Living Law,
Living LandSupport land rights

Statute

NAGPRA regulations (43 C.F.R. part 10), 2023 revision

Interior's 2023 NAGPRA rule gave museums deadlines to return Native remains and objects, and required deference to tribes' traditional knowledge.

Citation
88 Fed. Reg. 86452 (Dec. 13, 2023), effective Jan. 12, 2024
Year
2023
Effect on land rights
advanced

What happened

In December 2023 the Interior Department published a final rule rewriting the regulations that carry out NAGPRA, at 43 CFR part 10. The Federal Register notice appeared on December 13, 2023, and the rule took effect January 12, 2024.

Its summary says it "revises and replaces definitions and procedures for lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, museums, and Federal agencies." The rule sets out a step-by-step roadmap with specific timelines for museums and federal agencies to carry out repatriation. And, throughout, museums and agencies "must defer to the Native American traditional knowledge of lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations."

The preamble lists several changes made in response to public comment. It added a requirement of free, prior, and informed consent before any exhibition of, access to, or research on human remains or cultural items. And it extended the timeline to allow five years, rather than two as proposed, for museums and agencies to consult and update their inventories of human remains and associated funerary objects.

The record also shows the rule was contested. In discussing the purpose paragraph, the Department reported that four comments specifically objected to including deference. Those comments expressed concern about how deference applies when tribes disagree.

Summarized with AI assistance from 4 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error

What the sources say, and how this was checked

Well supported by the sources below.

  1. museums and Federal agencies must defer to the Native American traditional knowledge of lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations.NAGPRA Systematic Processes for Disposition or Repatriation, final rule, 88 Fed. Reg. 86452 (Dec. 13, 2023)
  2. This rule is effective January 12, 2024.NAGPRA Systematic Processes for Disposition or Repatriation, final rule, 88 Fed. Reg. 86452 (Dec. 13, 2023)
  3. Extended the timeline to allow five years (rather than two as proposed) for museums and Federal agencies to consult and update inventoriesNAGPRA Systematic Processes for Disposition or Repatriation, final rule, 88 Fed. Reg. 86452 (Dec. 13, 2023)
  4. four comments specifically objected to the inclusions of deference in the purpose paragraphNAGPRA Systematic Processes for Disposition or Repatriation, final rule, 88 Fed. Reg. 86452 (Dec. 13, 2023)

Research notes. The story relies on the rule's preamble and summary; the regulatory text (43 CFR part 10) was not read section by section. Current status and enforcement after January 2024 were not checked. The phrase 'step-by-step roadmap' is the Department's description of its own rule.

Who is doing the work

Native legal and land defense, nationally

Gifts go straight to each organization; this atlas takes nothing. Listing is not endorsement: how organizations are listed.

Connections

Links marked “suggested” were matched automatically by name or date and have not yet been reviewed by a person.

Doctrine applied 3

Policy era 1

Sources

  1. govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-12-13/pdf/2023-27040.pdfprimary record
Kind
Statute
Confidence
High

Correct this record