September 30, 2026
The Department of Energy Has Made Limited Progress Implementing the Geospatial Data Act of 2018
We conducted this audit to determine whether the Department of Energy met the requirements of the Geospatial Data Act of 2018 (Act).
The Act was signed into law to develop, drive, and manage the National Spatial Data Infrastructure, which includes the technology, policies, standards, and employees necessary to promote geospatial data sharing throughout Federal, state, tribal, and local governments, and the private sector.
The Department identifies geospatial data, or information that is tied to a location on Earth, as being integral to the Department’s mission. It states that by leveraging location-based information, leaders across the enterprise are empowered to develop evidence-based policies and make knowledge-driven decisions to address the Nation’s energy, environmental, and nuclear challenges.
The Department has made limited progress in implementing the Act and experienced significant personnel changes within its Headquarters-level geospatial data program. Although the Department has taken some actions to implement the Act since our last required review in 2024, the Department has not fully implemented 11 of the Act’s 13 requirements. These outstanding requirements include collecting, maintaining, disseminating, and preserving geospatial data; promoting the integration of geospatial data; setting geospatial data standards; and determining if existing geospatial data from other sources meet the Department’s needs.
Without improving its implementation of the Act, the Department will not be able to adequately manage its collection, maintenance, dissemination, and preservation of geospatial data. This could lead to the Department experiencing increased costs, delays, and reduced impact from the data.
To address the issues identified in this report, we have made three recommendations that, if fully implemented, should improve the Department’s ability to manage its collection, maintenance, dissemination, and preservation of geospatial data.