Geospatial information describes entities or phenomena that can be referenced to specific locations relative to the Earth’s surface. For example, entities such as houses, rivers, road intersections, power plants, and national parks can all be identified by their locations. In addition, phenomena such as wildfires, the spread of the West Nile virus, and the thinning of trees due to acid rain can also be identified by their geographic locations. A geographic information system (GIS) is a system of computer software, hardware, and data used to capture, store, manipulate, analyze, and graphically present a potentially wide array of geospatial information. The primary function of a GIS is to link multiple sets of geospatial data and display the combined information as maps with many different layers of information. Each layer of a GIS map represents a particular “theme” or feature, and one layer could be derived from a data source completely different from the others. Typical geospatial data layers (themes) include cadastral— describing location, ownership, and other information about real property; digital orthoimagery—containing images of the Earth’s surface that have the geometric characteristics of a map and image qualities of a photograph; and hydrography—describing water features such as lakes, ponds, streams and rivers, canals, oceans, and coastlines. As long as standard processes and formats have been used to facilitate integration, each of these themes could be based on data originally collected and maintained by a separate organization. Analyzing this layered information as an integrated whole can significantly aid decision makers in considering complex choices, such as where to locate a new department of motor vehicles building to best serve the greatest number of citizens. Figure 1 portrays the concept of data themes in a GIS. Federal, state, and local governments and the private sector rely on geographic information systems to provide vital services to their customers. These various entities independently provide information and services, including maintaining land records for federal and nonfederal lands, property taxation, local planning, subdivision control and zoning, and direct delivery of many other public services. These entities also use geographic information and geographic information systems to facilitate and support delivery of these services. Many federal departments and agencies use GIS technology to help carry out their primary missions. For example, the Department of Health and Human Services uses GIS technology for a variety of public health functions, such as reporting the results of national health surveys; the Census Bureau maintains the Topologically Integrated Geographic Encoding and Referencing (TIGER) database to support its mission to conduct the decennial census and other censuses and surveys; and the Environmental Protection Agency maintains a variety of databases with information about the quality of air, water, and land in the United States. State governments also rely on geospatial information to provide information and services to their citizens. For example, the state of New York hosts a Web site to provide citizens with a gateway to state government services at http://www.nysegov.com/map-NY.cfm. Using this Web site, citizens can access information about state agencies and their services, locate county boundaries and services, and locate major state highways. Many other states, such as Oregon (http://www.gis.state.or.us/), Virginia (http://www.vgin.virginia.gov/index.html), and Alaska (http://www.asgdc.state.ak.us/), provide similar Web sites and services. Local governments use GISs for a variety of activities. For example, local fire departments can use geographic information systems to determine the quickest and most efficient route from a firehouse to a specific location, taking into account changing traffic patterns that occur at various times of day. Additionally, according to a March 2002 Gartner report, New York City’s GIS was pivotal in the rescue, response, and recovery efforts after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The city’s GIS provided real-time data on the area around the World Trade Center so that the mayor, governor, federal officials, and emergency response agencies could implement critical rescue, response, and recovery activities. Local governments often possess more recent and higher resolution geospatial data than the federal government, and in many cases private-sector companies collect these data under contract to local government agencies. The private sector plays an important role in support of government GIS activities because it captures and maintains a wealth of geospatial data and develops GIS software. Private companies provide services such as aerial photography, digital topographic mapping, digital orthophotography, and digital elevation modeling to produce geospatial data sets that are designed to meet the needs of governmental organizations. Figure 2 provides a conceptual summary of the many entities—including federal, state, and local governments and the private sector—that may be involved in geospatial data collection and processing relative to a single geographic location or event. Figure 3 shows the multiple data sets that have been collected by different agencies at federal, state, and local levels to capture the location of a segment of roadway in Texas. As we testified last year, the federal government has for many years taken steps to coordinate geospatial activities, both within and outside of the federal government. These include the issuance of OMB Circular A-16 and Executive Order 12906, and the E-Government Act of 2002. In addition to its responsibilities for geospatial information under the E-Government Act, OMB has specific oversight responsibilities regarding federal information technology (IT) systems and acquisition activities—including GIS—to help ensure their efficient and effective use. These responsibilities are outlined in the Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996, the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, and OMB Circular A-11. Table 1 provides a brief summary of federal guidance related to information technology and geospatial information. In addition to activities associated with federal legislation and guidance, OMB’s Administrator, Office of Electronic Government and Information Technology, testified before the Subcommittee last June that the strategic management of geospatial assets would be accomplished, in part, through development of a robust and mature federal enterprise architecture. In 2001, the lack of a federal enterprise architecture was cited by OMB’s E- Government Task Force as a barrier to the success of the administration’s e-government initiatives. In response, OMB began developing the Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA), and over the last 2 years it has released various versions of all but one of the five FEA reference models. According to OMB, the purpose of the FEA, among other things, is to provide a common frame of reference or taxonomy for agencies’ individual enterprise architecture efforts and their planned and ongoing investment activities. Costs associated with collecting and maintaining geographically referenced data and systems for the federal government are significant. Specific examples of the costs of collecting and maintaining federal geospatial data and information systems include FEMA’s Multi-Hazard Flood Map Modernization Program—estimated to cost $1 billion over the next 5 years; Census’s TIGER database—modernization is estimated to have cost over $170 million between 2001 and 2004; Agriculture’s Geospatial Database—acquisition and development reportedly cost over $130 million; Interior’s National Map—development is estimated to cost about $88 million through 2008; The Department of the Navy’s Primary Oceanographic Prediction, and Oceanographic Information systems—development, modernization, and operation were estimated to cost about $32 million in fiscal year 2003; and NOAA’s Coastal Survey—expenditures for geospatial data are estimated to cost about $30 million annually. In addition to the costs for individual agency GISs and data, the aggregated annual cost of collecting and maintaining geospatial data for all NSDI- related data themes and systems is estimated to be substantial. According to a recent estimate by the National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC), the cost to collect detailed data for five key data layers of the NSDI—parcel, critical infrastructure, orthoimagery, elevation, and roads—is about $6.6 billion. The estimate assumes that the data development will be coordinated among federal, state, and local government agencies, and the council cautions that without effective coordination, the costs could be far higher. Both Executive Order 12906 and OMB Circular A-16 charge FGDC with responsibilities that support coordination of federal GIS investments. Specifically, the committee is designated the lead federal executive body with responsibilities including (1) promoting and guiding coordination among federal, state, tribal, and local government agencies, academia, and the private sector in the collection, production, sharing, and use of spatial information and the implementation of the NSDI; and (2) preparing and maintaining a strategic plan for developing and implementing the NSDI. Regarding coordination with federal and other entities and development of the NSDI, FGDC has taken a variety of actions. It established a committee structure with participation from federal agencies and key nonfederal organizations such as NSGIC, and the National Association of Counties, and established several programs to help ensure greater participation from federal agencies as well as other government entities. In addition, key actions taken by FGDC to develop the NSDI include implementing the National Geospatial Data Clearinghouse and establishing a framework of data themes. In addition to FGDC’s programs, two other efforts are under way that aim to coordinate and consolidate geospatial information and resources across the federal government—the Geospatial One-Stop initiative and The National Map project. Geospatial One-Stop is intended to accelerate the development and implementation of the NSDI to provide federal and state agencies with a single point of access to map-related data, which in turn will enable consolidation of redundant geospatial data.