WASHINGTON, DC, March 9, 2010 - A bill to authorize the program known within the geospatial community as "Imagery for the Nation" is being presented for introduction in Congress, MAPPS announced today.

"'Map it once, use it many times' is not only a mantra in the geospatial community, but it is technologically feasible through the use of satellite and aerial imagery and geographic information systems. To save tax dollars, create private sector jobs, and provide baseline geographic data for economic development and a variety of other applications beneficial to government programs and private business and investment, MAPPS is urging Congress to authorize and fund a program of geospatial image maps of the United States through a bill known as the Making America Prosperous Act, or MAP Act," said Jeff Lovin, PS,CP, (Woolpert, Inc, Dayton, OH) MAPPS President.

More than 100 members of MAPPS will be at the U.S. Capitol tomorrow, meeting with members of Congress to discuss geospatial issues. MAPPS members will be seeking introduction of the MAP Act.

Dozens of Federal agencies, virtually every state, and hundreds of regional, local and tribal units of government acquire imagery each year. These acquisitions support a variety of applications, including E-911, police, fire and public safety, emergency response and homeland security. Additionally, orthophoto image maps are used for efficient and equitable local property taxes; transportation operations, management and planning; utilities management; planning and zoning; agriculture and resource management; insurance; education planning and social services.
"Today, these agencies each acquire their own imagery. These ad hoc programs result in costly duplication. A consolidated program provides an economical approach to inter-governmental use of ortho imagery and help provide data for hundreds of applications in the U.S. economy," Lovin said.

"An ortho image map is not an end, it is a means to an end," Lovin said. "The end or outcome we're seeking is economic growth, jobs creation, and sound planning, design, operation and management of natural resources, transportation and infrastructure, and other applications. That is why, for political branding purposes, we've named our legislation the Making America Prosperous Act, or MAP Act. MAPPS believes that authorization of the program by Congress and branding the program as a means to economic growth is what is needed for a national ortho image-map program to become a reality."

About MAPPS
Formed in 1982, MAPPS is the only national association exclusively comprised of private firms in the remote sensing, spatial data and geographic information systems field in the United States. Current MAPPS memberships span the entire spectrum of the geospatial community, including Member Firms engaged in satellite and airborne remote sensing, surveying, photogrammetry, aerial photography, LIDAR, hydrography, bathymetry, charting, aerial and satellite image processing, GPS, and GIS data collection and conversion services. MAPPS also includes Associate Member Firms, which are companies that provide hardware, software, products and services to the geospatial profession in the United States and other firms from around the world. MAPPS provides its 180+ member firms opportunities for networking and developing business-to-business relationships, information sharing, education, public policy advocacy, market growth, and professional development and image enhancement.

 For more information on MAPPS, please visit www.MAPPS.org.