December 2010

Inside this issue:

President’s Column 2

Legislative Affairs Survey 2

Privacy Proposals 3

Congressional Races 3

MAPPS Membership List 4

Fall Policy Conference 5

Winter Conference 6

New Member Firms 7

New PA-MAPPS Officers 9

Public Service Award 9

MAPPS Board Approves 2011 Budget No Dues Increase, New Membership Packages Offered

Baker Wins MAPPS Grand Award

See Awards page 5

Michael Baker Jr., Inc., Harris-

burg, PA, was selected as the

Grand Award winner in the 4th

Annual MAPPS Geospatial

Products and Services Excel-

lence Awards competition pre-

sented November 17 in Kissim-

mee, FL. Baker's project, "U.S.

Bureau of Census - Accurate

Coordinate Datasets Collec-

tion," generated spatial ground

control for 1,018 counties and

municipalities, spanning 37

different U.S. States and five

U.S. territories in support of the

Census Bureau's MAF/TIGER

Accuracy Improvement Project.

The project spanned over four

and a half years and was deliv-

ered ahead of schedule, and

$2.4 million under budgeted

allocation.

"Baker was selected due to the

overall size and complexity of

the project, as well as the glow-

ing client recommendation,"

said Christine Grahl, editor for

POB Magazine, Troy, Michi-

gan, one of the judges who

evaluated the submitted pro-

jects. "Baker's ability to coordi-

nate multiple resources and

overcome a multitude of chal-

lenges to deliver such a large

project ahead of schedule,

Upcoming MAPPS

Events

For updates go to: www.mapps.org

MAPPS 2011 Winter Conference January 24 – 28, 2011

Radisson Lucaya Resort Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas

MAPPS 2011 Summer Conference June 26-30, 2011

The Sagamore Resort Bolton Landing, NY

MAPPS 2011 Federal Programs Conference

March 15 -16, 2011 The Westin City Center

Washington, DC

MAPPS 2012 Winter Conference January 22-26, 2012 Arizona Biltmore

Phoenix, AZ

MAPPS 2012 Federal Programs Conference

March 13-14, 2012 The Westin City Center

Washington, DC

In recognition of the continuing

economic slowdown, the

MAPPS Board of Directors has

approved a 2011 budget that

keeps dues at the same level as

2010. The Board‟s 2011 fiscal

plan calls for revenue of

$841,400 with no change in the

basic dues level for all catego-

ries of firms.

In response to a recommenda-

tion of a dues task force chaired

by David Hart (Continental

Mapping Consultants, Sun Prai-

rie, WI), the Board has ap-

proved and implemented a new

voluntary package or “bundle”

program of one-time payment

of dues and conference registra-

tion.

The “Emerald Package” com-

bines MAPPS annual member-

ship dues and registration fees

for one firm principal to attend

three major MAPPS confer-

ences within the firm‟s mem-

bership term (includes Winter,

Federal Programs, and Summer

conferences). Purchase of the

Emerald Package at the time of

membership renewal results in

at least a 5% discount from the

early registration fee for the

MAPPS conferences. This

package is $2,190 in addition to

base membership dues.

A new “Diamond Package”

combines MAPPS annual mem-

bership base dues, a Platinum

Sustaining Membership, a

Diamond Sponsorship at the

MAPPS Summer or Winter

conference and registration

fees for two firm principals to

attend three major MAPPS

conferences within the firm‟s

membership term (includes

Winter, Federal Programs, and

Summer conferences). Addi-

tionally, purchase of the Dia-

mond Package at the time of

membership renewal results in

at least a 5% discount from the

early registration fees for the

MAPPS conferences. This

package is $12,880 in addition

to base membership dues.

See Budget page 4

Michael Baker Jr., Inc. (Harrisburg, PA) won

two MAPPS Excellence Awards for its entry

of a U.S. Bureau of Census project. Baker

recipients Colleen Ditmars and Robert Han-

son display the awards for the Photogram-

metry/Elevation Data Generation category

and the 2010 Grand Award respectively.

MAPPS Excellence Awards Reception,

sponsored by Riegl USA (Orlando, FL), was

held in a hangar at Kissimmee Gateway

Airport during the MAPPS Fall Policy Con-

ference in Orlando, FL.

