NAGPRA Consultation/Documentation Grants FY17 | P17AS00031

Opportunity Information: Apply for P17AS00031

The NAGPRA Consultation/Documentation Grants FY17 (Funding Opportunity Number P17AS00031) is a discretionary grant program offered by the National Park Service under CFDA 15.922 to support work required by the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). The core purpose is to help museums and Federal agencies complete two closely related kinds of activities, consultation and documentation, so they can make informed and lawful decisions about the control, care, and ultimate disposition or repatriation of Native American human remains and certain cultural items covered by NAGPRA.

On the consultation side, the program funds the required, substantive engagement between museums or Federal agencies and known Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations (NHOs). This consultation is not treated as a courtesy; it is a structured process tied to specific regulatory requirements and is essential for compiling NAGPRA inventories and for responding to claims or expressed interests from potential claimants related to items listed in NAGPRA summaries. The opportunity points applicants to the consultation framework in 43 CFR 10.5, 10.8(a), 10.9(b), and 10.11, which collectively describe how consultation should occur during inventory completion, while evaluating cultural affiliation, and when making decisions that affect treatment and disposition. In practical terms, the grant is meant to support the time, travel, coordination, and collaborative work needed to bring the right parties together, review holdings responsibly, and move cases forward in a way that respects tribal and Native Hawaiian perspectives and legal rights.

On the documentation side, the program funds research and data-gathering that helps resolve the key factual questions NAGPRA depends on. "Documentation" here means producing or compiling information that can clarify an item or set of remains and objects, including likely geographic origin, cultural affiliation, and the basic circumstances of acquisition and collection history. These are the details institutions often need to locate the appropriate communities, evaluate affiliations, and complete or correct inventories and summaries in ways that withstand review and support timely repatriation. The grant is therefore aimed at strengthening the evidentiary foundation for decisions, reducing uncertainty, and preventing NAGPRA cases from stalling due to missing records or unclear provenance.

Eligibility is broad and includes state, county, and city or township governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; and nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) status (other than higher education institutions), as well as other eligible applicants as allowed by the program. The inclusion of Native Hawaiian organizations is specifically defined: an NHO is an organization that serves and represents the interests of Native Hawaiians, has as a primary and stated purpose the provision of services to Native Hawaiians, and has expertise in Native Hawaiian affairs. That definition matters because the program’s consultation expectations and intended outcomes rely on engagement with entities that legitimately represent Native Hawaiian interests and knowledge.

For FY17, the opportunity listed an award ceiling of $90,000, with an anticipated 30 awards. The original closing date was March 9, 2017, and the opportunity was created on December 9, 2016. Overall, the grant is designed to provide targeted support for the real-world work of NAGPRA compliance: building the consultation relationships and producing the documentation needed to determine appropriate control, treatment, and disposition of NAGPRA-covered human remains and cultural items.

• The National Park Service in the arts, education, humanities, law, justice and legal services, other sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "NAGPRA Consultation/Documentation Grants FY17" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.922.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-12-09.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-03-09. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $90,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 30 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Others.

Apply for P17AS00031

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