Report 2022-107 All Recommendation Responses

Report 2022-107: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act: The California State University Must Do More to Ensure the Timely Return of Native American Remains and Cultural Items to Tribes (Release Date: June 2023)

Recommendation #1 To: University, California State

To ensure that campuses have identified all of the remains and cultural items in their NAGPRA collections, the Chancellor's Office should monitor campus efforts to review their collections and require the completion of their inventories by December 2024.

6-Month Agency Response

On October 30, 2023, the Chancellor's Office provided all 21 campuses with NAGPRA collections with the Campus Repatriation Implementation Plan (Plan), which was also reviewed by the Native American Heritage Commission. The Plan provides a framework to guide the campus's repatriation work, including the establishment of timelines and budgets, and outlines legal requirements and specific steps to help the campuses identify all the ancestral remains and cultural items in their collections.

In addition, the importance of reviewing collections was discussed at a December 5, 2023, meeting of all presidents and a memorandum reiterating the importance of reviewing collections was sent to each president on December 13, 2023. That memorandum included an inventory survey template.

The Plan required each campus to provide a first response to the Chancellor's office by December 15, 2023, with the status of their inventory assessment. The Chancellor's Office is reviewing the campus responses and will determine intervals for ongoing reporting and monitoring.

Further monitoring is being conducted by the systemwide CalNAGPRA project manager via monthly meetings with campus NAGPRA coordinators as well as one-on-one meetings with campus coordinators to answer their questions, help ensure they are following the necessary steps, and offer any additional guidance or support that is needed.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Partially Implemented

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office plans to issue a Repatriation Implementation Plan to campuses. The Chancellor's Office will use the Repatriation Implementation Plan to monitor campus progress by establishing deadlines for completion of the inventories. The Repatriation Implementation Plan will guide the campuses' repatriation work and require the campuses to describe their compliance with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA. All campuses are currently working towards the completion of their inventories, and many are engaged in the consultation process.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #2 To: University, California State

To ensure that campuses have identified all of the remains and cultural items in their NAGPRA collections, the Chancellor's Office should ensure that campuses properly consult with tribes by engaging in meaningful, timely discussion in a manner respectful of tribal sovereignty regarding protocols for handling and identifying remains and cultural items.

6-Month Agency Response

On October 30, 2023, the Chancellor's Office provided all 21 campuses with NAGPRA collections with the Campus Repatriation Implementation Plan (Plan). A draft of the Plan was shared with the Native American Heritage Commission executive secretary and staff attorney for their review and their feedback was incorporated.

Included in the Plan is guidance for the campuses in establishing contact with tribes and engaging in meaningful consultations as they conduct the work of inventorying the collections. Many campuses are already engaged in the consultation process.

In addition, a virtual training session was conducted on September 27, 2023, and an in-person workshop was held at Fresno State on October 30, 2023. Representatives from 20 campuses and the Chancellor's Office attended either the live virtual training or in-person workshop. Sessions included guidance on proper consultation with tribes. Individuals who were not able to attend the training or workshop can access the training materials and recordings on the Chancellor's Office's NAGPRA website on the CSU portal as well as on CSU Learn. The website NAGPRA.Calstate.edu was created in March 2023 and the site has been continually updated. Another in-person training event is planned for April 2024 at CSU San Bernardino.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office will provide systemwide training and develop a systemwide consultation policy to ensure that campuses properly consult with tribes. The systemwide NAGPRA coordinator and campus NAGPRA coordinators are working with systemwide learning and development experts to create the training. The initial training module is scheduled to go live in August 2023.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #3 To: University, California State

To provide campuses with the guidance and best practices necessary for effectively complying with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA, the Chancellor's Office should issue a systemwide NAGPRA policy establishing consistent repatriation processes and training requirements, in consultation with California tribes and the Native American Heritage Commission.

6-Month Agency Response

On October 10, 2023, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 389, which was incorporated into the California Education Code and requires the CSU to establish a Systemwide NAGPRA Committee (systemwide committee). Once the systemwide committee is established and convened, it will support the creation of the systemwide NAGPRA policy establishing consistent repatriation processes and training requirements, in consultation with California tribes and the Native American Heritage Commission.

