Day: August 26, 2025

The OIG has released a report assessing DHS’s progress in fulfilling the requirements of the Geospatial Data Act of 2018 (GDA), including geospatial data standards and covered agency responsibilities.

Why the OIG Did This Audit

The GDA requires each covered agency to fulfill 13 responsibilities to foster efficient management and use of geospatial data — information linked to specific geographic locations. The GDA also mandates that the DHS Office of Inspector General submit to Congress a biennial audit report on the agency’s progress in fulfilling the GDA’s responsibilities. We conducted this audit to assess DHS’ progress in fulfilling the requirements of the GDA, including geospatial data standards and covered agency responsibilities. This is the third biennial audit of DHS’ compliance with GDA.

What the OIG Found

The Department of Homeland Security has made significant progress toward fulfilling Geospatial Data Act of 2018 (GDA) responsibilities since our last review in 2022. As of December 2024, DHS met 10 of 13 responsibilities, including advancing the following responsibilities from partially meets to meets:

• implementing a strategy for advancing geographic information;
• ensuring products can be readily shared with other Federal and non-Federal users;
• allocating resources to fulfill the responsibilities of effective geospatial data collection;
• protecting personal privacy and maintaining confidentiality; and
• searching all sources to determine if geospatial data meets the needs of the agency before expending funds for geospatial data collection.

DHS has partially met two other responsibilities: ensuring it includes products and records on agency record schedules approved by the National Archives and Records Administration and using geospatial data standards. We deemed DHS exempt from the remaining responsibility related to declassified data after the Geospatial Management Office confirmed that DHS has not declassified geospatial data during this biennial period.

DHS’ progress in fulfilling GDA requirements will help it achieve the Act’s intended purpose of creating a more collaborative, effective, and transparent geospatial data environment across all levels of government.

Read the full OIG report here.