FGDC Colleagues,
I am pleased to announce that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has released the new Supplemental Guidance to OMB Circular A-16, “Coordination of Geographic Information and Related Spatial Data Activities.” OMB Memorandum M-11-03, “Issuance of OMB Circular A-16 Supplemental Guidance,” from Federal Chief Information Officer Vivek Kundra to Heads of Executive Agencies and Departments, formally issues the Supplemental Guidance. The Guidance, released today, is posted at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/memoranda/2011/m11-03.pdf
OMB Circular A-16 provides for improvements in the coordination and use of spatial data, and describes effective and economical use and management of spatial data assets in the digital environment for the benefit of the Federal Government and the Nation. The Supplemental Guidance further defines and clarifies selected elements of Circular A-16 to facilitate a coordinated Federal geospatial asset management capability that will improve support of mission-critical business requirements of the Federal Government and its stakeholders. The Guidance has a primary focus on geospatial data as a capital asset and outlines a portfolio management process to manage geospatial data assets.
The Memorandum from Mr. Kundra notes: “Data-management, and particularly geospatial data-management, is one of the essential components for addressing the management of the business of government and for supporting the effective and economical use of tax dollars. It is, however, susceptible to constant renewal, information quality, and information management challenges. A portfolio-centric model cures the single agency, stovepipe model by applying consistent policy, improved organization, better governance, and understanding of the public to deliver outstanding results.”
The Supplemental Guidance is the result of a dedicated effort by many individuals, agencies, and partners within the FGDC community. I would like to particularly recognize and thank Wendy Blake Coleman from the Environmental Protection Agency, who chaired the Geospatial Line of Business Lifecycle Management Workgroup, which led the development of the Guidance. Wendy and the other members of the Workgroup showed great commitment and perseverance in the development, review, and approval of the Guidance. The document also benefitted from input and feedback from other partners and stakeholders, including the members of the National Geospatial Advisory Committee.
We look forward to working with the FGDC community to implement the requirements of the Supplemental Guidance. The portfolio management approaches laid out in the document will help provide a foundation to support multiple objectives, including the Administration’s Geospatial Platform initiative. As you know, we are currently engaged in a stakeholder outreach process for the Platform, and we encourage FGDC partners and stakeholders to provide input through the Geospatial Platform IdeaScale website at: http://geoplatform.ideascale.com/
Thank you once again to all who contributed to this significant milestone in the development of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure.
Regards,
Ivan B. DeLoatch
Executive Director
Federal Geographic Data Committee
