2023-05727. Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items Amendment: California Department of Parks and Recreation, Sacramento, CA

AGENCY:

National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice; amendment.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the California Department of Parks and Recreation has amended a Notice of Intent to Repatriate published in the Federal Register on December 24, 2002. This notice amends the cultural affiliation for a collection removed from Lake County, California.

DATES:

Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on or after April 20, 2023.

ADDRESSES:

Dr. Leslie L. Hartzell, NAGPRA Coordinator, California Department of Parks and Recreation, P.O. Box 942896, Sacramento, CA 94296-0001, telephone [phone], email [e-mail].

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 California Department of Parks and Recreation. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice. Additional information on the amendments and determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in the summary or related records held by the California Department of Parks and Recreation.

Amendment

This notice amends the determinations published in a Notice of Intent to Repatriate in the Federal Register (67 FR 78508, December 24, 2002). Repatriation of the items in the original Notice of Intent to Repatriate has not occurred. After the original notice was published, a request for the repatriation of the sacred objects listed in the notice was made by an individual claiming to be the direct lineal descendant of the individual who owned the sacred objects, and a preponderance of evidence supports this request.

Determinations (as Amended)

Pursuant to NAGPRA and its implementing regulations, and after consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations, the California Department of Parks and Recreation has determined that:

• The 59 cultural items are specific ceremonial objects needed by traditional Native American religious leaders for the practice of traditional Native American religions by their present-day adherents.
• There is a relationship of shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the cultural items in this notice and Robert Geary, a lineal descendant.

Requests for Repatriation

Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items in this notice must be sent to the Responsible Official identified in 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 20, 2023. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the California Department of Parks and Recreation 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 California Department of Parks and Recreation is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the lineal descendant identified in this notice.

Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.8, 10.10, 10.13, and 10.14.

Dated: March 15, 2023.

Melanie O'Brien,

Manager, National NAGPRA Program.