MAPPS Excellence Awards reception: (L to

R) Jerry Skaw, Microsoft/Vexcel Imaging;

Jeff Lovin, Woolpert, MAPPS President;

Claire Kiedrowski, KAPPA Mapping; Gary

Florence, Photo Science; Christine Grahl,

POB Magazine, Awards Judge and Presenter;

Layton Hobbs, Woolpert; John Palatiello,

MAPPS Executive Director.

“You can have brilliant ideas, but if

you can't get them across, your

ideas won't get you anywhere.”

— Lee Iacocca

Communication within any

organization is the key to suc-

cess. This holds especially true

for a member-driven organiza-

tion such as MAPPS. Without

information sharing and input

from the membership, MAPPS

would not be able to facilitate

the networking opportunities

that have made the association

so attractive to firm principals,

owners, partners and senior

professional executives. With-

out information sharing,

MAPPS would also not be able

to achieve the political impact it

has experienced in its 27-year

history.

The MAPPS staff continues to

keep the membership engaged

through many different forums:

FLIGHTLINE and Capitol

Coverage as well as through the

ever changing Web 2.0 social

media platforms such as Twit-

ter, Facebook, YouTube, and

LinkedIN (to follow MAPPS

after becoming a member of

LinkedIN).

MAPPS also uses periodic

membership surveys, such as

the just-released 2011 Legisla-

tives Priorities survey, and our

semi-annual economic survey.

I am please to announce that

MAPPS is adding yet another

communications vehicle. Two

committees have launched

“discussion boards” for use by

committee members. It is fitting

that the Legislative Affairs and

Emerging Markets committees

are the pioneers of using this

means of communication, as

they are often the most demand-

ing of news and information

sharing among the membership.

Click here to log on.

This forum is meant to be a

secure place for members to

discuss issues and trends that

affect your firm, practice and

business. It can also provide

content on items you would like

to see on Federal legislation, a

focused venue for state issues

or topics for consideration for

MAPPS conference programs.

Instructions on how to access

the forum can be found here on

the members only section of

the MAPPS web site. By creat-

ing an account, you will be

able to engage in the content

and conversations.

With a new Congress and the

ever changing marketplace, it is

important to share information

and for the Board of Directors

and staff to hear the opinions of

the membership. It is only by

way of communication that we

can set the agenda of the asso-

ciation to best benefit you, the

members.

Page 2 FLIGHTLINE

Jeff Lovin

MAPPS President

“Through these media,

MAPPS seeks input

from members and

continues discussions

about the geospatial

market during and

after MAPPS

meetings.”

President’s Column Communication by Jeff Lovin, PS, CP

MAPPS needs feedback and

input on areas of legislative

significance to firms in the geo-

spatial marketplace.

A special legislative issues sur-

vey has been sent to all mem-

bers via email. This survey

seeks member views on key

issues likely to come before the

U.S. Congress in 2011.

MAPPS members have an op-

pourtunity to provide answers

to six questions by participating

in a brief survey. The deadline

for participation is Friday, De-

cember 10. Direct feedback

from members will help the

MAPPS Legislative Affairs

Committee and Board of Direc-

tors prioritize the legislative

issues for the 2011 MAPPS

Federal Programs Conference,

to be held March 15-16, 2011 in

Washington, DC.

Call for Legislative Affairs Agenda

To Become a

LinkedIN Member Once You Are a

LinkedIN Member

Page 3 FLIGHTLINE

“Privacy” Proposals Threaten Geospatial Data Activities

Proposed legislation and regula-

tion intended to protect individ-

ual citizen privacy could have a

harmful affect on the broad pri-

vate geospatial community,

MAPPS has warned.

Last week, the Federal Trade

Commission released a staff re-

port that recommends (p61) -

“The Commission staff has sup-

ported affirmative express con-

sent where companies collect

sensitive information for online

behavioral advertising and con-

tinues to believe that certain

types of sensitive information

warrant special protection, such

as information about children,

financial and medical informa-

tion, and precise geolocation

data. Thus, before any of this

data is collected, used, or shared,

staff believes that companies

should seek affirmative express

consent.” (emphasis added.)

MAPPS Executive Director John

Palatiello and MAPPS member

Kevin Promfet, Esq. (LeClair

Ryan, PC, Richmond, VA)

briefed the National Geospatial

Advisory Committee (NGAC) on

the threat on December 7.

This proposal, like legislation

that was introduced but not acted

upon by Congress, uses the very

broad term “precise geolocation

data”, but does not define the

View” mapping feature.

