New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 4 - CULTURAL RESOURCES
Chapter 10 - CULTURAL PROPERTIES AND HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Part 11 - ISSUANCE OF PERMITS TO EXCAVATE UNMARKED HUMAN BURIALS IN THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO
Section 4.10.11.9 - PERMITTING PROCEDURES AND REQUIREMENTS PERTAINING TO THE REMOVAL OF HUMAN BURIALS
Universal Citation: 4 NM Admin Code 4.10.11.9
Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. Permitting procedures - individual permits.
(1) All applicants for a permit to exhume
human burials shall meet the following requirements:
(a) hold a graduate degree in archaeology,
anthropology, or equivalent training acceptable to the permitting authority;
or
(b) be a member in good standing
of an amateur archaeological society certified by the archaeological society of
New Mexico; and
(c) have at least 6
months of archaeological field experience within the region where the project
will be undertaken, under the guidance of or in cooperation with a recognized
professional archaeologist, or demonstrated competence based on analogous
experience acceptable to the permitting authority; and
(d) demonstrate an ability to carry out
archaeological excavation, documentation and report preparation; amateur
societies may be required to coordinate with a professional archaeologist to
provide the necessary technical assistance;
(e) applicants shall provide the SHPO with
vitas of all members of the applicants' organization expected to supervise the
excavation of a burial; vitas need not be submitted with subsequent permit
applications, provided that the applicant ensures that the information
contained in this file is current at the time of a subsequent permit
application; the use of volunteers or other individuals who may not meet the
specified qualifications is acceptable only if they will be directly supervised
by the permittee or qualified personnel.
(2) Individual case permits will be issued to
excavate all burials in specific unmarked burial grounds. The permitting
authority will take action on the permit within 60 days of receipt of
application.
(3) Applications for
individual permits will include the following:
(a) a legal description of the location of
the burial (i. e., township, range, section, to the 1/4 1/4 section), land
ownership, and a copy of the appropriate USGS 7.5' quad with the location
identified;
(b) current vitas of
personnel who may supervise the excavation; such persons must be present while
burials are being excavated and must directly supervise any volunteers or
assistants who participate in the excavation of the burial;
(c) a preliminary set of recommendations
outlining the methods and techniques to be employed during the permitted
activity, including methods for estimating the date of interment and general
procedures that may be used to identify and notify living persons who may be
related to the human burial; all excavation and analysis will be conducted in
accordance with the guidelines listed in 4.10.11.10 NMAC;
(d) written authorization from the landowner
to remove the burial(s);
(e) the
information requested in 4.10.11.11 NMAC and any preliminary proposals for
reinterment or other appropriate disposal of the human burial consistent with
the guidelines listed in 4.10.11.12 NMAC.
(4) The application information and all
attachments shall be reviewed by the permitting authority.
(5) The SHPO will notify the applicant in
writing of the approval or disapproval of the permit by the permitting
authority.
(6) The term of an
individual permit will be set by the permitting authority, not to exceed 1
year.
(7) The permitting authority
may expedite the review process in emergency discovery situations.
B. Permitting procedures - annual permits.
(1) Permits to excavate burials may
be issued on an annual basis. The annual permits are intended to provide for
expeditious removal of burials in discovery situations by eliminating the 60
day review period required for an individual permit. Excavations of human
remains under an annual permit may take place after notification of the
SHPO.
(2) All applicants for annual
permits to exhume human burials shall meet the following requirements:
(a) hold a graduate degree in archaeology,
anthropology, or closely related field or equivalent training acceptable to the
permitting authority; and
(b) have
at least 6 months of archaeological field experience within the region where
the project will be undertaken, under the guidance of or in cooperation with a
recognized professional archaeologist, or demonstrated competence based on
analogous experience acceptable to the permitting authority; and
(c) demonstrate an ability to carry out
archaeological excavation, documentation and report preparation.
(3) Applications for annual
permits will include the following:
(a)
current vitas of personnel who may supervise excavation of a human burial or
unmarked burial ground; vitas need not be submitted with subsequent permit
applications, provided that the applicant ensures that the information
contained in this file is current at the time of a subsequent permit
application; the use of volunteers or other individuals who may not meet the
specified qualifications is acceptable only if they will be directly supervised
by the permittee or qualified personnel;
(b) a brief discussion of the methods and
techniques to be employed during the permitted activity, including methods for
estimating the date of burial, general procedures that may be employed to
identify and notify living persons who may be related to the human burial, and
general procedures for determining the disposition of human burials, including
curation agreements; all excavation and analysis will be conducted in
accordance with the guidelines listed in 4.10.11.10 NMAC.
