Maine Integrated Land Records Information System Federal Geospatial Stakeholders Wednesday, June 26, 2008 Richard Sutton | James W. Sewall Project Team BRIEFING TO THE

2 © 2008 James W. Sewall Company | reference standard project background  Federally funded project  USGS / FGDC / NSGIC  50-states initiative promotes geospatial harmonization  data standardization, cooperation, training  Administered through the Maine GeoLibrary  2-pronged Study:  Strategic Plan Update (30%)  Land Records Study (70%)

3 © 2008 James W. Sewall Company | reference standard project focus Task 1 - Update and enhance the GeoLibrary Strategic Plan and bring it into alignment with the goals of the USGS/ NSGIC Fifty States Initiative Task 2 - Recommend a conceptual framework and functional specification for an Integrated Land Records Information System (ILRIS) for the State of Maine

4 © James W. Sewall Company what are we aiming to get?  Statewide uniform parcel data + attributes  Dynamic + perpetual data maintenance  A complete + improving inventory of Maine’s cadastral fabric  Access data and “stacked analysis” through multiple channels  Consistent bulk distribution + archival

5 DEED LINK VIA UNIQUE IDENTIFIER UNIQUE IDENTIFIER © James W. Sewall Company real estate – overlay schematic GIS parcel (tax) map GIS parcel (tax) map DEP Impaired Streams Zoning Boundaries Resource Protection Overlay Street Locations Utility ROW Locations

6 relevant layers stack  Right of way locations  Conservation restrictions  Open space restrictions  Brownfield status  Restrictive soils  Floodplain involvement  Drainage profile  Wetlands proximity  Abutters conditions  Proximity to roads  Access to utilities  Access to utilities (hydrants, water sewer drain, power, gas…)  Administrative districts  Parcel transfer history  Ownership deed text  Parcel survey description  Other deeded rights of usage  Parcel boundary polygon (tax maps)  Assessed tax: land + structures  Taxable owner(s) contact info  Structure photographs  Tax payment status  Claims against ownership  Property liens  Parcel boundary polygon (surveyed)  Structures: conditions, sizes values  Easement restrictions deeds assessing parcels other gis layers other data sources

7 © James W. Sewall Company Business Driver: property transfer data - automated capture TASK 2.x Property Map, Block + Lot Property Land Use Code Current Fair Market Value Open Space, Tree Growth, Farmland Classification Status + Detail

8 © James W. Sewall Company legally triggered data feeds  When subdivisions are approved, copies of the plans must be recorded in the registry (30-A MRSA chapter 187)  Private parties may submit plans for recording; these must conform with (33 MRSA §652)  Many (though not all) municipalities require approved site plans to be recorded in the Registry of Deeds  When deeds are submitted to the Registry there are recording fees and a transfer tax (36 MRSA §4641)  Easements must be reported (every 3 years)  Tree Growth maps and descriptions

9 © James W. Sewall Company technology misconceptions  Technical complexity is not the primary hurdle  Maine has stronger than typical statewide GIS/IT capabilities + many other assets  Cost of tech acquisition continues to fall  720k parcels – small number  But fundamental organizational + political impediments remain

10 © James W. Sewall Company obstacles or opportunities?  Electronic registry search vendors  Friction between municipalities and county deeds registries  Commercial interests: partners or competitors?  State interagency inefficiencies  Land records data distribution framework

11 © James W. Sewall Company enabling legislation possibilities  Electronic plan submittal:  subdivisions  surveys  Data access for commercial redistribution  Unique property identifier  Municipal participation in Integrated Land Records network

12 © James W. Sewall Company relevant stakeholders  Municipal leaders, assessors, GIS professionals  County leaders, Registers of Deeds, GIS professionals  State agencies, CIO, data professionals  Academia & Private Sector  Surveyors, Bar and Realtors’ Associations  General Public  Others…

13 © 2008 James W. Sewall Company | reference standard some obvious benefits  Providing information infrastructure for Regionalization  Streamlining local property assessment  Better permitting for economic development  Catastrophic emergency planning + recovery  Improving access to federal funding  Providing a common operating picture

14 © James W. Sewall Company ► Use parcels/GIS to inform current initiatives  Regional Planning ► Brunswick NAS BRAC ► DECD – Pine Tree Development Zones ► Educational Regionalization ► LURC Moosehead Rezoning ► Open space planning – TPL/Penobscot Valley OS ► Regional waterfront: Augusta/Hallowell/Kennebec  Economy ► Real estate trend modeling ► Mortgage relief visualization applications + business drivers

15 © 2008 James W. Sewall Company | reference standard privacy considerations “The land-transfer process in North America is founded on the principle of publicity, the concept that all information relating to the nature and extent of interests vesting in a legal parcel of land must be available for public inspection” (Need for a Multi-Purpose Cadastre; National Research Council, 1980)

Attribute set Reduced to Minimum for Distribution Full set of assessing Attributes attached To parcels Private contractors Attribute Attrition Hierarchy municipality Geodata edited To reflect change state Parcels integrated With GeoLibrary : Attributes culled Regional/County GIS Municipal GIS federal Statewide cadastre Integrated with Framework Layer Implemented by Private contractors Maine Office of GIS Implemented by property Survey performed Change approved by municipality Technical Surveyors Municipal GIS Survey added to Georeferenced Composite Implemented by county Deed Book/Page reference appended

17 © James W. Sewall Company legal + procedural considerations  Investigate legislative precedents requiring and reporting land records data  Address municipal participation in and adherence to Maine parcel standards.  Investigate data feeds:  Chain of title research  MRS transfer tax declaration  DOT highway layout plans  Approved subdivision plans

18 © James W. Sewall Company conceptual framework ► Advertise and integrate discovered best practices ► Articulate property data and transfer protocols and relationships for review and refinement ► Produce candidate methods for instituting and maintaining a universal resource ID for land records ► Standardize data distribution  Cost recovery  Attribute attrition

19 © James W. Sewall Company functional specification ► Advertise and integrate discovered best practices ► Articulate property data and transfer protocols and relationships for review and refinement ► Produce candidate methods for instituting and maintaining a universal resource ID for land records

20 © James W. Sewall Company promotion ► Develop interest and stakeholder support for the initiative  Technical champions  Political champions  Parcel leads in key positions  Funding leads

21 © James W. Sewall Company where is the heavy lifting? ► Initial statewide cadastre: $$$$$$ ► Ongoing Data maintenance: $$$ ► API development, hosting:$$ ► Training$ ► Administration$

What are the implications for current electronic record management procedures?  privacy  archival  standards  access  expense

23 © James W. Sewall Company contact Rich Sutton: |