Land information refers to any physical, legal, economic or environmental information or characteristics concerning land, water, groundwater, subsurface resources, or air in the state.

Land information has been used in a variety of systems over the years, from register of deeds tract indexes to surveyors tie sheets or soil surveys. Today many organizations are moving land information into Geographic Information Systems (GIS).

GIS is the hardware, software, communications system, database, and people devoted to the acquisition, management, analysis, and visualization of spatial data.

A Land Information System (LIS) is similar to GIS but is more focused on land records and detailed views of these records. GIS and LIS systems provide tools that support many types of record keeping, analysis and decision-making.

Land information is an integral part of government, non-profit, and private sector activities. Adopting GIS / LIS techniques can advance broader social purposes by:

• improving cooperation between counties, the private sector, and local governments
• making more effective public decisions
• using natural resources
• improving public health, safety, economy, education, and welfare
• saving money for taxpayers, ratepayers, and clients

Many kinds of skills contributed from many disciplines are necessary to build, maintain, and use land and geographic information systems. This expertise covers topics as diverse as how to access the World-Wide-Web, how to use digital orthophotography, and how to scan deeds in a document management system. WLIA provides a variety of technical education through our newsletter, or annual conference, and our quarterly membership meetings on topics such as:

• digital orthophotography
• parcel mapping
• imaging technology
• precision agriculture
• global positioning systems
• tools for managing Wisconsin coordinate systems
• addressing, street centerlines, and vehicle routing
• watershed modeling

WLIA membership is made up of professionals with expertise in many disciplines that build and use GIS/LIS systems. Individual, corporate, and non-profit members contribute significant time and expertise. Together, we are working to use technology effectively and promote efficient data sharing and integration.

WLIA professionals share information on techniques, products, and best practices. Often, this is formalized into guidelines or standards used by Wisconsin governments. WLIA has been a leader in developing standards to make information technologies more efficient and effective.