January 6, 2009 Coordination Group Meeting

[PDF Version]

Agenda

Location: WebEx Online Presentation and Teleconference Only

 Action Items

Meeting Minutes

General/Intros/Upcoming Meetings/Summary of Action Items:
Introductions and roll call.  32 individuals—excluding the FGDC Secretariat staff-- participated in the meeting.

Summary of Actions from Last Meeting:

• A-16 – Reminder to provide input to the document.
• Contact Lew Sanford with ideas for LoB 2009 priorities.  He will incorporate input.
• Send 50 States ideas to Milo Robinson.  50 States Presentation is on the agenda today.
• Send in names for Transition Planning Group. We have received 4 names so far.
• Notify Secretariat of personnel changes for any committees, so that we can keep membership roles up to date.  We have received some updates.
• Register geospatial software applications with registry.  We have received questions and information requests.
• We sent out fact sheets to agencies who requested them.  Transition planning work group will revise them.
• Circulate national land parcel data sheet – completed Dec 2.

FGDC Update (Ken Shaffer):
[presentation]

• During the December 16 Steering Committee Meeting, there were votes on 2 items, Imagery for the Nation and the A-16 Supplemental Guidance.  Electronic votes were held on both items.
• Quorum majority approved the IFTN buy-up option.
• The A-16 Supplemental Guidance was put up for endorsement.  It was endorsed and will be sent to OMB for review/concurrence.  21 agencies had endorsed it as of 1/5/09.
• If there are SAOGI membership changes, please notify Pat Phillips ASAP.
• The Executive Committee will meet on January 13th (not 16th)
• The NGAC will meet on February 4th and 5th at the Hotel Monaco in Alexandria, VA.
• At the 12/2 CG meeting, volunteers were requested for the transition team.  Four people volunteered.  Anyone else interested is encouraged to submit their name.
• The first workgroup action will be to revise the DOI factsheet.
• The CAP proposal deadline is today.  Up to 26 proposals will be awarded, and the grantees will be announced in February.
• The NSGIC website has a white paper on how states can coordinate with federal agencies.  Vicki Lukas and Randy Fusaro need your input.  The NSGIC Mid-Year Conference will be held on Feb 23-24 in Annapolis, MD.

NGAC Update (John Mahoney):
[draft agenda for February meeting]

• The Changing Landscapes paper was completed over the holidays.  All are encouraged to read it, on the FGDC website (NGAC section).
• The next NGAC meeting will be on February 4-5 in Alexandria, VA.
• The meeting will kick off with a discussion of transition activities.
• The two main topics discussed on Day 1 of the meeting will be The National Map and A-16 Supplemental Guidance.
• The future and direction of The National Map is the next issue to focus on.  Allen Carroll of National Geographic is the head of this subcommittee.  Mark DeMulder will provide a presentation on future directions.  The subcommittee will present recommendations.
• Dennis Goreham and his team will present on the A-16.
• Finally, there will be an update on Land Parcel Data.
• Day 2 of the meeting will feature presentations on Partnerships, Communications, and the Action Plan, in addition to the public comment period.
• The NGAC is in transition.  The new administration will influence the future directions of the NGAC.
• The next meeting will be May 12-13 in Washington, DC.
• A following meeting will be held sometime in mid-September.
• The Changing Landscapes paper’s purpose is to provide background on changes in the geospatial community.
• Dave Morehouse expressed concerns about the NGAC getting ahead of the CG with changes to the A-16.  Wendy is also worried that there will be specific areas that they would like to change.
• Milo Robinson asked John Mahoney whether the National Land Imaging program is covered in the NGAC meeting, and John expressed that it would not specifically be covered.

Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA) Geospatial Profile Update (Doug Nebert):

• The second version of the FEA is updated and shortened.  It aligns with other FEA documents (FSAM).
• The next step is for the FGDC managing partner team to review and then it will go to the CG for review.
• There will be another draft soon.
• Wendy thinks the profile should become a living document and harmonized with supplemental guidance.  She expressed that she believes it’s still too long.
• Ivan DeLoatch stated that the chief architects are the primary audience for the document, and that we should obtain their perspective and feedback for next steps.

Geospatial One Stop (Rob Dollison):
[presentation]

• There are several new additions to the website, including an Agency Publisher Profile.
• We need to reach out to publishers in order to encourage them to update user profiles.
• The Service Status Checker function gives a status report and helps with troubleshooting.  It will be useful in GEOSS efforts as well.
• The special collection search is another new addition.
• A user is able to search with the REST interface, which allows for easy searching without going through the portal.
• Able to search across the government without having an organization be a steward.
• There is also updated maps tab content, as well as an updated statistics tab.
• Creating reviews, making comments on metadata are features that should be coming soon.
• Enhancement in work - form for getting user feedback on specific metadata records
• Other enhancement priorities include: simplified queries to support grants and contracts requirements (geospatial LoB), ISO metadata conversion, integrate GOS search and the TNM viewer, and develop applications that can access GOS without going through the portal (CAP Category 2).
• Rob gave various demos.
• There is a high level plan for 2009.  Ivan noted that the CG can influence GOS plans.

Fifty States Initiative: Federal Stakeholders Workshop (Rich Grady):
[ presentation]

• Background: CAP category 3 has been providing assistance.
• Nine criteria for states – some states are moving forward with this.
• Some states have adopted GIS coordination councils.
• Many states have completed CAP-assisted business plans.
• Major tasks related to federal agencies include: delivering information, developing strategies, and conducting a workshop.
• Project team sponsors: USGS, FGDC, Applied Geographics, NSGIC, Baker, and Grant Thornton.
• There will be a Federal Stakeholder Workshop held on February 3 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m.  There are two parts: presentations and facilitated discussion.
• It was suggested that we look at the A-16 during the workshop.
• Input from the 12/2 CG meeting was discussed.
• Key outcome of the workshop– awareness that will lead to the development of partnerships that will leverage opportunities and share infrastructure to benefit all
• Workshop will result is list of actionable items

Summary of Actions/Agenda Topics for Next Meeting: (see above for action items)

Announcements/Discussion Wrap-Up:

• A-16 guidance will be submitted to OMB. Ivan and Lew will meet with OMB to help the process along.  The director of OMB will need to approve it.  Time line is unknown.
• Transition work group - what’s next in the evolution of Geospatial OneStop and Line of Business?
• New CTO position
• ESRI Federal Users’ Conference – proposed panel discussion on using geo-enablement  in business

Adjourn