Goal 1: Increase the awareness and understanding of the vision, concepts and benefits of the NSDI through outreach and education.
Objective
: Promote principles and practices of the NSDI through formal and informal education and training.Action
: Schedule and arrange for presentations of topics of interest at SCDD meetings. (Charter VI. A. and VI. D.)Status
: Each SCDD meeting in 1998 was hosted by its member agencies and included either a presentation on a topic of interest, or a tour of the host agency. The 1998 presentations or tours included: (1) a presentation on Community 2020, Housing and Urban Development’s Community Planning GIS Software, (2) a tour of the National Park Service facility, (3) a presentation on the joint effort between Federal and Wyoming state agencies on developing metadata for cultural resources and a presentation on the ongoing cooperative efforts amongst the western states for metadata standards for cultural resources, (4) a tour of the US Geological Survey and its National Hazards Information Center, (5) a tour of Natural Resources Conservation Service’s GIS Headquarters Lab, (6) and a demonstration of the software the Bureau of Labor and Statistics is using to correct address data from unemployment insurance claims.Barriers
: (1) Limited amount of time that each member can contribute to the SCDD. (2) Time and expense of organizing and hosting meetings.Next Steps
: Continue to schedule and arrange presentations on topics of interest and tours so members of SCDD can learn about current programs and activities that other member agencies are involved in.Goal 2: Develop common solutions for discovery, access, and use of geospatial data in response to the needs of diverse communities.
Objective
: Support the evolution of common means to describe geospatial datasets.Action
: Produce a committee draft of a supplemental standard in accordance with the SCDD Proposal for a National Spatial Data Infrastructure Standards Project titled, "Metadata Profile for Geospatially Referenced Cultural and Demographic Data." (Charter VI. B., VI. C. and VI. F.)Status
: The "Metadata Profile for Geospatially Referenced Cultural and Demographic Data" was revised and made compliant with the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata Version 2 (CSDGM) in September, 1998.Barriers
: (1) The committee draft of the supplemental standard was originally completed and submitted to the Standards Working Group (SWG) for approval for public review in 1997. However, the review was delayed by the SWG until the revised CSDGM Version 2 was endorsed by the FGDC. (2) Must obtain concurrence from SCDD members. (3) Uncertainty of ISO/TC 211 15046-15 metadata.Next Steps
: The Profile will be resubmitted to SWG for approval for public review.Goal 3: Use community-based approaches to develop and maintain common collections of geospatial data for sound decision-making.
Objective
: Promote common classification systems, content standards, and other common models to facilitate data development, sharing, and use.Action
: Produce a committee draft of an address content standard in accordance with the SCDD Proposal for a National Spatial Data Infrastructure Standards Project titled "Address Content Standard." (Charter VI. B.)Status
: The target date of this action, September 1998, was not met. The SCDD began work in earnest on this standard in July 1997. To date, existing agency-based address content standards have been reviewed, one-on-one interviews with member agencies to determine requirements are being conducted and a draft is being developed. The target date for this action is now June 1999.Barriers
: (1) Setting dates for member agency meetings. (2) Staff time and availability for standard development from the Census Bureau (lead agency). (3) Publicizing effort and obtaining input during development process.Next Steps
: The next step is to complete the action by August 1999 and submit standard to SWG for approval for Public review.Action
: Produce a committee draft of a governmental unit standard in accordance with the SCDD Proposal for a National Spatial Data Infrastructure Standards Project titled, "Governmental Unit Boundary Data Content Standard." (Charter VI. B. and VI. E.)Status
: The proposal completed public review in April 1998. Work began in May 1998. Realistically, the SCDD is aiming for a September 1999 FGDC endorsement.Barriers
: (1) Setting dates for member agency meetings. (2) Staff time and availability for standard development from the Census Bureau (lead agency). (3) Publicizing effort and obtaining input during development process.Next Steps
: The next step is to complete the action by September 1999 and submit the standard to SWG for approval for public review.Objective
: Continue to develop the National Geospatial Data Framework.Action
: Actively participate in FGDC-sponsored Framework meetings. (Charter VI. E.)Status
: The SCDD chairperson has actively participated, and will continue to participate, in the FGDC-sponsored Framework meetings. As the SCDD has the thematic responsibility for and is developing address standards, the SCDD is extremely interested in the address component of Framework. Through participation in the Framework meetings, the SCDD chairperson learns of Framework needs in the area of address standards and communicates these needs to the SCDD members along with other items of interest, such as status and impact of work of other Framework activities .Barriers
: Absence of clear definition of how Framework and FGDC work together.Next Steps
: Continue participation in FGDC-sponsored Framework meetings.Goal 4: Build relationships among organizations to support the continuing development of the NSDI.
Objective
: Promote and encourage SCDD participation.Action
: Invite non-Federal organizations to participate and attend SCDD monthly meetings. (Charter VI. E.)Status
: Currently SCDD has new members representing NISGIC (National States Geographic Info Council), and NACo (National Association of Counties). The SCDD is encouraging the involvement of non-Federal agency participants and has received FGDC funds to support travel to and attendance at SCDD meetings.Barriers
: (1) Difficulty in finding time to participate. (2) There is involvement from individual efforts (standards) but it is difficult to convince participants to be involved long term in the somewhat general, overall effort.Next Steps
: Continue to promote participation and membership in SCDD, and also continue to provide funds to support travel and attendance .Funding
The Census Bureau, the lead agency of the SCDD, does not provide funding. However, funding is available from the FGDC at $10,000.00 per year for non-Federal organization participation and travel expenses. The SCDD applied for and received this funding in June 1998.