Notice2025-14149
Notice of Intended Repatriation: California Department of Transportation, District 7, Los Angeles, CA
Primary source
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Published
July 28, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and/or objects of cultural patrimony and that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 142 (Monday, July 28, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 142 (Monday, July 28, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35551-35552]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-14149]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N6329; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0040517; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: California Department of
Transportation, District 7, Los Angeles, 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), California Department of Transportation
(Caltrans), intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the
definition of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and/or
objects of cultural patrimony and that have a cultural affiliation with
the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on
or after August 27, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural items in this notice to Caprice Harper, California Department
of Transportation, 100 S Main Street, MS-16A, Los Angeles, CA 90012,
email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#06656776746f6563286e67747663744662697228656728616970"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4c2f2d3c3e252f2962242d3e3c293e0c282338622f2d622b233a">[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
Caltrans, and additional information on the determinations in this
notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in the
summary or related records. The National Park Service is not
responsible for the determinations in this notice.
Abstract of Information Available
A total of 16 lots of cultural items have been requested for
repatriation. The five lots of objects of cultural patrimony include
lithics/debitage, groundstone, ecofacts, fire affected rock, and faunal
bone. The 11 lots of unassociated funerary objects include lithics/
debitage, groundstone, ecofacts, fire affected rock, faunal bone,
personal adornments, shells, beads, ceremonial items, pottery, and
post-contact or modern items.
The objects of cultural patrimony were recovered from CA-LAN-4620,
CA-LAN-4621, and CA-LAN-4633 in 2015-2016 as a part of Caltrans' State
Route 138 Northwestern Corridor Improvements Project in the Antelope
Valley, west of Lancaster, in Los Angeles County. They are currently in
the custody of the Tejon Tribal Curation Facility under Accession LAN-
1.
The unassociated funerary objects were recovered from CA-SBR-66,
CA-SBR-182, CA-SBR-6312, CA-SBR-7044/H, CA-SBR-12336, and CA-LAN-4189H
in 2006 as a part of the Southern California Logistics Airport Rail
Service (SCLARS) Project and in 2014 as a part of the High Desert
Corridor (HDC) Project. They are currently in the custody of the San
Bernardino County Museum (SBCM) under Accession SBCM-6352.
There are no known/documented potentially hazardous substances used
to treat any of the cultural items.
Determinations
Caltrans has determined that:
<bullet> The 11 lots of unassociated funerary objects described in
this notice are 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 objects have 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 five lots of objects of cultural patrimony described
in this notice have ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural
importance central to the Native American group, including any
constituent sub-group (such as a band, clan, lineage, ceremonial
society, or other subdivision), according to the Native American
traditional knowledge of an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian
organization.
<bullet> There is a connection between the cultural items described
in this notice and the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation (previously
listed as San Manuel Band of Mission Indians, California).
Requests for Repatriation
Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items
in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified
in this notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be
submitted by any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization not
[[Page 35552]]
identified in this notice who shows, by a preponderance of the
evidence, that the requestor is a lineal descendant or a culturally
affiliated Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice to a requestor
may occur on or after August 27, 2025. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, Caltrans must determine the most appropriate
requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the
cultural items are considered a single request and not competing
requests. Caltrans is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to
the 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. 3004 and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9.
Dated: July 1, 2025.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2025-14149 Filed 7-25-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on July 28, 2025.
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