View From the Hill
AN ARMY OF REFORM
FEDERAL USERS OF GEOSPATIAL INFORMATION SYSTEM TECHNOLOGY CAN STRETCH FUNDING, COMBAT WASTE AND BECOME AGENTS OF REFORM.
The U.S. military has long capitalized on advancements resulting from the creative thinking of its dedicated professionals. As a continuation of that tradition, users of geospatial information system (GIS) technology in the armed forces, and throughout the federal government, can go beyond their traditional uses of GIS to develop creative solutions to a wide variety of challenges, including effectively stretching the federal dollar, combating waste and even becoming agents of societal reform.
As users of this technology are already aware, GIS allows layers upon layers of data to be fixed to a particular geographic location for analysis. This technique allows decision-makers to more effectively craft solutions to a multitude of government and/or business-related matters. But the true potential of GIS technology rests in its inherent flexibility to allow its users to imaginatively seek correlations between disparate and seemingly unconnected data with remarkable results.
Shortly after coming to Congress in 1985, I became familiar with GIS and the significant potential its users can have for improving government decision-making, delivering cost savings and bettering the community. In my congressional district in Northeastern Pennsylvania, the anthracite coal mining era of the early 20th century devastated a wide swath of land. As a result, over 100,000 mine-scarred acres needed to be reclaimed.
Before making use of GIS technology, as much as half of reclamation funds were typically expended on professional services (accountants, lawyers and engineers). By utilizing the spatial and geographic data provided by GIS, however, engineers were able to design projects much more efficiently. This resulted in a significant reduction of engineering fees and allowed us to target more money toward reclamation.
COMPREHENSIVE PICTURE
GIS users can also be instrumental in stretching the federal dollar to its limits by helping Congress combat waste, fraud and abuse in federal programs and contracting. As we speak, the Congress does not have a comprehensive picture of the totality of the programs funded by the U.S. government. As such, the potential for redundancies to exist in these programs is high, and oversight is reactive in nature. Moreover, without comprehensive oversight ability, waste, fraud and abuse can significantly and negatively impact the confidence of the American people in their government. Speaking as someone who cares about government, this loss of confidence greatly concerns me.
With the help of GIS users throughout the country and at all levels of government, however, a comprehensive picture of these programs can be created. This interoperable picture would allow Congress and the president to understand the interrelatedness and complications of federal programs. A holistic approach such as this would facilitate the elimination of wastefulness where it occurs and be a first step in freeing Congress to exercise proactive and effective oversight of the remaining programs.
Creative uses of GIS technology have already led to significant improvements in the lives of our citizens. For example, the New York City Police Department creatively utilized GIS to more accurately map criminal patterns in that city. Users of GIS layered crime statistics with geographical features such as abandoned buildings, business locations and other features of interest, in order to allow police officials to better allocate resources to respond to problem areas. Positive applications such as these are a direct result of the decisions and actions of individuals who wished to positively impact their surroundings.
Similarly, in many executive branch agencies, including the Department of Defense, GIS is being utilized by a wide variety of professionals who perform a valuable service to their country. With these facts in mind, I would like to encourage these individuals, in each of their wide array of specialties and occupations, to seek creative uses for the GIS technology in front of you in order to reform our government, make it more effective, and ultimately improve the lives of our citizens. ♦