In a letter to P. Michele Elli-

son, Bureau Chief of the

Enforcement Bureau of the

FCC, MAPPS wrote ,

“Specifically, we were con-

cerned that privacy legisla-

tion, or FCC regulation, that

imprecisely uses and regu-

lates the term „precise geolo-

cation information‟ would

adversely impact consumers,

geospatial firms and govern-

ment programs. We were

particularly concerned that

this term was not defined in

the draft and introduced leg-

islation.”

“The geospatial community

is one of the fastest growing

in the marketplace. It has

been identified by the US

Department of Labor as one

of the “high growth” sectors

of the US workforce. We are

concerned that unintended

consequences of future FCC

regulation will stymie eco-

nomic growth, job creation,

and introduction of new con-

sumer products enabled by

geospatial technologies.”

Further, MAPPS said in the

letter, “The use of the term

„geolocation‟ or other geo-

spatial relevant terminology

that may appear in future

term. The imprecise use of

the term could have broad

implications, and unintended

consequences, that could be

very damaging to the geospa-

tial community. To require

that any geospatial firm to

obtain “affirmative express

consent” from every citizen

about whom precise geoloca-

tion data is to be collected is

impractical to the point of

being impossible. This

would require every citizen

to be contacted and approval

obtained before parcel, im-

agery, planimetric or eleva-

tion data, or any other geolo-

cation data can be collected,

used, or shared.

MAPPS earlier urged the

Federal Communications

Commission (FCC) to use

extreme caution and not im-

plement any enforcement or

broad regulation that would

have a harmful affect on the

broad private geospatial

community. The warning is

similar to one MAPPS con-

veyed to Congress regarding

proposed privacy legislation.

According to an Associated

Press article dated November

10, 2010, the FCC is investi-

gating Google‟s activities

including photographing

neighborhoods for its “Street

FCC regulation could impose

a significant new liability on

our members. Also, it could

thwart some common, legiti-

mate and emerging uses of

geospatial data for emergency

response/post disaster reme-

diation, insurance, environ-

mental protection, E-911 &

ambulance services, fleet

management broadband map-

ping, home security, naviga-

tion, mortgage foreclosure

monitoring/early warning

system, and others. Moreover,

activities, technologies and

applications development

could be deemed illegal. For

example, it would be imprac-

tical, if not impossible, for our

member firms to obtain prior

approval or consent from indi-

vidual citizens prior to acquir-

ing or applying data such as

satellite imagery, aerial pho-

tography, or parcel, address,

or transportation data. A FCC

regulation of this nature

would effectively ban our

member firms, or their clients,

from important value-added,

integration and application

activities. Finally, any such

FCC regulation could put US

companies at a significant and

insurmountable competitive

disadvantage against foreign

firms that may not be covered

by that regulation, or for

which enforcement would be

impractical.”

MAPPS PAC Supported Candidates Win 41 of 43 Congressional Races

The MAPPS Political Action

Committee (MAPPS PAC) pro-

vided $50,000 in support for 43

candidates for the U.S. Senate

and House of Representatives in

the November 2 election. Two

candidates were not on the No-

vember ballot.

the PAC supported GOP

candidates won 32-2, win-

ning 94% of the time;

the PAC supported Sen-

ate candidates won 10-1,

winning, 91% of the time;

the MAPPS PAC sup-

ported candidates won 41-2,

winning 95% of the time;

the PAC supported De-

mocratic candidates won 9-0,

winning 100% of the time;

the PAC supported House

candidates won 31-1, winning

97% of the time;

the PAC supported candi-

dates won as incumbents 25-

0, winning 100% of the time;

See Contributions page 7

Page 4 FLIGHTLINE

MAPPS Board Approves 2011 Budget Budget, continued from page 1

The Diamond and Emerald

Packages are additions to what

MAPPS has offered in the past.

Members may still choose to

make separate payments for

membership, conference regis-

trations and sponsorships. For

more information, visit the

MAPPS web site (link).

MAPPS government affairs

efforts, particularly at the

state level. The increase was

provided to take advantage

of significant increases in pro

-free enterprise governors

and state legislators elected

on November 2.

MAPPS will also be imple-

All firms with a dues anni-

versary date of December 31,

2010 have been invoiced for

2011 dues. All firms with

any other anniversary date

will be invoiced upon such

date in 2011.

