Better coordination is needed among federal agencies that
are still independently acquiring and maintaining
potentially duplicative and costly data sets and systems
that supply geospatial information, which is used to
respond to natural disasters and aid other essential agency
functions, the General Accounting Office has said.
It said a complete and up-to-date strategic plan is needed
and agencies have not consistently complied with Office of
Management and Budget guidance intended to curb redundant
investment.
Further, OMB’s oversight of federal geospatial activities
has failed to produce consistent and complete information
because its methods–the annual budget review process, the
federal enterprise architecture effort, and the federal
geographic data committee’s reporting process–are under
developed, said GAO.
It noted that OMB, individual federal agencies,
cross-government committees and initiatives such as the
geospatial one-stop project, have taken actions to
coordinate investment across agencies and with state and
local governments but that the efforts have not been fully
successful.
GAO recommended that OMB and the Department of the
Interior direct development of a national geospatial
strategic plan, and that OMB develop criteria to assess
interagency coordination on proposals for potential
geospatial investment and strengthen its oversight on
geospatial projects.
