republic-os/legal/us/code/title-54/chapter-3061/section-306131.md

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LegalText	54 U.S.C. § 306131	Standards and guidelines	us	united_states_code	code_section	54	NATIONAL PARK SERVICE AND RELATED PROGRAMS	3061	PROGRAM RESPONSIBILITIES AND AUTHORITIES	306131	54 U.S.C. § 306131	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc54@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t54/s306131	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-54/usc54.xml	a02d857acd3503030dfb86e81d097626284332108cc0c3bb7d69af9c32b4def5	ae37e9ba9ffe98b17fb5695939469d1407e46b028e81e9ffb76abd1481eeb360	5acded897189af92292fb235aefd5184e32ef29dbb5670812cd79f359d7d41de	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

54 U.S.C. § 306131 - Standards and guidelines

Text

(a) Standards.— (1) In general.— Each Federal agency that is responsible for the protection of historic property (including archeological property) pursuant to this division or any other law shall ensure that—

(A) all actions taken by employees or contractors of the agency meet professional standards under regulations developed by the Secretary in consultation with the Council, other affected agencies, and the appropriate professional societies of archeology, architecture, conservation, history, landscape architecture, and planning;

(B) agency personnel or contractors responsible for historic property meet qualification standards established by the Office of Personnel Management in consultation with the Secretary and appropriate professional societies of archeology, architecture, conservation, curation, history, landscape architecture, and planning; and

(C) records and other data, including data produced by historical research and archeological surveys and excavations, are permanently maintained in appropriate databases and made available to potential users pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary shall promulgate.

(2) Considerations.— The standards referred to in paragraph (1)(B) shall consider the particular skills and expertise needed for the preservation of historic property and shall be equivalent requirements for the disciplines involved.

(3) Revision.— The Office of Personnel Management shall revise qualification standards for the disciplines involved.

(b) Guidelines.— To promote the preservation of historic property eligible for listing on the National Register, the Secretary shall, in consultation with the Council, promulgate guidelines to ensure that Federal, State, and tribal historic preservation programs subject to this division include plans to—

(1) provide information to the owners of historic property (including architectural, curatorial, and archeological property) with demonstrated or likely research significance, about the need for protection of the historic property, and the available means of protection;

(2) encourage owners to preserve historic property intact and in place and offer the owners of historic property information on the tax and grant assistance available for the donation of the historic property or of a preservation easement of the historic property;

(3) encourage the protection of Native American cultural items (within the meaning of section 2 of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3001)) and of property of religious or cultural importance to Indian tribes, Native Hawaiian organizations, or other Native American groups; and

(4) encourage owners that are undertaking archeological excavations to—

(A) conduct excavations and analyses that meet standards for federally-sponsored excavations established by the Secretary;

(B) donate or lend artifacts of research significance to an appropriate research institution;

(C) allow access to artifacts for research purposes; and

(D) prior to excavating or disposing of a Native American cultural item in which an Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization may have an interest under subparagraph (B) or (C) of section 3(a)(2) of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (25 U.S.C. 3002(a)(2)(B), (C)), give notice to and consult with the Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.

(Pub. L. 113–287, § 3, Dec. 19, 2014, 128 Stat. 3229; Pub. L. 114–289, title VI, § 601(f), Dec. 16, 2016, 130 Stat. 1491.)

Notes

Historical and Revision Notes RevisedSectionSource (U.S. Code)Source (Statutes at Large) 30613116 U.S.C. 470h–4.Pub. L. 89–665, title I, § 112, as added Pub. L. 102–575, title XL, § 4014, Oct. 30, 1992, 106 Stat. 4761; Pub. L. 106–208, § 5(a)(9), May 26, 2000, 114 Stat. 319. In subparagraphs (A) and (B) of subsection (a)(1), the words “the disciplines involved, specifically” are omitted as unnecessary. In subsection (a)(3), the words “within 2 years after October 20, 1992” are omitted as obsolete. In subsection (b)(1), the word “property” is substituted for “resources” for consistency because the defined term in the new division is “property”.

Editorial Notes

Amendments2016—Subsec. (a)(3). Pub. L. 114–289 substituted “Office of Personnel Management” for “Office of Management and Budget”.