The 2011 budget provides an

increase in funding for

menting an upgrade to its web

site that will provide members

a more robust and searchable

database of member firms to

enhance the identification of

firms for networking, partner-

ing and business-to-business

opportunities.

MAPPS Contact Information Available to Members

The MAPPS Board of Directors

approved the rental of an elec-

tronic database of MAPPS con-

tacts as a service to members.

The action, approved during its

November meeting in Orlando,

FL, allows current MAPPS

members in good standing to

rent a spreadsheet of member-

ship contact information. The

a subscription basis, with

quarterly updates for $500.

“The MAPPS staff reported

that there are numerous re-

quests throughout the year

for an electronic database of

contacts, especially after

conferences, and we felt like

the traditional method of

information provided in the

database is currently avail-

able to MAPPS members on

the web site. However, this

rental process eliminates the

need for time consuming

data mining.

The database can be rented

for a one time fee of $300 or

mining this data was out-dated

and cumbersome to our mem-

bers,” said Jeff Lovin,

MAPPS President. “MAPPS

will not sell or rent the data-

base to anyone outside the

membership and expect the

members who take advantage

of this service to abide by the

policy statement set forth.”

See MAPPS Contacts page 6

Page 5 FLIGHTLINE

under budget and with a 99.6%

first-time acceptance rate on de-

liverables is worthy of acclaim."

MAPPS awarded winners in six

technical categories. Baker's Cen-

sus project won in the Photo-

grammetry/Elevation Data Gen-

eration category. Photo Science's

project, "Humboldt Bay Ecosys-

tem Mapping" won for Airborne

and Satellite Data Acquisition.

Woolpert, Inc. won for "City of

Columbus 2009 Impervious Sur-

face Program" in Remote Sens-

ing. The Sidwell Company's pro-

ject, "Improved Geospatial Ca-

dastral Mapping with GIS Inte-

gration" was selected in GIS/IT.

Kappa Mapping won the Small

Projects category for "Tenant's

members strive to provide."

A panel of independent

judges evaluated projects

submitted by MAPPS mem-

bers for the awards program.

Joining Ms. Grahl on the

panel was chairman Robert

Burtch PS, CP, Ferris State

University, Big Rapids,

Michigan; Pamela Lawhead,

associate professor at the Uni-

versity of Mississippi in Ox-

ford, Mississippi; Leonard

Gilroy, AICP, director of

government reform at Reason

Foundation, Los Angeles,

CA; and Donn Dears, presi-

dent of TSAugust.org, a non-

profit think tank conducting

research on energy and eco-

Harbor Buoy Counting Pro-

ject". And Microsoft was cho-

sen in Technology Innovation

for its "UltraCam L/Lp" digi-

tal aerial camera.

"MAPPS member firms have

once again demonstrated the

professionalism, innovation

and societal benefit that the

private geospatial community

provides to enhance our qual-

ity of life," said MAPPS Ex-

ecutive Director John Pala-

tiello. "On a daily basis,

MAPPS member firms are

providing quality services,

data and technology products.

The Excellence Awards high-

light these achievements and

the professionalism MAPPS

nomic issues, in Geneva, Illi-

nois.

The awards presentation took

place at the MAPPS Fall Pol-

icy Conference, held in con-

junction with the Special Joint

Symposium of ISPRS Techni-

cal Commission IV and Auto-

Carto 2010 held in association

with the ASPRS/CaGIS Spe-

cialty Conference on GIS Day,

November 17, 2010. The

awards reception was spon-

sored by Riegl USA, a MAPPS

member firm, at the Kissim-

mee Florida Airport.

The six winning projects are

available for viewing on the

MAPPS web site.

Six Firms Recognized for Winning MAPPS Excellence Awards AWARDS, continued from page 1

Services in support of the Army

Geospatial Center, the develop-

ment of a federal “Geospatial

Platform”, a new program to

provide a “National Enhanced

Elevation Program,” and policy

issues affecting small businesses

were topics briefed to MAPPS

members at the 2010 Fall Policy

Conference, held November 18

in Orlando, FL.

