NSGIC Mid-Year Reports: National Land Parcel Data

Will Craig, from Minnesota, led a discussion of the recent National Land Parcel Data Report. The vision, he reported, is for one nation's worth of data, from multiple data sources. This is part of the NSGIC Advocacy Agenda.

The reality is that parcel data is created a very local level. It should be coordinated at the state level and made available at a national level. The federal government, as a land-holder and manager is in a similar situation, where individual agencies hold parcel data (similar to county data) and that data should be coordinated up to a national system.

Recommendations from the study include making sure there is national leadership and a lead agency and that parcel data, not just cadastre, be added to the idea of Framework data. There should be support for state coordination and local data creation , some funding, and some "carrots and sticks." And the congress should revisit the laws that require the Census Bureau to not share parts of their master address file.

Will Craig suggests working through the FGDC and other mechanisms to push for some of these recommendations. He recommends focusing on these policy issues in a variety of outreach approaches.

Update (3/18/08): Presentation materials from this session are now available on-line.