Agriculture, transport and infrastructure

Executive Order 12906: Coordinating Geographic Data Acquisition and Access: The National Spatial Data Infrastructure

President: Bill Clinton

Established coordinated federal leadership, metadata, standards, public access and partnerships for geospatial data; the framework continues under later law and amendments.

Status: In effect as amended by EO 13286.

Is Executive Order 12906 still in effect? Yes, as amended by EO 13286.

What does Executive Order 12906 do?

EO 12906 directed the Interior-chaired Federal Geographic Data Committee to coordinate the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. It required a clearinghouse, standard metadata for new data, public-access plans, checks against duplicative collection, common standards, a national data framework and nonfederal partnerships. EO 13286 made homeland-security conforming amendments. The Geospatial Data Act of 2018 later placed major FGDC and national-spatial-data duties in statute, so current implementation rests on both later law and the executive framework.

Administration position: The order argued that coordination and reusable standards would reduce duplication and improve public and governmental use. It did not require release of protected national-security or private information.
SignedApril 11, 1994
Federal leadInterior-chaired FGDC
Initial clearinghouse stepWithin six months

Before and after

Before the order

OMB Circular A-16 coordinated mapping activity without the order’s full clearinghouse, metadata and partnership program.

After the order

Agencies had common access, documentation, planning and anti-duplication duties for geospatial data.

Who had to do what

Agency / officeActionTiming / position
FGDCCoordinate NSDI standards, framework and partnershipsContinuing under later law
AgenciesDocument new geospatial data and plan lawful public accessUnder the framework
AgenciesCheck shared resources before funding duplicate collectionBefore new acquisition

What happened next

EO 12906 launched the coordinated NSDI initiative.

EO 13286 made homeland-security conforming amendments.

The Geospatial Data Act supplied a statutory governance framework.