In the meantime, the Chancellor's Office is forming a working group to begin collaboration-listening sessions with tribes throughout the state to draft a CSU systemwide policy.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office will establish a systemwide NAGPRA oversight committee by December 2023. The oversight committee will be responsible for drafting a systemwide NAGPRA policy in consultation with California tribes and the Native American Heritage Commission.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #4 To: University, California State

To ensure that it adequately oversees campus repatriation activity, the Chancellor's Office should establish a systemwide NAGPRA oversight committee by December 2023. By this same date, the Chancellor's Office should implement a process for campuses to periodically report their repatriation activity to the systemwide oversight committee. Further, it should require that campuses with more than 100 remains and cultural items also establish NAGPRA committees.

6-Month Agency Response

On October 10, 2023, the Governor signed Assembly Bill 389, which was incorporated into the California Education Code (code) and imposed similar requirements concerning CSU compliance with CalNAGPRA, with some variations in process and timing. To meet the requirements outlined in the code, the CSU requires additional time to create a formal Systemwide NAGPRA Committee (systemwide committee). Specifically, California tribes and the Native American Heritage Commission (NAHC) have requested additional time to submit nominations, so the deadline for systemwide committee nominations was extended to February 2, 2024. The nominations will be reviewed and voted on by the NAHC at an upcoming quarterly meeting. The approved list of nominees will then go to the chancellor to select and appoint the systemwide committee members.

In addition, each campus with one or more items in its collection will have its own NAGPRA committee (campus committee). The process for creating the campus committees is the same as for the systemwide committee and will require additional time to establish in collaboration with the tribes and the NAHC. The Chancellor's Office has mailed materials about the committee nomination process to the tribes and issued a press release to generate nominations.

Once the systemwide committee is established and convened, it will assume the oversight of campus repatriation activities.

In the meantime, on October 30, 2023, the Chancellor's Office provided all 21 campuses with NAGPRA collections with the Campus Repatriation Implementation Plan (Plan). The Plan required each campus to provide a first response to the Chancellor's Office by December 15, 2023, with the status of their inventory assessment (an initial step in the repatriation activity process). The Chancellor's Office is reviewing the campus responses and will determine intervals for ongoing reporting and monitoring.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Partially Implemented

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office is working closely with the Native American Heritage Committee (NAHC) to develop the process for establishing the systemwide NAGPRA oversight committee. The Chancellor's Office drafted several NAGPRA oversight committee development documents, which are pending approval.

The Chancellor's Office plans to issue a Repatriation Implementation Plan to campuses. The Repatriation Implementation Plan will require campuses to periodically report their repatriation activity.

Currently, 11 campuses have NAGPRA committees. The Chancellor's Office will require these campuses to ensure the committees have balanced representation. In addition, the Chancellor's Office will require the 8 remaining campuses with more than 100 remains and cultural items to also establish NAGPRA committees.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #5 To: University, California State

To ensure that campuses proactively pursue timely repatriation, the Chancellor's Office should require campuses with more than 100 sets of remains or cultural items to have full time, experienced repatriation coordinators by June 2024.

6-Month Agency Response

Per the recently passed AB 389, California Education Code Section 8028.7(a)(8) also requires having full-time, experienced repatriation coordinators at each campus (by July 1, 2024) and the CSU is working diligently to fill these positions.

The Chancellor's Office has provided samples of position descriptions for experienced repatriation coordinators that are available to the campuses. The sample position descriptions were shared with presidents on December 13, 2023, and stored in a shared folder that all campus NAGPRA coordinators have access to.

Six campuses currently have full-time, experienced repatriation coordinators in place. The remaining 15 campuses with NAGPRA collections are working to identify experienced coordinators and developing a job description by early January 2024. The systemwide CalNAGPRA project manager is checking in with the campuses via one-on-one meetings and/or email communication to monitor campus progress on recruitments.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office determined that 15 campuses need experienced repatriation coordinators. The Chancellor's Office is developing a standard position description for reparation coordinators which it will share with the campuses.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #6 To: University, California State

To ensure that repatriation is a systemwide priority and that campuses have access to clear and consistent leadership related to NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA, the Chancellor's Office should, by December 2023, formalize its administrative structure, such as by assigning a position within its office the responsibility of directly overseeing the work of the systemwide CalNAGPRA project manager.

