The Oregon Surveyor July/August 2018

4 The Oregon Surveyor | Vol. 41, No. 4 From the PLSO Chairman Pat Gaylord, PLS Chairman of the Board MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN Many of the groups that are working against us are far larger, more sophisticated, better connected politically, so it’s a tough order. Education and facts are by far our best allies in this effort, but we need to work hard to get the word out before it’s too late. W hat a busy year it has been and it’s barely half over. Our pro- fession remains under attack from many fronts. I would hope this is due to misunderstanding or igno- rance rather than disdain. As a fellow professional I would urge you to get involved and get educated about what those issues are. In the last two weeks I have received information regarding news and events in Oregon and around the country with regards to unlicensed practice in various forms. • The Mississippi State Board has taken a case to court that very well could change the definition of boundary surveying and surveying products in that state (Look up the case between Mississippi and Vizaline). • Unlicensed drone surveying practice is rampant across the country as well as here at home. The Commonwealth of Virginia advertised for unlicensed drone services which would have extended to any state wishing to sign on to the service agreement. Then just this week the Daily Journal of Commerce in Portland ran an article with two firms openly discussing their survey products with no reference to any surveyor being involved or even needed. • At the national level our fellow GIS professionals via URISA are actively fighting against legislation that would require a land surveyors involvement. • Lastly, at the national level the LightSquared GPS issue has been repackaged and come back to life. Get involved and stay informed. The trend towardsmarginalizing what we do or even eliminating the services we provide via in- roads from other groups is widespread. We must work to educate people about why we are needed and what the law re- garding surveying services are. Many of the groups that are working against us are far larger, more sophisticated, bet- ter connected politically, so it’s a tough order. Education and facts are by far our best allies in this effort, but we need to work hard to get the word out before it’s too late. Speaking of being involved and informed, the WestFed debate continues as the Chapters at the last BOD meeting were nearly evenly split on whether to stay or go. This has been a difficult topic with strong opinions both ways about what the value is to PLSO and what our involve- ment should look like. John Thatcher and I will work to see if we can effect satisfac- tory changes within WestFed to benefit PLSO in the future. The BOD voted to reconsider in November after the next