[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 111 (Thursday, June 8, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36462-36464]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-14487]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Recommendations Regarding the Disposition of Culturally 
Unidentifiable Native American Human Remains

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior

ACTION: Notice

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    The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act directs 
the Secretary of the Interior to establish and maintain an advisory 
committee composed of seven private citizens nominated by Indian 
tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, and national museum 
organizations and scientific organizations [25 U.S.C. 3006]. One of the 
review committee's responsibilities is to make recommendations 
regarding specific actions for developing a process for the disposal of 
culturally unidentifiable Native American human remains in the 
possession or control of museums and Federal agencies [25 U.S.C. 3006 
(c)(5)]. After lengthy deliberations, the committee makes the following 
recommendations.
    A. Intent of NAGPRA
    1. The legislative intent of the Native American Graves Protection 
and Repatriation Act of 1990 (NAGPRA) is stated by the title of the 
statute. Repatriation means the return of control over human remains 
and cultural items to Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations.
    2. Specifically, the statute required:
    a. The disposition of all Native American human remains and 
cultural items excavated on or removed from Federal lands after 
November 16, 1990 [25 U.S.C. 3002 (d)(2)]. Disposition is based on 
linkages of lineal descent, tribal land, cultural affiliation, or 
aboriginal land.
    b. The repatriation of culturally affiliated human remains and 
associated funerary objects in Federal agency and museum collections if 
requested by a culturally affiliated Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian 
organization [25 U.S.C. 3005]. Repatriation is based on linkages of 
lineal descent or cultural affiliation.
    c. The development of regulations for the disposition of unclaimed 
human remains and objects [25 U.S.C. 3002 (3)(b)] and culturally 
unidentifiable human remains in Federal agency and museum collections 
[25 U.S.C. 3006].
    3. Although the legal standing of funerary objects associated with 
culturally unidentifiable human remains is not addressed in NAGPRA, the 
statute does not prohibit their voluntary repatriation by museums or 
Federal agencies to the extent allowed by Federal law.
    4. The statute acknowledges the legitimate need to return control 
over ancestral remains and funerary objects to Native people, and the 
legitimate public interest in the educational, historical, and 
scientific information conveyed by those remains and objects [25 U.S.C. 
3002 (3)(b) and 3006 (8)(b)].
    5. While the statute does not always specify repatriation, it is 
implicit that the process be guided by the rights and needs of Indian 
tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations.
    B. Culturally Unidentifiable Human Remains

