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NYSAPLS & NYSGISA Partner for Another Productive Roundtable

to Address Access to Public Land Records

By NYSAPLS Government Relations Committee

Roundtable attendees gather for a group photo at
NYSGISA’s GeoSummit. The New York State Association of Professional Land Surveyors (NYSAPLS) and the New
York State Geographic Information System Association (NYSGISA) held another productive
roundtable discussion last month during NYSGISA’s 2024 GeoSummit event held at The
Lodge in Skaneateles, NY on September 23rd. The purpose of the roundtable was to
continue our outreach to public officials in an effort to facilitate expanded digital access to
public land records for the benefit of the professions that depend upon these records and to
better serve the interests of the general public.
A panel of industry experts facilitated by Dawn McCall, GISP, led the conversation: Roy
Garfinkel, LS, NYSAPLS Trustee and Government Relations Committee member; Maureen
Reynolds, Thompkins County Clerk; and Suzie Knauss, GISP, NYSGISA Past President. Attendees
Panelists L-R: Suzie Knauss, GISP, Maureen Reynolds,
Roy Garfinkel, LS and Dawn McCall, GISP, panel facilitator. included additional members from NYSAPLS Government Relations Committee along with
representatives from the New York State Department of Transportation, New York State
Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Office of Information Technology
Services, Paul Smiths College, several County Clerks, NYSAPLS members, and GIS professionals.

Discussion included:

• Summary of our mission to expand digital access to public land records across all State
Agencies and County Clerks’ Offices.
• Efforts by NYS agencies and municipalities to provide digital access to public land records.
• The goal to improve digital access and the challenges to surmount to achieve our goals.
Roundtable attendee, Chuck Hathaway, LS.
Licensed Land Surveyors provide professional determinations and opinions regarding
legal land rights that are critical for the design and construction of any development project.
As with any profession, our primary objectives are to protect the health, safety, and welfare of
the public through diligent and professional conduct.
Optimizing accessibility of recorded instruments (e.g. deeds, easements, wills, etc.) and
record mapping (e.g. State, County and Town appropriation mapping, other surveys, and
utility mapping), and other public documents that dictate land title and rights will enable our
profession to best serve the general public by ensuring that determinations of legal property
boundaries and land use rights are made based on the best available record evidence.
NYSAPLS exhibited at the GeoSummit. L-R: Roy With State and County Agencies and municipalities facing human and financial resource
Garfinkel, LS, Jackie Dresser, LS, Jim Thew, LS.
shortages, NYSAPLS members have found it increasingly challenging to obtain the requisite
recorded and public documents in a timely manner utilizing current access protocols. As
part of the NYSAPLS 2023-2025 Strategic Plan, our goal is to work with the State and County
Agencies, municipalities, and other sources to develop and implement improves systems for
public access to these important land records.
Save the date! Our next roundtable session will be held Tuesday, January 21st at the
Turning Stone Resort & Casino. NYSAPLS is continuing to collaborate with the NYS GIS
Association to investigate possible solutions, gain the support of stakeholders, organizations
and state agencies to help us achieve our goals, and communicate the importance of the
NYSAPLS sponsored the reception after the roundtable. issue to state legislators.
L-R: Dawn McCall, GISP and Jackie Dresser, LS.
EMPIRE STATE SURVEYOR / VOL. 60 • NO 6 2024 • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 13