Robert W. Burkhardt, Director

of the Army Geospatial Center

(AGC) and Geospatial Informa-

tion Officer (GIO), outlined

several upcoming procurements

for new and advanced geospatial

technologies. Karen Siderelis,

Geographic Information Office

of the U.S. Department of the

Interior, made one of the first

public presentations on the pro-

posed "Geospatial Platform", a

managed portfolio of common

geospatial data, services, and

applications contributed and

evening of the MAPPS Pub-

lic Service Award, warned

members of threats from

several federal initiatives,

including insourcing, and a

potential “high road” con-

tracting policy, which would

allow agencies to favor labor

-friendly firms when evaluat-

ing bids or proposals. Clark

also highlighted provisions

in the recently enacted small

business jobs legislation,

including new SBA loans for

plant and facility expansion,

a $10,000 tax credit for new

business start-ups, and an

increased tax credit for ex-

porting.

Liaison meetings between

MAPPS and several key

agencies were held. MAPPS

members conferred with Paul

Rooney of FEMA, Robert

Mesko and Keith Short of

the US Army Corps of Engi-

administered by authoritative

sources and hosted on a

shared infrastructure, for use

by government agencies and

partners to meet their mis-

sion needs and the broader

needs of the Nation. Larry

Sugarbaker, US Geological

Survey, unveiled a plan to

develop a National Enhanced

Elevation Program, to in-

clude LIDAR and other ele-

vation technologies, to pro-

vide a national program for a

three-dimensional model of

multiple surfaces.

Presentations from each of

these briefings are available

on the Members Only section

of the MAPPS web site.

Major L. Clark, III, Assistant

Chief Counsel for Procure-

ment, Small Business Ad-

ministration (SBA) Office of

Advocacy, recipient the prior

neers, Kari Craun of USGS,

Miki Schmidt, Mike Aslaksen

and Ronnie Taylor of NOAA,

Dale Samson and DJ Staub of

FAA, and Ray Lauer of NGA

on agendas of issues affecting

private geospatial firms‟ work

for and relationship with these

agencies.

Federal Initiatives Highlighted at MAPPS Fall Policy Conference

Robert W. Burkhardt, Director, AGC and

GIO spoke at the MAPPS Fall Policy

Conference in Orlando, FL.

Page 6

MAPPS Meetings Are Better In... Conference Sponsors

Diamond Sponsors

Gold Sponsors

Bronze Sponsors

Silver Sponsors

MAPPS 2011 Winter Conference

January 24 – 28 Radisson Our Lucaya Resort

Grand Bahama Island, Bahamas

Make your Hotel Reservations & Register TODAY!

www.mapps.org

Platinum Sponsor

Sponsorships Available

Contact

sally @mapps.org

Session Highlights:

· Interior Motives: BIM Applications, Equipment and Methodology

· Five Minutes to New Business Partners

· Town Hall on Federal Procurement: What changes in government

contracting rules would you like to see?

· Mapping the 2011 Political Landscape

· GPS/INS Technology: The Next Generation

· Mobile Mapping Forum II: Lessons Learned, Potholes and

Opportunities

· Winning the Award: How to benefit from MAPPS and other

professional awards programs

· A Government Contracting Education Proposition

· Making NOAA’s Digital Coast a Reality

· Economic Survey Results

· Clearing the Air: An update on UAVs

· Opportunities in the World of GeoINT

Page 7 FLIGHTLINE

Welcome Back

Autodesk

Do you know of a firm that

would benefit from becoming

a MAPPS member?

Please send contact informa-

tion to Nick Palatiello, MAPPS

Marketing & Communications

Manager.

MAPPS Welcomes New Member Firms

www.efsgeotech.com 147 Greenfield Dr. Monticello, AR 71655 Glen Dabney President gdabney@efsgeotech.com 870-460-9994

www.midwestaerialphoto.com 7535 W. Broad St. Galloway, OH 43119 Ken Scruggs President ken@midwestaerialphoto.com 614-853-2902

MAPPS PAC Contributions continued from page 3

the PAC supported candi-

dates won as challengers 8-2,

winning 80% of the time; and

the PAC supported candi-

dates won open seats 8-0, win-

ning 100% of the time.

These candidates were selected

for support from our PAC based

on their records on geospatial

and general business issues,

committee assignments, leader-

ship positions, and the status of

their election campaigns. This

cycle, we continued our imple-

mentation of a comprehensive

process of candidate evaluation,

input from our members, and

staff analysis.

