, has made progress toward expectations, or fails to meet expectations for each of paragraphs (1) through (13) of section 2808(a) of this title;
(C) a collection of periodic technical publications, management articles, and reports related to the National Spatial Data Infrastructure; and
(D) a membership directory for the Committee, including identifying members of any subcommittee or working group of the Committee;
(11)
(A) make available to and request comments from the Advisory Committee regarding the summaries and evaluations required under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10);
(B) if requested by the Advisory Committee, respond to any comments by the Advisory Committee; and
(C) not less than once every 2 years, submit to Congress a report that includes the summaries and evaluations required under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10), the comments of the Advisory Committee, and the responses of the Committee to the comments;
(12)
(A) make available to and request comments from covered agencies regarding the summaries and evaluations required under subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (10); and
(B) not less than once every 2 years, submit to Congress a report that includes the comments of the covered agencies and the responses of the Committee to the comments; and
(13) support and promote the infrastructure of networks, systems, services, and standards that provide a digital representation of the Earth to users for many applications.
(d) Staff support
The Committee shall establish an Office of the Secretariat within the Department of the Interior to provide administrative support, strategic planning, funding, and technical support to the Committee.
(Pub. L. 115–254, div. B, title VII, § 753, Oct. 5, 2018, 132 Stat. 3415.)