Universal lessons have emerged from Australian local governments using GIS for more than 25 years. This commonality of GIS experience rises above the significant variations in functions, statues, geographical coverage and population densities in Australian local government. These lessons are relevant to the skill development, data access, technology integration, and functional integration of GIS to any organisation managing the assorted demands upon a region, or locality.

While digital techniques were introduced to map production in the 1970’s, the driver for utilising digital tools to manage this wide range of activities was the land administration functions of the six states and two territories. Developed in concert by the legal and surveying professions, these state and territory based land administrations functions led to digital land valuation systems as early as 1968 in South Australia. Building upon such initiatives; government guaranteed computerised land registration and automated valuation systems have been built.