(4) The application information and all
attachments shall be reviewed by the permitting authority.
(5) Upon completion of the review process,
the SHPO will notify the applicant in writing of the approval or disapproval of
the permit.
(6) The term of an
annual permit shall be the end of calendar year in which it was
approved.
(7) Written notice of a
permittee's intent to use an annual permit shall be submitted in writing to the
SHPO before excavation begins and will include:
(a) a legal description of the location of
the burial (i.e., township, range, section, to the 1/4 1/4 section), land
ownership, and a copy of the appropriate USGS 7.5' with the location
identified;
(b) written
authorization from the landowner to remove the burial(s);
(c) the information requested in 4.10.11.11
NMAC;
(d) a list of the personnel
supervising and conducting excavations of the human burial.
(8) The holder of a blanket permit
may act as a representative of the SHPO in consultation with the MI under
4.10.11.8 NMAC above. If it is determined that the human burial or unmarked
burial ground falls under Section 18-6-11.2(F) NMSA 1978, the permit holder may
proceed to remove the burial, consistent with the terms of the permit,
immediately following notification of the SHPO.
C. Procedures for appeal of permit denial.
(1) Any applicant denied a permit by the
permitting authority or aggrieved by the terms of a permit shall have the right
to appeal the decision.
(2) The
SHPO shall inform the applicant, in writing, that a permit has been denied and
shall specify the reason for denial.
(3) Any applicant wishing to appeal the
denial of a permit or the terms of a permit shall write to the SHPO requesting
a hearing. The hearing board may designate an alternative to serve in his place
if, for any reason, he believes it would be inappropriate to serve on the
hearing board. Within 2 weeks of receipt of a request for a hearing, the SHPO
will inform the applicant in writing of the date, time, and place of the
hearing at which the appeal will be heard.
(4) The chairman of the committee will serve
as the chairman of the hearing board. The hearing will be conducted in
accordance with the committee's rules of procedure. Decisions in any case
brought before the board will be decided by a majority vote of the members of
the board. The SHPO will inform the applicant in writing of the decision of the
hearing board. The decision of the hearing board will be a final administrative
decision.
(5) All appeals shall
include a statement of the applicant's reason for requesting an appeal and
shall contain any additional information that the applicant believes will
support the appeal.
D. Permit stipulations.
(1) Recipients of burial
excavation permits issued by the permitting authority agree to abide by all
stipulations contained in this regulation and any special stipulation that may
be imposed by the permitting authority.
(2) Costs incurred in the execution of the
activities conducted under the permit shall be borne by the permittee or the
permittee's client or sponsor.
(3)
The state of New Mexico, including its bureaus and employees and landholding
agencies, shall be held blameless for any and all events, deeds or mishaps
resulting from the activities of the permittee, regardless of whether or not
they arise from operations authorized under the permit.
(4) The permitting authority shall determine,
in consultation with any living relative, conditions for the appropriate
disposition of the human remains and any or all of the associated funerary
objects, material objects or artifacts. All conditions for final disposition
will become stipulations of the permit.
(5) Documentation of all funerary objects,
material objects, or artifacts associated with a human burial will be provided
to the SHPO, consistent with provisions in Subsection D of 4.10.11.10 NMAC. The
permittee will ensure that all documented items are disposed of in accordance
with the disposition plan. The permit will also stipulate measures to ensure
that the burials and associated funerary objects, material objects, or
artifacts remain undisturbed after disposition.
(6) If the excavation is delayed as a result
of unforeseen circumstances and cannot be completed within the permit period,
the permittee shall contact the SHPO in writing to request an extension of the
term of the permit. This request must be received by the SHPO prior to the
expiration date of the permit in order to be considered.
(7) If the excavation is discontinued and
cannot be completed as a result of unforeseen circumstances, the permittee
shall notify the SHPO in writing to request a cancellation of the permit.
Disposition of any human remains and associated funerary objects, material
objects or artifacts collected during the excavation conducted under the permit
and of copies of all written and photographic records resulting from a
discontinued excavation will be determined by the permitting
authority.
(8) Failure by a
permittee to comply with these and any additional special stipulations set
forth in this regulation or on the permit itself shall be considered adequate
reason for revocation of a permit and denial of future permits.
(9) If fieldwork is not begun within the
permit period, and an extension has not been requested as described above, the
permit shall become void at the end of the permit period.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New Mexico may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google
Privacy Policy and
Terms of Service apply.
