Another use for GIS is in the tracking and responding to natural disasters  such as hurricanes. Among other things, the circular requires that agencies prepare  geographic information strategies, use FGDC data standards, and  coordinate and work in partnership with federal, state, and local  governments and the private sector. Although Steps Have Been Taken to Coordinate Geospatial Activities, Redundant Investments Remain

OMB, individual federal agencies, and cross-government committees and  initiatives such as the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) and the  Geospatial One-Stop project have each taken actions to coordinate the  government’s geospatial investments. However, these efforts have not been fully successful in reducing  redundancies in geospatial investments for several reasons. First, a  complete and up-to-date strategic plan has not been in place. Second, federal agencies have not always fully complied with OMB  direction to coordinate their investments. As a result of shortcomings in all three of these domains, federal agencies  are independently acquiring and maintaining potentially duplicative and  costly data sets and systems. None of OMB’s major oversight processes—the annual review process  associated with development of the federal budget, the FEA effort, and the  FGDC-administered Circular A-16 reporting process—have been effective  tools to help OMB identify major redundancies in federal GIS investments. Without  better-coordinated activities, federal agencies are likely to continue to  duplicate data collection. Until these shortcomings are  addressed, cost savings from eliminating duplicative geospatial  investments will not materialize. Objective, Scope, and Methodology

Our objective was to determine the extent to which the federal government  is coordinating the sharing of geospatial assets, including through oversight  measures in place at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in order  to identify and reduce redundancies in federal geospatial data and systems.
Why GAO Did This Study

From homeland security to tracking outbreaks of disease, to investigating the space shuttle disaster to responding to natural disasters, the collection, maintenance, and use of location-based (geospatial) information has become critical to many federal agencies' abilities to achieve their goals. Local governments and the private sector also rely on such data to support essential functions. GAO was asked to determine the extent to which the federal government is coordinating the sharing of geospatial assets, including through oversight measures in place at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in order to identify and reduce redundancies in geospatial data and systems.

What GAO Found

OMB, individual federal agencies, and cross-government committees and initiatives such as the Federal Geographic Data Committee and the Geospatial One-Stop project have taken actions to coordinate the government's geospatial investments across agencies and with state and local governments. However, these efforts have not been fully successful in reducing redundancies in geospatial investments for several reasons. First, a complete and up-to-date strategic plan for doing so has not been in place. Second, agencies have not consistently complied with OMB guidance that seeks to identify and reduce duplication. Finally, OMB's oversight of federal geospatial activities has not been effective because its methods--the annual budget review process, the federal enterprise architecture effort, and the Federal Geographic Data Committee's reporting process--are insufficiently developed and have not produced consistent and complete information. As a result of these shortcomings, federal agencies are still independently acquiring and maintaining potentially duplicative and costly data sets and systems. Until these problems are resolved, duplicative geospatial investments are likely to persist.