The Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 ( as amended, , codified at ), also referred to as ARPA, is a

federal law Federal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join in a federation, delegating their individual sovereignty and many po ...

of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

passed in 1979 and amended in 1988. It governs the excavation of

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

s on federal and Native American lands in the United States, and the removal and disposition of archaeological collections from those sites. ARPA was launched in the 1970s after applications of the

Antiquities Act The Antiquities Act of 1906 (, , ), is an act that was passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt on June 8, 1906. This law gives the President of the United States the authority to, by presidential procla ...

of 1906 were declared “unconstitutionally vague”. The Antiquities Act was unable to protect historical sites from criminal looting. Several attempts by the federal land-managing agencies and prosecutors to use this act resulted in judges saying that provisions regarding criminal prosecution were unconstitutionally vague making it unenforceable. ARPA regulates access to archaeological resources on federal and Native American lands. Uniform regulations were issued by the Department of the Interior, the Department of Agriculture, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and the Department of Defense. Archaeological resources are defined as "any material remains of human life or activities which are at least 100 years of age, and which are archaeological interest." ARPA also defines "of archaeological interest" as "capable of providing scientific or humanistic understandings of past human behavior, cultural adaption, and related topics." ARPA forbids anyone from excavating or removing archaeological resources from federal or Native American land without a permit from a land managing agency. ARPA also forbids any sales, purchase, exchange, transport, or receipt. Those who violate can face substantial fines and even a jail sentence if convicted, and any relevant archaeological resources will be confiscated.

References

External links

Annotated text of ARPA from the National Park Service
1979 in law 96th United States Congress Archaeology of the United States Archaeological theft United States federal legislation articles without infoboxes {{US-law-stub

See also

References

External links