Esri Supports American Association of Geographers’ Successful Introduction of Geospatial Data Act

Legislation Provides Significant Step toward National Collaboration among the GIS Community

REDLANDS, Calif.—November 16, 2017—Esri, the global leader in spatial analytics, today applauded Congress in introducing the Geospatial Data Act (GDA) of 2017 (S. 2128/H.R. 4395). Legislative sponsors Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA), U.S. Representative Bruce Westerman (R-AR-04), and U.S. Representative Seth Moulton (D-MA-06) demonstrated remarkable leadership in collaborating with GIS organizations across government and industry to advocate for common data standards, interagency collaboration, and transparency to taxpayers on shared national data services.

Agreeing to a common vision will make it easier for federal, state, and local agencies to integrate location data into widespread practice, no matter their size. The American Association of Geographers’ (AAG) industry leadership brought the GIS community together to shape this bipartisan legislation that works for all organizations.

“Esri has a long history of supporting the GIS Community and working to make sure their users’ needs are heard. We applaud their leadership in supporting S. 2128 and H.R. 4395, and look forward to continuing to work with them as this important legislation makes its way through Congress,” said Douglas Richardson, Executive Director of the AAG.

The concept of a portal-to-portal approach for distributed collaboration has long been Esri’s vision. This approach enables new types of collaboration that connects individuals, organizations, and communities and breaks down barriers for sharing geographic knowledge.

“We commend the efforts of GDA’s sponsors along with the AAG, which has taken a leading role in shaping this bill,” said Jack Dangermond, Esri founder and president. “This is a significant piece of legislation to address how geospatial information is organized and disseminated and an indication that our industry continues to thrive. We appreciate the leadership from AAG in bringing the community together to shape legislation that works for all of us.”

Recent technological advances, such as Web GIS and easy imagery integration services, further empower governments and agencies to disseminate information widely and quickly. Standards and practices based on location technology will help eliminate redundancies and increase return on investment.

To learn how policymakers use GIS, visit go.esri.com/policy.

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 About Esri

Esri, the global market leader in geographic information system (GIS) software, offers the most powerful mapping and spatial analytics technology available. Since 1969, Esri has helped customers unlock the full potential of data to improve operational and business results. Today, Esri software is deployed in more than 350,000 organizations including the world’s largest cities, most national governments, 75 percent of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri engineers the most advanced solutions for digital transformation, the Internet of Things (IoT), and location analytics to inform the most authoritative maps in the world. Visit us at esri.com.