Notice2026-05298
Notice of Intended Repatriation: University of California San Diego, San Diego, CA
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
March 18, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the University of California San Diego intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects 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 91 Issue 52 (Wednesday, March 18, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 52 (Wednesday, March 18, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13055-13056]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-05298]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7005; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042360; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: University of California San
Diego, San Diego, 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 University of California San Diego
intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition
of unassociated funerary objects 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 April 17, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural items in this notice to Eva Trujillo, Repatriation
Coordinator, University of California San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La
Jolla, CA 92093, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#0b6e3c7f797e61626767644b7e68786f256e6f7e"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="026735767077686b6e6e6d42776171662c676677">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published as part of the
National Park Service's administrative
[[Page 13056]]
responsibilities under NAGPRA. The determinations in this notice are
the sole responsibility of the University of California San Diego, 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 three cultural items have been requested for
repatriation. In May of 1956, these items were excavated and removed
from an unknown site in Kern County, California, by University of
California San Diego associates Dr. C.L Hubbs and party. The
unassociated funerary objects were subsequently incorporated into what
became known as the ``Hubbs Collection.'' In 1973, Dr. Hubbs bequeathed
the Hubbs Collection to the Museum of Us (formerly the San Diego Museum
of Man). In March of 2004, the Museum of Us (MoU) deaccessioned the
Hubbs Collection and donated it to the University of San Diego (USD)
Anthropology Department, although some of the collection remained at
the MoU. Given the scope of the collection and complexities related to
provenance, UCSD, MoU, and USD reached an agreement to work together to
facilitate NAGPRA compliance.
Determinations
The University of California San Diego has determined that:
<bullet> The three 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> There is a connection between the cultural items described
in this notice and the Santa Rosa Indian Community of the Santa Rosa
Rancheria, California and the Tejon Indian Tribe.
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 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 April 17, 2026. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the University of California San Diego 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. The University of California
San Diego 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: March 11, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-05298 Filed 3-17-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on March 18, 2026.
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