The Act calls for any persons who wish to excavate such items or other archeological items to do so only after receiving a permit pursuant to the Archeological Resources Protection Act (P.L 96-96). If any of such remains or objects are found on Federal Lands and it is known which tribe is closely related to them, that tribe is given the opportunity to reclaim the remains or objects. If the tribe does not want to take possession of the remains or objects, the Secretary of the Interior will determine the disposition of the remains or objects in consultation with Native American, scientific and museum groups.
The Act also addresses those cases involving the incidental discovery of such items on Federal land by persons engaged in other activities such as mining, construction, logging or other similar endeavors. When one or more of these items are found in this manner, the activity must temporarily cease and a reasonable effort must be made to protect the item. Written notification must be made to the Federal land manager in charge and notification must also be given to the appropriate tribe or Native Hawaiian organization if known or easily ascertainable. Penalties are included for selling, or otherwise profiting from, any Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects or objects of cultural patrimony acquired in violation of this Act.
The second main objective addressed in this Act deals with collections of Native American human remains, associated and unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony currently held or controlled by Federal agencies and museums. Within 5 years of enactment, all Federal agencies and all museums which receive federal funds, which have possession of, or control over, any Native American human remains or associated funerary object (items which are found with a specific body), are to compile an inventory of such remains or objects and, with the use of available information they have, attempt to identify them as to geographical and cultural affiliation. Upon completion of the inventory, the appropriate tribe or Native Hawaiian organization is to be contacted. If it is clear which tribe or Native Hawaiian organization is related to the remains or objects and that tribe or organization wishes the return of the items, they are to be returned.
Instead of an object-by-object inventory, a written summary of unassociated funerary objects (those items which are known to be funerary objects but are not connected to a specific body), sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony which are controlled by a Federal agency or museum is to be completed. The summary is to describe the collection, the number of objects in it, and roughly how, when, and from where the collection was received. Following the summary, the appropriate Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization is to be contacted and the two sides are to meet to discuss the future disposition of the items in question. This Act allows for the repatriation of culturally affiliated items as well as any other agreement for disposition or caretaking which may be mutually agreed upon by involved parties.
For many years, Indian tribes have attempted to have the remains and funerary objects of their ancestors returned to them. This effort has touched off an often heated debate on the rights of the Indian versus the importance to museums of the retention of their collections and the scientific value of the items.
The Panel was split on what to do about human remains which are not culturally identifiable. Some maintained that a system should be developed for repatriation while others believed that the scientific and educational needs should predominate. The report strongly supported dialogue between museums and Indian tribes during all aspects of both the acquisition of sensitive materials, and repatriation requests. The Panel concluded that Federal legislation on this matter was needed.