Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Wyoming State Office, Cheyenne, WY

[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 73 (Thursday, April 16, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20480-20481]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2026-07382]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[N7057; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042590; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of the Interior, 
Bureau of Land Management, Wyoming State Office, Cheyenne, WY

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 U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau 
of Land Management, Wyoming State Office (BLM Wyoming State Office) 
intends to carry out the disposition of associated funerary objects 
removed from Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian 
Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in 
this notice.

DATES: Disposition of the associated funerary objects in this notice 
may occur on or after April 16, 2027. If no claim for disposition is 
received by April 16, 2027, the associated funerary objects in this 
notice will become unclaimed associated funerary objects.

ADDRESSES: Send written claims for disposition of the associated 
funerary objects in this notice to Tanya Thrift, State Director Wyoming 
Bureau of Land Management, 5353 Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, WY 82009, 
email blm_wy_copywork@blm.gov.

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 
BLM Wyoming State Office, and additional information on the associated 
funerary objects in this notice, including the results of consultation, 
can be found in the related records. The National Park Service is not 
responsible for the identifications in this notice.

Abstract of Information Available

    Based on the information available, one lot of associated funerary 
objects were removed from archeological sites 48SU4479 and 48WA1957. 
The one lot of associated funerary objects include but are not limited 
to soil samples, debitage/flakes, fauna, projectile points, flora, 
biface and a bone awl. The cultural items were removed from 
archeological sites in Wyoming during excavations after November 16, 
1990. These items are currently curated at the University of Wyoming in 
Laramie, Wyoming.
    Human remains and associated funerary objects from archeological 
sites 48SU4479 and 48WA1957 were published in a Notice of Inventory 
Completion, published in the Federal Register on June 11, 2025 (90 FR 
24663-24664) and have been repatriated. This notice covers additional 
associated funerary objects recently discovered.

Determinations

    The BLM Wyoming State Office has determined that:
    •  The one lot of objects described in this notice are 
reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near 
individual human remains at the time of death or later as part of the 
death rite or ceremony.
    •  The Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian 
Reservation, Montana; Blackfeet Tribe of the Blackfeet Indian 
Reservation of Montana; Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the Cheyenne 
River Reservation, South Dakota; Chippewa Cree Indians of the Rocky 
Boy's Reservation, Montana; Crow Tribe of Montana; Eastern Shoshone 
Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming; Fort Belknap Indian 
Community of the Fort Belknap Reservation of Montana; Kiowa Tribe 
(previously listed as Kiowa Indian Tribe of Oklahoma); Northern Arapaho 
Tribe of the Wind River Reservation, Wyoming; Northern Cheyenne Tribe 
of the Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Montana; Oglala Sioux 
Tribe; Pawnee Nation of Oklahoma; Rosebud Sioux Tribe of the Rosebud 
Indian Reservation, South Dakota; Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North & 
South Dakota; and the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska have priority for 
disposition of the associated funerary objects described in this 
notice.

Claims for Disposition

    Written claims for disposition of the associated funerary objects 
in this notice must be sent to the appropriate official identified in 
this notice under ADDRESSES. If no claim for disposition is

[[Page 20481]]

received by April 16, 2027, the associated funerary objects in this 
notice will become unclaimed associated funerary objects. Claims for 
disposition may be submitted by:
    1. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian 
organization identified in this notice.
    2. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian 
organization not identified in this notice who shows that they have 
priority for disposition.
    Disposition of the associated funerary objects in this notice may 
occur on or after May 18, 2026. If competing claims for disposition are 
received, the BLM Wyoming State Office must determine the most 
appropriate claimant prior to disposition. Claims for joint disposition 
of the associated funerary objects are considered a single claim and 
not competing claims. The BLM Wyoming State Office is responsible for 
sending a copy of this notice to the lineal descendants, 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. 3002, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.7.

    Dated: April 8, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-07382 Filed 4-15-26; 8:45 am]
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