Blog topic: Geospatial

The National Geospatial Advisory Committee (NGAC) held their fall meeting September 6-7, 2017 at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Viriginia.  The NGAC is a Federal Advisory Committee (FACA) to the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC).  The role of the NGAC is to provide advice and recommendations related to the national geospatial program and the development of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure.  Full minutes of the meeting, PowerPoints, and lightning talks are available on the NGAC website.

Last week I spent 3 days at Google for their annual Google Earth Engine Summit, learning about new features and applications of their Google Earth Engine technology. If you haven’t seen Google Earth Engine, I encourage you to go to https://earthengine.google.com and use the signup link to get an account. It’s absolutely free for non-commercial use and it’s capabilities are pretty mind-blowing.

President Trump released the proposed 2018 Federal budget, A New Foundation for American Greatness, on May 23, 2017.  The budget request for the Department of Interior is $11.7 billion, 12 percent ($1.6 billion) below the Continuting Resolution baseline level.  The proposed cuts to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) are 13% or $137.8 million below the 2017 Continuing Resolution baseline level.