§80q–9 Inventory, Identification, and Return of Indian Human Remains and Indian Funerary Objects in Possession of Smithsonian Institution

Summary

The Secretary of the Smithsonian must work with traditional Indian religious leaders and tribal government officials to make a full list of Native American human remains and funerary objects the Smithsonian controls and, using the best science and historical records, find where they came from. An inventory means a simple item-by-item list that, when possible, notes the geographic place and cultural group based on Smithsonian records. That inventory had to be finished by June 1, 1998. If evidence shows an item probably comes from a particular tribe, the Smithsonian must tell that tribe as soon as possible. If remains are shown, more likely than not, to be a specific person or linked to a tribe, the Smithsonian must quickly return them and any related funerary items when descendants or the tribe ask. If a funerary object (not tied to remains) is shown to have come from a burial of someone linked to a tribe, the Smithsonian must quickly return it when the tribe asks. These rules do not stop the Smithsonian from returning items in other ways or affect court access or other legal rights. Congress approved $1,000,000 for fiscal year 1991 and more money as needed for later years to carry out these rules.