{
  "id": "RL33031",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL33031",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 307225,
      "date": "2005-08-10",
      "retrieved": "2016-04-07T19:35:44.327029",
      "title": "Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA): Legal and Legislative Developments",
      "summary": "The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was enacted to serve\nas a means for museums and federal agencies to return certain Native American cultural items\n(including human remains) to the lineal descendants, culturally affiliated Indian tribes, or Native\nHawaiian organizations. NAGPRA makes provision for both intentionally excavated and\ninadvertently discovered Native American cultural items on federal and tribal lands. Penalties are\nprovided for noncompliance. A Review Committee was established by NAGPRA to monitor the\nvarious processes and to assist in dispute resolution involving repatriation issues.\n \n Certain provisions of NAGPRA were judicially scrutinized in a series of cases concerning the\ndisposition of the remains of an ancient man, believed to be about 9,000 years old and known as the\nKennewick Man or the Ancient One, which was discovered on federal land under the jurisdiction\nof the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (\u201cCOE\u201d). The COE considered the\napplicability of NAGPRA\nto the situation, and concluded that NAGPRA was applicable. The COE proposed to return the\nremains to a coalition of Native American groups. This action was challenged by a group of\nscientists and others who successfully argued that the provisions of NAGPRA were not applicable. \nThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit concluded in  Bonnichsen v. U.S.  that the\nremains\nwere not identifiable with any current day Native American group, and therefore the provisions of\nNAGPRA did not apply.\n \n An amendment to NAGPRA has been proposed in section 108 of  S. 536 , the\n\u201cNative American Omnibus Act of 2005.\u201d If enacted, the amendment would define\n\u201cNative\nAmerican\u201d within the context of NAGPRA so as to include a tribe, people, or culture that\nis or  was \nindigenous to any geographic area that is now located within the boundaries of the United States. \nIf enacted, the amendment could have an impact on the ultimate disposition of the remains of the\nKennewick Man, as well as the control and custody of any other ancient human remains and related\nobjects which may be discovered.\n \n Interest in NAGPRA is particularly strong during the summer of 2005, as severe weather\nconditions have caused various rivers in the continental United States--such as the Missouri\nRiver--to recede. This has exposed traditional Native American burial grounds which have been\nsubject to increased looting and vandalism. \n \n The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held oversight hearings on NAGPRA for July 28,\n2005. The hearings focused on the proposed amendment contained in  S. 536 .",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
      "formats": [
        {
          "format": "HTML",
          "encoding": "utf-8",
          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/RL33031",
          "sha1": "540c30157e911a8738d90c238ff4598b313386fc",
          "filename": "files/20050810_RL33031_540c30157e911a8738d90c238ff4598b313386fc.html",
          "images": null
        },
        {
          "format": "PDF",
          "encoding": null,
          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/RL33031",
          "sha1": "e37a31949c996a9f9261d73915fdfdd56d378f47",
          "filename": "files/20050810_RL33031_e37a31949c996a9f9261d73915fdfdd56d378f47.pdf",
          "images": null
        }
      ],
      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": []
}