Senator Richard Burr (R-NC)

Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA)

Senator John McCain (R-AZ)

Senator John Thune (R-SD)

Representative Ron Kind (D-

WI)

Representative Jack Kingston (R

-GA)

Representative Doug Lamborn

(R-CO)

Representative Carolyn Ma-

loney (D-NY)

Representative Don Manzullo

(R-IL)

Representative Tom Petri (R-

WI)

Representative Nick Rahall (D-

WV)

Representative Dutch Ruppers-

berger (D-MD)

Representative Pete Sessions (R

-TX)

Representative Nydia Velasquez

(D-NY)

Representative Lynn Westmore-

land (R-GA)

House Candidate Lou Barletta

(R-PA), challenger

House Candidate Rick Berg (R-

ND), challenger

House Candidate Dan Debicella

(R-CT), challenger - LOST

Senator David Vitter (R-LA)

Senate Candidate John Booz-

man (R-AR), challenger

Senate Candidate Ken Buck (R-

CO), challenger - LOST

Senate Candidate Ron Johnson

(R-WI), challenger

Senate Candidate Dan Coats (R-

IN), open seat

Senate Candidate Mike Lee (R-

UT), open seat

Senate Candidate Marco Rubio

(R-FL), open seat

Representative Rob Andrews (D

-NJ)

Representative Michele Bach-

mann (R-MN)

Representative Brian Bilbray (R

-CA)

Representative Jim Costa (D-

CA)

Representative Charlie Dent (R-

PA)

Representative John Duncan (R-

TN)

Representative Sam Graves (R-

MO)

Representative Ruben Hinojosa

(D-TX)

House Candidate Bill Flores (R-

TX), challenger

House Candidate Cory Gardner

(R-CO), challenger

House Candidate Andy Harris (R

-MD), challenger

House Candidate Vicky Hartzler

(R-MO), challenger

House Candidate Mike Kelly (R-

PA), challenger

House Candidate Sean Duffy (R-

WI), open seat

House Candidate David

McKinley (R-WV), open seat

House Candidate Pat Meehan (R-

PA), open seat House Candidate Todd Rokita (R-IN), open seat

House Candidate Tim Scott (R-SC),

open seat

Contributions to the MAPPS

PAC for the 2011-2012 Elec-

tion cycle can be made on-

line.

MAPPS to Provide Contact Database to Members MAPPS Contacts continued from page 4 The policy statement for the

rental is as follows:

MAPPS allows firms in good

standing to purchase an elec-

tronic database of all member

contacts. This information is

available on the MAPPS website,

however, as a service to our

dence using the database

prior to the release. The da-

tabase is not to be resold or

retransmitted to anyone out-

side of the purchasing firm.

The database is to be used in

accordance with the MAPPS

Code of Ethics.

membership an Excel spread-

sheet of this data will be pro-

vided for a fee. Data provided

from MAPPS will be com-

piled from information pro-

vided by the membership and

is only as accurate as submit-

ted. MAPPS staff must be

provided all email correspon-

MAPPS continues to rent mail-

ing labels of contacts at firms

for a fee of $100 per use.

For more information about

the mailing list rental please

contact Nick Palatiello, Mar-

keting Communications Man-

ager.

www.ittvis.com 4990 Pearl East Circle Boulder, CO 80301 Cherie Darnel Global Technical Marketing Specialist

cdarnel@ittvis.com 303-786-9900

Page 8 FLIGHTLINE

See MAPPS Contacts Page 6

Page 9 FLIGHTLINE

PA-MAPPS, the Pennsylvania

chapter of MAPPS, named offi-

cers and directors for the associa-

tion's Board of Directors and set

priorities for the chapter for 2011.

The Board of Directors of PA-

MAPPS consists of the following

members and positions:

▫ President: Con Sweeney, Mi-

chael Baker Jr., Inc. (Harrisburg,

PA)

▫ President-Elect: Stephen Ellis,

GISP, GeoDecisions a divison of

Gannett Fleming, Inc. (Camp

Hill, PA)

▫ Secretary: Rob Rowe, GISP,

MAPPS and those working

with me on the board," said

Con Sweeney, PA-MAPPS

President. "During the last

year we strengthened our

partnership with the other

geospatial practitioner groups

in Pennsylvania to give voice

to the need for greater utiliza-

tion of geospatial data for the

benefit of the citizens of the

Commonwealth. We plan to

continue this message with

the newly elected Governor

and legislature over the next

year."

The Board of Directors also

announced the creation of

Herbert, Rowland & Grubic,

Inc. (State College, PA)

▫ Treasurer: Ashis Pal, GISP,

geographIT (Lancaster, PA)

▫ Director: Michael Shillenn,

CP, Photo Science, Inc. (West

Chester, PA)

In addition to the board posi-

tions, Pete Quigley, Keddal

Aerial Mapping, a division of

Kucera International, was

appointed as the membership

chair.

