California DOT Finishes Inventory of Native American Burial Items for Tribal Return
Published Date: 12/19/2025
Notice
Summary
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) finished listing over 5,300 Native American funerary objects found during road projects in Sonoma County. These items are linked to local Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian groups and can be returned starting January 20, 2026. If you want to request these objects, contact Caltrans soon—this is a big step in respecting Native heritage without any cost or danger involved.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 1 costs, 1 mixed.
Repatriation opens Jan 20, 2026
Starting January 20, 2026, written requests can be made to return 5,324 associated funerary objects found in Sonoma County. Send requests to the California Department of Transportation, District 4, 111 Grand Avenue, Oakland, CA 94612 or the listed email addresses.
Objects affiliated with Graton Rancheria
Caltrans determined that the 5,324 associated funerary objects are culturally affiliated with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. That determination is part of the basis for repatriation decisions described in the notice.
Some catalog numbers are missing
Of the 5,324 catalog entries, 294 catalog numbers are reported missing. The collections are housed at Sonoma State University and come from excavations between 1978 and 2022 along State Routes 12 and 116 in Sonoma County.
Who may request repatriation and dispute rules
Written repatriation requests may be made by any of the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations named in the notice, or by lineal descendants or other tribes/organizations who show affiliation by a preponderance of the evidence. If competing requests arrive, Caltrans must decide the most appropriate requestor; joint requests count as a single request.
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