Jeff Payne, Acting Director of the NOAA Coastal Services Center sent this letter to registrants.

Dear Coastal GeoTools Registrant,

I regret to inform you that the recent sequestration of U.S. Government funds and other near-term budget uncertainties have made it necessary for NOAA to cancel the Coastal GeoTools 2013 Conference to be held in Myrtle Beach, SC, March 25-28. We are currently working with the conference contractor to implement this cancelation. We apologize for any financial burden this decision causes you and your organization.

Knowing most of you are traveling from outside the Myrtle Beach area, we recommend you review your hotel's cancelation policy and act on it as you deem appropriate. Details about conference registration and exhibitor fees are being discussed and we hope to provide further information later this week. Please direct inquiries via e-mail to: geotools-info@noaa.gov.

NOAA wants to thank everyone for your efforts in preparing for this year's event. Coastal GeoTools has been a cornerstone event for the coastal community since 1999 - a rallying point for innovation and partnership building. Coastal GeoTools has successfully brought together the coastal geospatial community to learn about the latest technology and how to apply it to coastal resource management issues. Many public-private partnerships have been fostered at this unique event and this year would have been better than ever. We strongly regret having to cancel, especially on such short notice.

I want to thank you in advance for your patience as we further address the impacts of this decision.

Sincerely,

Jeff Payne, PhD

Acting Director