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104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1970

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

SEPTEMBER 9, 1996

Referred to the Committee on House Oversight, and in addition to the Committee on Resources, for a period to be subsequently determined by the

Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within

the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

AN ACT

To amend the National Museum of the American Indian

Act to make improvements in the Act, and for other

purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; REFERENCES.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘National Museum of the American Indian Act Amend6 ments of 1996’’.
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1 (b) REFERENCES.—Whenever in this Act an amend2 ment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment

3 to or repeal of a section or other provision, the reference

4 shall be considered to be made to a section or other provi5 sion of the National Museum of the American Indian Act

6 (20 U.S.C. 80q et seq.).

7 SEC. 2. BOARD OF TRUSTEES.

8 Section 5(f)(1)(B) (20 U.S.C. 80q–3(f)(1)(B)) is

9 amended by striking ‘‘an Assistant Secretary’’ and insert10 ing ‘‘a senior official’’.

11 SEC. 3. INVENTORY.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 11(a) (20 U.S.C. 80q–

13 9(a)) is amended—

14 (1) by striking ‘‘(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘(A)’’;

15 (2) by striking ‘‘(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘(B)’’;

16 (3) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Secretary’’;

17 and

18 (4) by adding at the end the following new

19 paragraphs:

20 ‘‘(2) The inventory made by the Secretary of the

21 Smithsonian Institution under paragraph (1) shall be

22 completed not later than June 1, 1998.

23 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘inven24 tory’ means a simple, itemized list that, to the extent prac25 ticable, identifies, based upon available information held
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1 by the Smithsonian Institution, the geographic and cul2 tural affiliation of the remains and objects referred to in

3 paragraph (1).’’.

4 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section

5 11(f) (20 U.S.C. 80q–9(f)) is amended by striking ‘‘to

6 carry out this section’’ and inserting ‘‘to carry out this

7 section and section 11A’’.

8 SEC. 4. SUMMARY AND REPATRIATION OF UNASSOCIATED

9 FUNERARY OBJECTS, SACRED OBJECTS, AND

10 CULTURAL PATRIMONY.

11 The National Museum of the American Indian Act

12 (20 U.S.C. 80q et seq.) is amended by inserting after sec13 tion 11 the following new section:

14 ‘‘SEC. 11A. SUMMARY AND REPATRIATION OF

15 UNASSOCIATED FUNERARY OBJECTS, SA16 CRED OBJECTS, AND CULTURAL PATRIMONY.

17 ‘‘(a) SUMMARY.—Not later than December 31, 1996,

18 the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution shall provide

19 a written summary that contains a summary of

20 unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects

21 of cultural patrimony (as those terms are defined in sub22 paragraphs (B), (C), and (D), respectively, of section 2(3)

23 of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatri24 ation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001(3)), based upon available infor25 mation held by the Smithsonian Institution. The summary
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1 required under this section shall include, at a minimum,

2 the information required under section 6 of the Native

3 American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (25

4 U.S.C. 3004).

5 ‘‘(b) REPATRIATION.—Where cultural affiliation of

6 Native American unassociated funerary objects, sacred ob7 jects, and objects of cultural patrimony has been estab8 lished in the summary prepared pursuant to

9 subsection (a), or where a requesting Indian tribe or Na10 tive Hawaiian organization can show cultural affiliation

11 by a preponderance of the evidence based upon geographi12 cal, kinship, biological, archaeological, anthropological, lin13 guistic, folkloric, oral traditional, historical, or other rel14 evant information or expert opinion, then the Smithsonian

15 Institution shall expeditiously return such unassociated fu16 nerary object, sacred object, or object of cultural pat17 rimony where—

18 ‘‘(1) the requesting party is the direct lineal de19 scendant of an individual who owned the

20 unassociated funerary object or sacred object;

21 ‘‘(2) the requesting Indian tribe or Native Ha22 waiian organization can show that the object was

23 owned or controlled by the Indian tribe or Native

24 Hawaiian organization; or
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1 ‘‘(3) the requesting Indian tribe or Native Ha2 waiian organization can show that the unassociated

3 funerary object or sacred object was owned or con4 trolled by a member thereof, provided that in the

5 case where an unassociated funerary object or sacred

6 object was owned by a member thereof, there are no

7 identifiable lineal descendants of said member or the

8 lineal descendants, upon notice, have failed to make

9 a claim for the object.

10 ‘‘(c) STANDARD OF REPATRIATION.—If a known lin11 eal descendant or an Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian or12 ganization requests the return of Native American

13 unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, or objects

14 of cultural patrimony pursuant to this Act and presents

15 evidence which, if standing alone before the introduction

16 of evidence to the contrary, would support a finding that

17 the Smithsonian Institution did not have the right of pos18 session, then the Smithsonian Institution shall return such

19 objects unless it can overcome such inference and prove

20 that it has a right of possession to the objects.

21 ‘‘(d) MUSEUM OBLIGATION.—Any museum of the

22 Smithsonian Institution which repatriates any item in

23 good faith pursuant to this Act shall not be liable for

24 claims by an aggrieved party or for claims of fiduciary
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1 duty, public trust, or violations of applicable law that are

2 inconsistent with the provisions of this Act.

3 ‘‘(e) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this

4 section may be construed to prevent the Secretary of the

5 Smithsonian Institution, with respect to any museum of

6 the Smithsonian Institution, from making an inventory or

7 preparing a written summary or carrying out the repatri8 ation of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, or

9 objects of cultural patrimony in a manner that exceeds

10 the requirements of this Act.

11 ‘‘(f) NATIVE HAWAIIAN ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—

12 For purposes of this section, the term ‘Native Hawaiian

13 organization’ has the meaning provided that term in sec14 tion 2(11) of the Native American Graves Protection and

15 Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001(11)).’’.

16 SEC. 5. SPECIAL COMMITTEE.

17 Section 12 (20 U.S.C. 80q–10) is amended—

18 (1) in the first sentence of subsection (a), by in19 serting ‘‘and unassociated funerary objects, sacred

20 objects, and objects of cultural patrimony under sec21 tion 11A’’ before the period; and

22 (2) in subsection (b)—

23 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1),

24 by striking ‘‘five’’ and inserting ‘‘7’’;

25 (B) in paragraph (1)—
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1 (i) by striking ‘‘three’’ and inserting

2 ‘‘4’’; and

3 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end;

4 (C) by redesignating paragraph (2) as

5 paragraph (3); and

6 (D) by inserting after paragraph (1) the

7 following:

8 ‘‘(2) at least 2 members shall be traditional In9 dian religious leaders; and’’.

Passed the Senate September 5, 1996.

Attest: KELLY D. JOHNSTON,

Secretary.