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    1. Federal agencies and museums must make a determination as to 
whether Native American human remains in their control are related to 
lineal descendants, culturally affiliated with a present-day Federally 
recognized Indian tribe or a Native Hawaiian organization, or are 
culturally unidentifiable. This determination must be made in 
consultation with any appropriate Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian 
organizations, and through a good faith evaluation of all relevant and 
available documentation.
    2. A determination that human remains are culturally unidentifiable 
may change to one of cultural affiliation as additional information 
becomes available through ongoing consultation or any other source. 
There is no statute of limitations for lineal descendants, Indian 
tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations to make a claim.
    3. A Federal agency or museum determination that human remains are 
culturally unidentifiable may occur for different reasons. At present, 
three categories are recognized:
    a. Those for which cultural affiliation could be determined except 
that the appropriate Native American organization is not Federally 
recognized as an Indian tribe.
    b. Those which represent an earlier identifiable group, but for 
which no present-day Indian tribe has been identified by the Federal 
agency or museum.
    c. Those for which the Federal agency or museum believes that 
evidence is insufficient to identify an earlier group.
    4. Documentation
    a. Documentation is required for inventory completion and 
determinations of cultural affiliation by Federal agencies and museums 
[25 U.S.C. 3003 (5)(b)(2)]. Documentation should be prepared in 
accordance with standards such as those outlined in 43 CFR 10.9 (c) and 
10.14.
    b. Documentation must occur within the context of the consultation 
process. Additional study is not prohibited if the parties (Federal 
agencies, museums, lineal descendants, Indian tribes, and Native 
Hawaiian organizations) in consultation agree that such study is 
appropriate.
    c. Once inventories have been completed, the statute may not be 
used to require new scientific studies or other means of acquiring or 
preserving additional scientific information from human remains and 
associated funerary objects [25 U.S.C. 3003 (b)(2)].
    d. With the exception of information exempted from the Freedom of 
Information Act, documentation prepared in compliance with the statute 
is a public record.
    C. Guidelines for the Disposition of Culturally Unidentifiable 
Human Remains
    1. Respect must be the foundation for any disposition of culturally 
unidentifiable human remains. Human remains determined to be culturally 
unidentifiable are no less deserving of respect than those for which 
cultural affiliation has been established.
    2. Since human remains may be unclaimed, or determined to be 
culturally unidentifiable for different reasons, there will be more 
than one appropriate disposition (repatriation) solution. Examples of 
appropriate repatriation solutions include the return of:
    a. Human remains that are determined to be culturally 
unidentifiable that were recovered from tribal land.
    b. Human remains that are determined to be culturally 
unidentifiable that were recovered from the aboriginal land of an 
Indian tribe.
    c. Human remains that are culturally unidentifiable for which there 
is a relationship of shared group identity with a non-Federally 
recognized Native American group.
    3. A Federal agency or museum may also seek the recommendation of 
the review committee for the disposition of culturally unidentifiable 
human remains based on other criteria than those listed above.
    D. Proposed Models for the Disposition of Culturally Unidentifiable 
Human Remains
    1. Joint recommendations by Federal agencies, museums, and 
claimants. Repatriation of culturally unidentifiable human remains may 
proceed in those cases where:
    a. All the relevant parties have agreed in writing,
    b. Statutory requirements have been met; and
    c. The guidelines listed above have been followed.
    Note: The review committee has recommended repatriation of 
culturally unidentifiable human remains that have met these criteria 
for both museums--including the Robert S. Peabody Museum of 
Archaeology-Phillips Academy; Commonwealth of Virginia-Department of 
Historic Resources; Dartmouth College-Hood Museum; Minnesota Indian 
Affairs Council; Iowa Historical Society; Sonoma State University; 
Peabody Museum-Harvard University; University of Nebraska-Lincoln; New 
Hampshire Division of Historical Resources; California State 
University-Fresno; and Washington State Historical Society--and Federal 
agencies, including the US Army-Fort Hunter-Liggett; National Park 
Service-Fort Clatsop National Monument; National Park Service-Carlsbad 
Caverns National Park/Guadalupe Mountains National Park; and US Forest 
Service-Ocala National Forest.
    2. Joint recommendations from regional consultations
    a. Historical and cultural factors, and therefore issues concerning 
the definition and disposition of culturally unidentifiable human 
remains, vary significantly across the United States. For example, 
issues in the Southeast, where most Indian tribes were forcibly removed 
during the 19th Century, are very different from those in the Southwest 
where many Indian tribes remain on their ancestral lands. Similarly, 
issues in the Northeast and California differ significantly from those 
in the Great Plains. Therefore, it is recommended that regional 
solutions be developed that best fit regional circumstances.
    b. The review committee recommends a process in which:
    i. Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations define regions 
within which the most appropriate solutions for disposition of 
culturally unidentifiable human remains may be determined.
    ii. Within each region, the appropriate Federal agencies, museums, 
Indian tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations consult together and 
propose a framework and schedule to develop and implement the most 
appropriate model for their region.
    iii. Regional consultation meetings may be open to other parties 
with a legitimate interest in disposition, with the consent of the 
appropriate Federal agencies, museums, Indian tribes, and Native 
Hawaiian organizations.
    iv. Dispositions agreed upon through regional consultation meetings 
will be made by the appropriate Federal agencies, museums, and Indian 
tribes.
    v. If a disposition agreement can not be reached through regional 
consultation meetings, the dispute may be brought before the review 
committee.
    vi. Any proposed regional disposition agreement must meet all 
statutory requirements as well as the guidelines listed above.
    E. Regulations.
    The review committee requests that the Secretary of the Interior 
develop a draft proposed rule [43 CFR 10.11] based on these 
recommendations to be considered by the review committee at its next 
meeting. Following review by the committee, the proposed rule will be 
published for additional public comment in the Federal Register.


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    Dated: May 9, 2000.
Armand Minthorn,
Chair, Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review 
Committee.
[FR Doc. 00-14487 Filed 6-7-00; 8:45 am]
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