Road Work in Tonto Forest Uncovers Remains for Tribal Return
Published Date: 3/17/2025
Notice
Summary
The Tonto National Forest in Phoenix, AZ, plans to return human remains and cultural items found during road work to Native American tribes or descendants starting April 16, 2025. If no one claims them by March 17, 2026, these items will be considered unclaimed. This affects tribes connected to the area and involves important artifacts like stone tools and pottery.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Deadline to Claim Remains and Items
If you are a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization wishing to claim these items, you must submit a written claim by March 17, 2026. Disposition may occur on or after April 16, 2025, so claims should be sent to the Tonto National Forest address listed before March 17, 2026.
Salt River Pima‑Maricopa Has Priority
The Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community of the Salt River Reservation, Arizona has priority for disposition of the human remains and cultural items described in this notice. Priority for disposition is explicitly assigned to that community.
Scope: Counts of Remains and Artifacts
The notice covers human remains representing at least 29 individuals, 10 associated funerary objects, and 1,195 unassociated funerary objects. These items include stone tools, pottery (reconstructible vessels and sherds), bone, shell, botanical and pollen samples, and other archaeological materials recovered from multiple excavation projects.
Who May Submit Claims and Competing Claims Rule
Claims for disposition may be submitted by any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization identified in the notice, or by others who can show by a preponderance of the evidence that they have priority. If competing claims are received, the Tonto National Forest will determine the most appropriate claimant; joint disposition requests count as a single request and are not treated as competing.
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Key Dates
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Previous / Next Documents
Previous: 2025-04175, Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Tonto National Forest, Phoenix, AZ
The Tonto National Forest in Arizona plans to return human remains and cultural items found in Apache Canyon to Native American tribes or descendants starting April 16, 2025. If no one claims them by March 17, 2026, these items will be considered unclaimed. This affects tribes connected to the area and involves important artifacts like stone tools and pottery.
Next: 2025-04177, Notice of Inventory Completion: University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has finished checking its collection and found Native American human remains and related items from a cave in Alabama. These remains and objects are linked to local Native tribes and can be returned starting April 16, 2025. This means the university is ready to give these important cultural items back to the rightful communities, with no costs or risks involved.