Maryland is considering new policy that would make state GIS data more accessible to the general public.
SB 94, sponsored by Sen. Bill Ferguson, D-Baltimore City, eliminates the ability of local governments to charge fees for providing GIS services. The bill also repeals a state requirement that only the person who has entered into a contract with a government is permitted online access to the data.
The legislation is one of the first recommendations from the state’s Council on Open Data, which formed last year. The measure would replace language in Maryland Code passed in 1992 that enabled state and local agencies to recoup the cost of reproducing the data or giving access to it.
