"Enterprise GIS" Initiative Establishes MnGeo

The Minnesota Geospatial Information Office, known as MnGeo, was established in May 2009 as the first state agency with legislatively defined responsibility for coordinating GIS within Minnesota.

It was created based upon a recommendation made by the Drive to Excellence Sub-Cabinet to pursue an enterprise strategy to implementing GIS within the state. Drive to Excellence was a high-level state-government reform program that recommended government reforms to improve government services.

MnGeo succeeds the Land Management Information Center. Created in 1977 as the first state agency anywhere exclusively devoted to providing GIS services within state government, LMIC's role evolved from a project-oriented program to Minnesota's "ad hoc" GIS coordinating organization. With the passage of legislation to create MnGeo, LMIC ceased to exist. However, all of LMIC's functions essential to MnGeo's coordination responsibilities, along with LMIC's resources, were transferred to the new office.

The process of developing the recommendation included a large cross-section of stakeholders and was guided by an Enterprise GIS steering committee and workgroups that included members of the Strategic Planning Committee of the Minnesota Governor's Council on Geographic Information. Many of these contributors then served on the State Government Geospatial Advisory Council which was active from October 2009 - August 2013.

For more information, see the "Enterprise GIS" Drive to Excellence Initiative webpage.