Articles

Congressman Doug Lamborn (CO-05) has introduced a bill that would streamline federal bureaucracy dealing with map making. H.R 4233, Map it Once, Use it Many Times Act, would reform, consolidate, and reorganize federal geospatial activities.

Currently, more than 40 different federal agencies have geospatial activities. This duplication and overlapping has led to a culture within the federal government of “map it many times and horde the data” whereas it should be to “map it once and use it many times.”

Based on input from hearings held by the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources that Lamborn chairs, a review of past studies, and input from stakeholders, Lamborn has introduced a bill that provides a new approach to geospatial data collection and management.

“While my bill does not seek to address all these agencies, it is a proposal to better manage these resources in agencies that fall under the jurisdiction of the Committee on Natural Resources.

“There is a capable and qualified private sector in the geospatial field, yet many government agencies duplicate, and in some cases compete with, private firms.  Given the extraordinary cluster of such firms in Colorado, these phenomena particularly concern me.  At a time of record debt and deficits we need to not only eliminate duplication across agencies and programs.We must also weed out government competition with the private sector so federal assets and resources are focused on those things only government can do.”– Doug Lamborn (CO-05)

H.R. 4233 would:  

• consolidate responsibilities for leadership in a National Geospatial Technology Administration within the U.S. Geological Survey;
• merge duplicate federal geospatial programs into the new Administration;
• encourage the uses of commercial data and private sector service providers;
• establish a National Geospatial Policy Commission to provide a priority-setting mechanism that not only includes federal agencies, but Congress and non-federal stakeholders as well;
• provide for acquisition of professional geospatial services on the basis of quality , qualifications and experience of competing firms;
• establish an advocacy function for the dynamic U.S. private sector geospatial community; 
• and coordinate the tens of millions of dollars the U.S.government spends each year on geospatial-related research and development along strategic goals that meet the needs of government and the private sector.