May 2005 Newsletter
GIS Office Legislation Update
Several of you have followed the legislation to establish a state office of geographic information (SB493
authored by Sen. David Ford). It went to the wire, but ultimately died in conference committee. Many of you have
asked, "What happened?"
Over the last year, IGIC worked with a broad group of stakeholders to develop a GIS Technology Strategy for Indiana
(http://www.in.gov/igic/gistechstrategy2004.pdf). The document defines a strategy for the IndianaMap - an
accurate, seamless, statewide base map for Indiana. It encompasses strategy for the framework (base map) data,
data access, and education and outreach. It also recommended establishment of a state GIS Office; a State GIS
Advisory Board; and cooperation with a coalition of universities. It builds on the strong cooperation, coordination
and collaboration that exist throughout Indiana's GIS community.
IGIC fully supported SB493. The ensuing debate over engrossed SB493 revolved mostly around data sensitively issues
and data security concerns and was ultimately reason for the bill's demise. These issues are not unique to the
state (similar questions are faced by local and federal government and private entities). Fortunately, there is
an ongoing national dialog that IGIC is heavily engaged in. There is much research and practical experience to
guide the debate. IGIC will continue to engage and inform our members, community and decision-makers on this and
other issues.
While SB493 did not pass, there was much gained from the process. First and foremost, a large and diverse
community joined together over the last year to establish a common vision and strategy for statewide GIS. That
strategy is as valid today as it was at the beginning of the session. The vital role for GIS was acknowledged by
all parties (SB493 passed the senate and house unanimously). Both the technology and the community of stakeholders
received positive visibility throughout the session. A university coalition was established. Everyone agreed that
this is very important - they only disagreed on "how".
As a community, we are in a strong position to move Indiana forward - maybe in an even elevated role now. We have
important business to do together - public, private and educational sectors. We have momentous initiatives underway
and opportunities on the horizon. In the near-term, we need to communicate to state and local decision-makers the
value of what we're all working to achieve. We need to recognize their important role in supporting the statewide
GIS initiative.
It is exciting and humbling to work with such a diverse and supportive community of GIS professionals throughout
the state. As always, your input and participation in this and other IGIC activities is welcomed. And as for
legislative activities, "The IGIC Legislative Committee will continue to build consensus and pursue legislative
initiatives that are important to the statewide GIS community," commented Phil Worrall, IGIC Legislative Committee
co-chair. Together we can accomplish great things.
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Indiana Tackles Digital Mapping
The data acquisition phase of the statewide orthophotography project is complete! This was the largest statewide
project ever acquired in a single season and it presented many challenges. There is a lot to do in the months
ahead - including data processing, quality assurance, and delivery (all to be completed between August 2005 and
March 2006).
The following is one community's perspective on the project, excerpted from the Louisville Courier Journal article
by Alex Davis. For the complete article, visit
www.courier-journal.com.
...When it is finished later this year, emergency officials will have fresh images that show details such as the new
twists and turns along a renovated Interstate 65, along with recently completed subdivisions and other geographic
features.
In addition, the quality of the maps will be better. Brad Meixell, of the Clark County Office of Emergency
Communications, said the new images will be good enough to point out sidewalks and small sheds on every acre in the
county. That provides detail down to a single foot.
Meixell said the images aren't invasive - they don't raise privacy concerns - because they won't allow officials to
pick out a person in a backyard, or see through windows...
...Supporters of the project said the maps will be valuable tools for police and fire departments, land surveyors,
highway planners and people who do environmental monitoring.
"This digital map will be used in areas from homeland security to economic development," said Lt. Gov. Becky
Skillman…
[Harold Plummer, director of the Clark County Emergency Management Agency] said the images could help law
enforcement agencies gather detailed information about a building or a neighborhood in the case of a natural
disaster or terrorism threat.
"We can pull up a map of that area and find an exact location instead of searching all over for it," Plummer
said. "It's going to cut down on response time."
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USGS Creates New Geospatial Programs Office
In a bold, forward-looking step, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Director has realigned the geospatial
programs for which the USGS has a leadership responsibility into a National Geospatial Programs Office (NGPO) to
serve the needs and interests of the geospatial community throughout the Nation. The NGPO consolidates
administration of a number of the agencies initiatives. Programs which will fall under the purview of the new
office include The National Map, Geospatial One-Stop and the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC). For more
information, visit the USGS website at
www.usgs.gov/ngpo.
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New Board Members
The Indiana Geographic Information Council welcomes 3 new members to the 2005 Board of Directors.
Clifford Ong
Cliff is an attorney specializing in homeland security and corporate integrity. Before joining the firm of
Krieg DeVault, Cliff was Director of Homeland Security for the State of Indiana and a strong supporter of a
statewide integrated GIS system. Known as a strong advocate of GIS as a homeland security instrument and a tool
for good public policy, he represents the private sector on the IGIC board of directors.
Kent Park
Kent's work with the Council over the last several years has been invaluable. His organizational and interpersonal
skills have been borne out time and again through developing sponsors and exhibitors for the annual conference.
Kent's contributions to IGIC have helped assure the annual conferences are successful. The key to his successes
have been his ability to work across the private sector, bringing attention to the Council as a forum for
partnerships. His professional endeavors across the state and nation have earned him the respect of all who have
dealt with him.
Anna Radue
Anna is a database and GIS specialist at Indiana University providing GIS and remote sensing technical support to
all campuses. She administers license agreements with ESRI, Leica Geosystems, and Lizardtech and supports the
Indiana Spatial Data Storage Portal (ISDP) and Indiana Spatial Data Services (ISDS). Her areas of interest include
image encoding, enterprise GIS, and storage of imagery in relational databases.
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2005 GIS Award Winners
Congratulations to the all the winners of the 2005 Award for Achievement in GIS! Awards were presented at the
annual Indiana GIS conference in downtown Indianapolis. Look for more information about these and other Indiana
GIS success stories coming soon to the INGISI website.
Small Communities
Town of Munster, Indiana
Sewer/Storm Fee Determination
Large Communities
City of South Bend, Indiana
Enterprise GIS Community
Counties
Wells County, Indiana
Searchable GIS Web Applications
Education and Not-For-Profit
Indiana Biodiversity Initiative
Indiana Conservation Tool
State and Federal Government
Indiana Department of Transportation
"GIS Atlas for Indiana" Tutorial
Business and Commercial
Eli Lilly and Company
Internal Infrastructure GIS
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Standards for Public Review
The Standards and Recommendations Committee has submitted drafts for two new standards: cadastral framework and
data naming convention. Both documents are available for review on the
Standards Committee webpage.
Comments and questions are welcome, and may be directed to either co-chair.
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Education in Brief
GeoTech Ohio
GeoTech Ohio is a week-long institute focusing on the use of GPS and GIS technologies in
educational settings. It is sponsored by Ashland University College of Education, New Albany-Plain Local School
District, and conducted in cooperation with the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The institute, which takes
place June 20-24, was designed for 5-12 grade teachers and community organizations, to help participants "apply and
integrate GIS and GPS technology in their middle school and high school classrooms." Visit the GeoTech website for
more information.
GIS Seminars
The Polis Center, in conjunction with IGIC, is offering two upcoming seminars:
Environmental Applications of GIS on May 17th in Indianapolis, and the GIS Road Show - offering current and prospective
users an opportunity to learn about the latest GIS developments - June 17th in Kokomo. For more information on the
GIS Seminar Series, visit The Polis Center's website at
www.polis.iupui.edu/tpc/training.
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