"I am grateful for the support

of the members of PA-

programs and legislative com-

mittees. The programs com-

mittee will work to provide

greater content to the member-

ship, including business devel-

opment and networking, as

well as support the profes-

sional geospatial conferences

within the Commonwealth.

The legislative committee will

work closely with other stake-

holders in Pennsylvania to

continue to make a geospatial

coordination council a reality.

PA-MAPPS will hold a gen-

eral membership meeting on

Thursday, December 16, 2010

at which time committee lead-

ership positions will be filled.

PA-MAPPS Elects New Officers, Creates Committees

SBA's Major Clark Receives MAPPS Public Service Award Major L. Clark III, Assistant

Chief Counsel for Procurement

at the Small Business Admini-

stration (SBA), was presented

the MAPPS Public Service

Award on Wednesday, Novem-

ber 17, 2010 at the MAPPS Fall

Policy Conference in Orlando,

FL.

Mr. Clark was recognized for

his role in revising the

"retainage" regulation. His lead-

ership led to the revision of a

provision in the Federal Acqui-

sition Regulation (FAR) that

mandated a clause in Federal

contracts for architecture and

engineering services, including

surveying and mapping services,

that mandated a withholding or

retainage of 10 percent of fees,

regardless of the risk to the gov-

ernment or the quality of the

firm's performance. The rule,

FAR 52.232-10, was revised in

the public and the geospatial

profession in their govern-

ment service roles.

"Major Clark has long been

an effective advocate for

small business, but went

above and beyond the call of

duty to see the retainage rule

changed," said John Pala-

tiello, MAPPS Executive

Director.

Mr. Clark began his current

position in 1998 as Assistant

General Counsel for Procure-

ment Policy in SBA's Office

of Advocacy. He previously

served as staff director to the

Small Business Committee

of the U.S. House of Repre-

sentatives, Associate Gradu-

ate Professor at Morgan State

University, and Executive

Vice President, Corporate

Development and Admini-

March 2010, as the first

regulation to go through the

SBA Office of Advocacy

process known as R3 --

Regulatory Review and Re-

form -- from nomination to

final regulatory revision. The

regulatory change Clark

shepherded through the Fed-

eral bureaucracy made re-

tainage a negotiable, discre-

tionary contract provision.

SBA estimated this action

will save small businesses in

the architecture, engineering,

surveying and mapping field

$335 million.

The Public Service Award

was established by the

MAPPS board of directors to

recognize and honor employ-

ees in public service posi-

tions who have made ex-

traordinary contributions to

stration for an information

technology firm.

Clark is only the second re-

cipient of the MAPPS award.

It was first presented to

Moody K. "M.K." Miles, III

Deputy Chief of Engineering

and Construction, Civil Works

Directorate, headquarters of

the U.S. Army Corps of Engi-

neers in June 2007.

1856 Old Reston Avenue

Suite 205

Reston, VA 20190

Phone: 703-787-6996

Fax: 703-787-7550

E-mail: info@mapps.org

Formed in 1982, MAPPS is the only national association exclusively

comprised of private firms in the remote sensing, spatial data and geo-

graphic information systems field in the United States. Current MAPPS

memberships span the entire spectrum of the geospatial community, in-

cluding 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 As-

sociate 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 150+

member firms opportunities for networking and developing business-to-

business relationships, information sharing, education, public policy ad-

vocacy, market growth, and professional development and image en-

hancement.

About MAPPS

About FLIGHTLINE

FLIGHTLINE is a bi-monthly publication produced by MAPPS, the only association of pri-

vate geospatial firms, to inform members, Federal, state and local agency partners and the geo-

spatial community of news from the organization. FLIGHTLINE has been produced and dis-

tributed since 1985. Originally produced as a hardcopy publication, FLIGHTLINE has evolved

into an e-publication and now provides advertising opportunities. If you do not already receive

FLIGHTLINE and would like to, click here.

To Our Readers

Some information on the MAPPS web site is in the Members Only section. Any MAPPS member firm principal who does not

have access to this section should contact Nick Palatiello, MAPPS Marketing Communications Manager. MAPPS government

partners who desire further information on items in the Members Only section should contact John Byrd, MAPPS Government

Affairs Manager. For information on membership in MAPPS, please click here.

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