Certified Federal Surveyor Program
In August, 2004 a Fiduciary Trust Model (FTM) was established by the Department of the Interior to simplify the delivery of accurate and reliable fiduciary trust services to eligible American 
Indians and Alaska Natives. The Department recognized that accurate trust management begins with good surveys and that the private sector provides an excellent resource for accomplishing these surveys. However Indian lands have some unique survey issues. Many essential records are found only within the Bureau of Indian Affairs offices, special procedures have often been used for surveys on Indian lands and there are cultural and jurisdictional considerations that surveyors working in Indian Country must be aware of.
The Certified Federal Surveyor program was created to provide specialized training to enhance the level of knowledge and expertise of state licensed, professional land surveyors for survey work performed on federal lands and especially on Indian trust lands. The primary purpose of the CFedS Program is to provide American Indian and Alaska Native landowners, tribes, BIA and federal agencies administrating lands adjoining Indian Lands with a roster of qualified surveyors, specifically trained to provide boundary services in Indian Country, with the goal that all cadastral services executed in Indian country are performed in accordance with BLM standards.
Michael Mays, PLS was one of 123 professional surveyors selected as part of the beta test group to the initial program. After completing 120 hours of course work and passing a six-hour exam, Mike was among the first group of 69 professional land surveyors in the nation to receive federal certification from the Bureau of Land Management.
NorthStar Engineering is proud of its involvement in the beta test group helping to fine tune the CFedS training program. To obtain additional information regarding the CFedS program or to discuss how utilizing a CFedS may benefit your project, please contact us at NorthStar Engineering.
Links:
Official CFedS Web Site