WSLS Geospatial Report on NSRS
As part of its ongoing collaboration with the Wisconsin Society of Land Surveyors (WSLS), WLIA has received the latest update from the WSLS Geospatial Committee regarding national efforts to modernize the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS). The committee reports that the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS) is working closely with the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) to promote awareness, adoption, and readiness for the new 2022 datums, which are expected to be approved sometime in 2026. Due to federal funding challenges, NSPS felt it was necessary to intensify its support of NGS and the modernization of the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS).
A NSRS Modernization Working Group recently formed by NSPS is developing a suite of resources—including an ArcGIS StoryMap and a series of white papers—to help state, regional, county and local agencies, as well as private practitioners, transition smoothly to the modernized NSRS. NSPS is looking forward to coordinating with similar Working Groups formed by the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS) and the American Association for Geodetic Surveying (AAGS). Together, these efforts aim to build understanding, reduce uncertainty, and support the geospatial community’s successful implementation of the updated reference framework.
NSPS and NGS have committed to having a significant presence at Geo Week in Denver Colorado February 16-18, 2026. NSPS is encouraging state geospatial associations to send attendees to Geo Week to interact with both NSPS and NGS and learn more about the NSRS Modernization since travel restrictions will be limiting NGS's ability to travel to individual state events. Preliminary planning has begun to facilitate a possible common meeting of the NSPS, ASPRS & AAGS working groups and NGS at Geo Week to allow these groups to coordinate and prepare for a uniform implementation of the modernized NSRS.
For more information, see NSPS story map, Surveyors Prepare:Datums are Changing!