A Granular Analysis of Public Comments to Proposed NAGPRA Revisions

Summary

This is an abstract from the "In Search of Solutions: Exploring Pathways to Repatriation for NAGPRA Practitioners (Part IV): NAGPRA in Policy, Protocol, and Practice" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

In response to stagnated repatriation efforts in the 32 years since the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA, 43 CFR 10) became law, a new proposed rule to revise implementation regulations was entered into the federal register in October 2022 (RIN 1024-AE19). The rule proposed accelerated timelines for entities holding Native American materials to enter notices, consult with tribes, and repatriate objects and human remains in their possession. Over a comment period of 105 days (inclusive of a three-week extension), 181 written public comments on these proposed changes were submitted. Comments represent input from tribes, the general public, universities, museums, and other individuals and institutions engaged in NAGPRA work. Participation in open comment sessions, discourse at meetings, press coverage, and anecdotal information and experiences can all lend an overall impression of how the proposed rule has been received. This work aims to focus the lens of NAGPRA work in the present moment by providing a granular, objective analysis of the public written comments including comment source, institutional affiliation, length, overall stance on the rule, and trends or commonalities in feedback minutiae. RIN 1024-AE19 is currently in its “Final Rule Stage.”

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• In Search of Solutions: Exploring Pathways to Repatriation for NAGPRA Practitioners (Part IV): NAGPRA in Policy, Protocol, and Practice   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 38789.0