U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, vice chair of the committee, sent a series of letters to institutions on June 8 asking for status updates in ongoing efforts to comply with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
NAGPRA, which requires entities receiving federal funding to repatriate Indigenous remains to their corresponding parties, was first approved by Congress in 1990.
In a letter sent to OU President Joseph Harroz Jr., Schatz asked for updates about the number of remains repatriated and the number requiring repatriation. Schatz wrote the university previously reported it intended to publish Notices of Intent to Repatriate 2,090 ancestral remains and 15,738 funerary items.
According to Schatz, the university must also update the committee regarding an anonymous complaint of NAGPRA noncompliance OU received in September 2023. That year, the university appointed the independent NAGPRA Oversight Committee featuring academics and tribal members.
A spokesperson for OU said the university has received Schatz's letter and will respond in a timely manner.
"The University remains firmly committed to fulfilling its obligations under the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act," OU wrote. "These efforts are guided by the University's Associate Vice President for Tribal Relations and NAGPRA Oversight Committee and include meaningful and ongoing consultation with Tribal Nations. Tribal consultation remains central to the University's inventory review, repatriation, and reporting processes."
ProPublica reports the university has yet to return 1,477 remains, having already made almost 2,400 available for return. OU has also reportedly made around 107,000 funerary objects available, though it has yet to repatriate 7,798. The remains and items are primarily held through the university's Sam Noble Museum of Natural History, located on campus.
Schatz's letters follow new regulations added to NAGPRA in January 2024. That's when the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs gave tribes more authority in recollecting their remains and set a deadline for museums and other organizations to return them.
Organizations that fall under NAGPRA have until January 2029 to consult with tribes and finish reporting Native artifacts in their collections.
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