The various meetings held during the Annual NSPS Board of Directors meeting in Arlington, VA, from March 28-April 1, 2023 were very informative and increased my understanding regarding our profession and the many issues that are currently dealing with at the national level.

I have asked to join the CST Board, the Workforce Development Committee, maybe the Public Relations Committee, and the Education Committee because these are the committees I have some knowledge of or to which I think I can have the most impact and will simultaneously be of the most use to the UCLS given my skill set. If the board would like me involved in others instead, please let me know before I make too many commitments to these committees. FYI, all State Directors are automatically involved in all legislative issues, regional councils and are members of the NSPS Board of Directors.

Due to my outbound flight cancellation, I was unable to make it to the “Day on the Hill” event held on April 29, in which Directors visit the legislators. Although this event is not a requirement for Directors, it is certainly encouraged, and I was very disappointed I could not attend. There were several meetings with Utah legislators and their staff, particularly Sen. Lee, which had been previously set up, but had to be canceled.

The following are my “takeaway” notes, thoughts, and ideas derived from the many meetings. I have several legislative documents which I can make available to the UCLS Board if requested, but I did not want to bog down this report with that volume of documents.

General Notes

• Need State Executive Directors at these meetings — UCLS to sponsor.
• Ryan, Utah Lobbyist — what keywords searches, for what surveyors are involved in, does he use?

Possible Surveying Keywords

• • Boundaries
  • Properties
  • Land
  • Development
  • GIS
  • GPS
    
    
• Introduced the new NSPS website which has some significant and very useful GIS applications for the benefit of the States.
  
  
• Send .shp file of the Utah congressional districts to Linda Foster, VP
  
  
• Incorporate Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning and end of the UCLS Conference or at least the official business meetings
  
  
• Need a UCLS Backdrop for pictures (put it right up on the stage under the screen)
  
  
• NSPS Foundation and WMCEF
  • NSPS Foundation has a chair. WMCEF could have a Chair.
  • UCLS to transfer 100% of scholarship funds into WMCEF.
  • Does WMCEF have an investment company for these funds?
  • Get WMCEF into an investment mode not just sitting in an account.
  • Consider transferring WMCEF funds, with MOA etc., into NSPS Foundation ($1.3m investing pool, investment team, NSPS board of trustees) and continue to name the fund WMCEF which funds are accounted for separately in NSPS Foundation
  • NSPS Foundation has been getting an average return of 8%.
  • Foundation Trustees added Dan Martinez (NE) and Cotton Jones (WY).
    
    
• Board of Directors Meeting and Applicable Motions
  • Scouts Surveying Merit Badge Scholarship $2000 (passed).
  • Technician and CST Membership categories (tabled) need input from Affiliates.
    • How is UCLS organized in terms of membership categories?
    • What do we recommend to NSPS?
  • NSPS Policy on Graduate Education in Surveying.
  • Next Meeting in Cleveland, OH, on Sept. 20-22, 2023.
• NSPS meeting structure held all committee meetings on the first day, then the official business meeting at the end. Suggest UCLS have a committee track allowing sufficient time for all committee meetings to be held on the first or second day in which much could be accomplished, collaborated on, and coordinated. General membership could get more involved with the committees even if they were not official committee members they could visit based on their own interests and contribute as they wish.

Legislative Issues

• Get involved early on and at home with staff and representatives/senators.
• The country is being run by 20-year-olds — why not have YSN’s involved in the UCLS?
• All current bills are authorization bills.
• Sen. Lee’s bill has not been introduced to the 118th Congress yet.
• MAPPS (broadband) is of most interest right now.
• FLAIR
• Licensure elimination or reduction awareness.
• Asked to participate in the Graduate Education candidates’ shortage ad hoc committee.
• Rep. John Curtis, 3rd Congressional District of Utah, sits on a GIS Working Group and they currently are just ignoring the surveying element (probably a staffer that has a GIS background).
• To meet with our legislators at the National level back home here in Utah.

Certified Survey Technician (CST) Board

• CST Coordinator, by default is the NSPS State Director unless States appoint another.
  
  
• Employers to provide financial or other incentives and support to their employees to obtain and maintain various CST levels, including title, pay, and performance.
  
  
• Connect CST to a technician and LSIT and incorporate this LSIT title into regulations to be maintained by the LSIT indefinitely (if desired), but they must complete eight hours per year (whatever hours). This name could be Survey Practitioner (SP) or Assistant (SA) instead.
  
  
• CST Training — something will happen on an NSPS basis.
  
  
• Encourage, and implore, all government contracts to require CSTs (Florida, Ohio).
  
  
• CST is good for people transitioning from the military or another career into surveying.

Workforce Development Committee 

(new term used in place of “Recruiting/Marketing”)

• Communicate with Utah Workforce Development.
  • CST program
  • Certificate programs
  • Military and other career fields that can potentially transition into surveying
  • Military Programs: TAPS, Bridges
  • Small Biz Community to work with Workplace Development Committee.
    
    
• Implement a Technician Track at UCLS Conference
  • Lower conference fee
  • Training focuses on CST training
  • LSITs to participate and earn their eight PDHs
    
    
• Marketing — Recruiting people to surveying and mapping
  • Develop a short PPTX to illustrate the labor shortage problem in surveying.
  • Sources
    • Foster Care Completers (kids exiting the program at 18 they are totally left to themselves)
    • Skate parks
    • Geocachers
    • Technical or Magnet High Schools
    • ATCs (across the State)
    • Related organizations ASCE, AGC
    • All stakeholders (people who use and need surveyors)
    • Construction
    • Civil Engineers
    • Government — UDOT

Education Committee

Key term used a lot during the meetings is “Pathways” from elementary-secondary (HS) school- to the Profession (compare it to the integration of the engineering pathway currently established).

Cline HS, Texas Surveying program got 3rd place in 2023 NSPS Student Survey competition against Associate Programs.