6-Month Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office has established a formal administrative structure by assigning responsibility of directly overseeing the work of the systemwide CalNAGPRA Project Manager to the External Relations Advocate in the Office of Advocacy and State Relations (ASR). Having the CalNAGPRA Project Manager in the ASR office respects Tribal sovereignty by ensuring a "government to government" function. In further commitment to the government-to-government relationship, the new Vice Chancellor for External Relations and Communications, for which the search is currently underway, will have responsibility for tribal relations oversight.

In addition, in August 2023, the former interim chancellor appointed CSU San Bernardino President Tomás Morales as the CSU Presidential Advisor to the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees for Native American Initiatives. In this role, President Morales advises fellow CSU presidents and university system leadership to further develop respectful and culturally competent relationships with sovereign tribal nations. One of his priorities is to complete the repatriation activities required under NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA.

Further, to create a more robust infrastructure for complying with the repatriation requirements, the Chancellor's Office is planning for $4.25 million to fund 30 campus-based positions, three systemwide positions, and operating costs. Existing sources would cover $2.25 million, with an additional $2 million being requested from the Legislature.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office executive management is developing a plan to formalize its administrative structure related to NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #7 To: University, California State

To ensure that campuses have the funding necessary to comply with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA, the Chancellor's Office should require each campus with NAGPRA collections to identify and estimate, by January 2024, the funding and other resources they need to complete repatriation in an appropriate and timely manner.

6-Month Agency Response

An October 30, 2023, memorandum to campus presidents from the chancellor instructed campuses with NAGPRA collections to finalize their Repatriation Implementation Plan (campus plan), including the establishment of timelines and budgets. The campus plans were due to the Chancellor's Office on December 15, 2023.

The Chancellor's Office is currently reviewing and summarizing the campus funding requests to determine the systemwide funding needs to comply with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA.

In the meantime, the Board of Trustees approved the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget plan, which includes $4.25 million allocated to state and federal NAGPRA compliance. Existing sources would cover $2.25 million, with an additional $2 million being requested from the Legislature.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Partially Implemented

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office plans to issue a Repatriation Implementation Plan to campuses. The Repatriation Implementation Plan will require campuses to develop operational NAGPRA budgets for submission to the Chancellor's Office.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation #8 To: University, California State

To ensure that campuses have the funding necessary to comply with NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA, the Chancellor's Office should, after evaluating the reasonableness of campuses' estimates, either identify and provide the required funding from existing systemwide or campus resources or seek additional funding from the Legislature, to ensure that campuses have adequate funding to support their NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA activities.

6-Month Agency Response

As noted in the response to recommendation #7, campuses were directed to develop operational NAGPRA budgets and submit them to the Chancellor's Office by December 15, 2023.

The Chancellor's Office is in the process of evaluating the campus budget estimates for reasonableness and identifying available existing funding. Once final estimates are determined, by March 2024, the Chancellor's Office will seek any additional funding needed from the Legislature.

In the meantime, the Board of Trustees approved the fiscal year 2024-2025 budget plan, which includes $4.25 million allocated to state and federal NAGPRA compliance. Existing sources would cover $2.25 million, with an additional $2 million being requested from the Legislature.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending

60-Day Agency Response

The Chancellor's Office plans to issue a Repatriation Implementation Plan to campuses. The Repatriation Implementation Plan will require campuses to develop operational NAGPRA budgets. The Chancellor's Office will evaluate the reasonableness of campuses' budget estimates and either identify and provide the required funding from existing systemwide or campus resources or seek additional funding from the Legislature. In addition, the CSU's 2024-25 proposed operating budget will identify the need for future investments to support NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA compliance.

California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending

Recommendation for Legislative Action

To ensure that the CSU makes adequate progress in meeting NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA's requirements, the Legislature should require the Chancellor's Office to annually report to the Legislature the CSU's systemwide progress in reviewing its collections, consulting with tribes, and repatriating human remains and cultural items.

All Recommendations in 2022-107

Agency responses received are posted verbatim.