NAGPRA Inventory Completion Notice: Auburn University at Montgomery – Human Remains and Funerary Objects

Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM), located in Montgomery, Alabama, has completed a formal inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects held in its collections, as required under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). This federal law mandates that institutions receiving federal funding conduct inventories of Native American cultural items and work toward repatriation. Following the completion of this inventory, AUM has determined that a cultural affiliation exists between the inventoried human remains and associated funerary objects and one or more federally recognized Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. This determination is a critical legal step that triggers repatriation obligations under NAGPRA. The notice is published in the Federal Register to inform affiliated tribes and the public of the inventory's completion. Lineal descendants or representatives of affiliated Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations may now submit a formal written claim to AUM requesting repatriation of the human remains and funerary objects. AUM is legally prohibited from transferring the items until at least 30 days after the Federal Register publication date. This action is part of a broader national effort to return ancestral remains and sacred objects to Indigenous communities, consistent with the cultural sovereignty and rights recognized under NAGPRA, enacted in 1990.

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