Laws and Regulations

Over the course of the last 30-plus years many laws have been passed at the federal and state levels protecting historical and archaeological resources. We have collected several of them here to provide a background on the Archaeological Research Center's statutory role in state government and its efforts to comply with the provisions of the U.S. Native American Grave Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).

• SDCL 1-20 (S.D. Codified Laws, Title 1, Chapter 20) is entitled "Archaeological Exploration". It established the position and duties of the state archaeologist.
• ARSD 24:52 (Administrative Rules of S.D., Chapter 24, Section 52) provides regulations for the operation of the S.D. State Historical Society, the Archaeological Research Center's parent agency.
• SDCL 34-27 is the state burial law. While it has been superceded to some extent by NAGPRA, it provides procedures by which the discovery and treatment of human remains will be handled.
• Public Law 101-601 is the U.S. Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, with amendments. It is usually refered to by the lovely acronym NAGPRA. Put very simply, it provides for the protection of Native American remains and their repatriation to affiliated tribes following a consultation process between tribes and museums.