Notice2025-04204
Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Defense, Navy, Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, CA
Primary source
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Published
March 17, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of Defense, Navy, Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) intends to carry out the disposition of human remains, associated funerary objects, unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony removed from Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 50 (Monday, March 17, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 50 (Monday, March 17, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12354-12355]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-04204]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0039427; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Defense, Navy,
Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu, CA
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of Defense, Navy, Naval
Base Ventura County (NBVC) intends to carry out the disposition of
human remains, associated funerary objects, unassociated funerary
objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony removed from
Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or
Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this
notice.
DATES: Disposition of the human remains or cultural items in this
notice may occur on or after April 16, 2025. If no claim for
disposition is received by March 17, 2026, the human remains or
cultural items in this notice will become unclaimed human remains or
cultural items.
ADDRESSES: John O'Connor, Ph.D., RPA, Cultural Resources Manager, Naval
Base Ventura County, 311 Main Road, Building 632, Point Mugu, CA 93042,
telephone (805) 989-9249, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#fe94919690d08ad0919d919090918cc6c6d09d9788be8b8dd0909f8887d0939792"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="563c393e38782278393539383839246e6e78353f20162325783837202f783b3f3a">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published as part of the
National Park Service's administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA.
The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the
NBVC, and additional information on the human remains or cultural items
in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in
the related records. The National Park Service is not responsible for
the identifications in this notice.
Abstract of Information Available
Based on the information available, human remains representing, at
least, two individuals have been reasonably identified. At least one
associated funerary object, at least one unassociated funerary object,
and at least one sacred object/object of cultural patrimony have been
collected from NBVC/SNI including lithic tools, debitage, groundstone,
tarring pebbles, animal burials, asphaltum, shell beads, shell
fishhooks, modified and unmodified bone, ochre pieces, radiocarbon
samples, soil samples, column samples, and residual material from
archaeological screening. The human remains are the cremains of at
least two Native American individuals excavated from sites SNI-041 and
SNI-043 and removed from NBVC San Nicolas Island, Ventura County,
California. Site SNI-041 was excavated by Patricia Martz of California
State University (CSU) Los Angeles in 1997. Site SNI-043 was excavated
by Patricia Martz of CSU Los Angeles in 1994 and 1995. The associated
funerary objects, unassociated funerary objects, and sacred objects/
objects of cultural patrimony were excavated from 99 sites at NBVC San
Nicolas Island by various entities working under contract for the Navy
between 1992 and 2014. These excavations resulted in the removal of
hundreds of thousands of cultural items comprising 1,181 boxes.
Determinations
The NBVC has determined that:
<bullet> The human remains described in this notice represent the
physical remains of two individuals of Native American ancestry.
<bullet> The one (at least) associated funerary object described in
this notice is reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally
with or near individual human remains at the time of death or later as
part of the death rite or ceremony.
<bullet> The one (at least) unassociated funerary object described
in this notice is reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally
with or near human remains, and are connected, either at the time of
death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony of a Native
American culture according to the Native American traditional knowledge
of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization.
The unassociated funerary object has been identified by a preponderance
of the evidence as related to human remains, specific individuals, or
families, or removed from a specific burial site or burial area of an
individual or individuals with cultural affiliation to an Indian Tribe
or Native Hawaiian organization.
<bullet> The one (at least) sacred object/object of cultural
patrimony described in this notice is, according to the Native American
traditional knowledge of an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian
organization, specific ceremonial objects needed by a traditional
Native American religious leader for present-day adherents to practice
traditional Native American religion, and have ongoing historical,
traditional, or cultural importance central to the Native American
group, including any
[[Page 12355]]
constituent sub-group (such as a band, clan, lineage, ceremonial
society, or other subdivision).
<bullet> The La Jolla Band of Luiseno Indians, California; Pala
Band of Mission Indians; Pauma Band of Luiseno Mission Indians of the
Pauma & Yuima Reservation, California; Pechanga Band of Indians
(previously listed as Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians of the
Pechanga Reservation, California); Rincon Band of Luiseno Mission
Indians of Rincon Reservation, California; Santa Ynez Band of Chumash
Mission Indians of the Santa Ynez Reservation, California; and the
Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians, California have priority for
disposition of the human remains or cultural item described in this
notice.
Claims for Disposition
Written claims for disposition of the human remains or cultural
items in this notice must be sent to the appropriate official
identified in this notice under ADDRESSES. If no claim for disposition
is received by March 17, 2026, the human remains or cultural items in
this notice will become unclaimed human remains or cultural items.
Claims for disposition may be submitted by:
1. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization identified in this notice.
2. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization not identified in this notice who shows, by a
preponderance of the evidence, that they have priority for disposition.
Disposition of the human remains or cultural items in this notice
may occur on or after April 16, 2025. If competing claims for
disposition are received, NBVC must determine the most appropriate
claimant prior to disposition. Requests for joint disposition of the
human remains or cultural items are considered a single request and not
competing requests. NBVC is responsible for sending a copy of this
notice to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, and Native Hawaiian
organizations identified in this notice and to any other consulting
parties.
Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,
25 U.S.C. 3002, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.7.
Dated: January 28, 2025.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2025-04204 Filed 3-14-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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