USGS invites comment on proposed US Geospatial, Platform initiative

Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) interface and encoding standards are included in a proposed US Federal Government Geospatial Platform.

The vision for the Platform was described in the US President’s Fiscal Year 2011 budget:

“In 2010 and 2011, Federal data managers for geospatial data will move to a portfolio management approach, creating a Geospatial Platform to support Geospatial One-Stop, place-based initiatives, and other potential future programs. This transformation will be facilitated by improving the governance framework to address the requirements of State, local and tribal agencies, Administration policy, and agency mission objectives. Investments will be prioritized based on business needs.The Geospatial Platform will explore opportunities for increased collaboration with Data.gov, with an emphasis on reuse of architectural standards and technology, ultimately increasing access to geospatial data.”

The US Geological Survey invites comments and suggestions on the proposed Geospatial Platform initiative. Details of the initiative and a form for entering comments can be found here. Comments will be accepted through December, 2010.