16 U.S.C. § 470aaa — Definitions

Page 907 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 470aaa 1 See References in Text note below. (1) private individuals having collections of archaeological resources and data which were obtained before the date of the enactment of this chapter, and (2) Federal authorities responsible for the protection of archaeological resources on the public lands and Indian lands and professional archaeologists and associations of professional archaeologists. In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall, to the extent practicable and consistent with the provisions of this chapter, make efforts to expand the archaeological data base for the ar- chaeological resources of the United States through increased cooperation between private individuals referred to in paragraph (1) and pro- fessional archaeologists and archaeological or- ganizations. (Pub. L. 96–95, § 11, Oct. 31, 1979, 93 Stat. 727.) § 470kk. Savings provisions (a) Mining, mineral leasing, reclamation, and other multiple uses Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to repeal, modify, or impose additional restrictions on the activities permitted under existing laws and authorities relating to mining, mineral leas- ing, reclamation, and other multiple uses of the public lands. (b) Private collections Nothing in this chapter applies to, or requires a permit for, the collection for private purposes of any rock, coin, bullet, or mineral which is not an archaeological resource, as determined under uniform regulations promulgated under section 470bb(1) of this title. (c) Lands within chapter Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to affect any land other than public land or Indian land or to affect the lawful recovery, collection, or sale of archaeological resources from land other than public land or Indian land. (Pub. L. 96–95, § 12, Oct. 31, 1979, 93 Stat. 728.) § 470ll. Annual report to Congress As part of the annual report required to be submitted to the specified committees of the Congress pursuant to section 469a–3(c) 1 of this title, the Secretary of the Interior shall com- prehensively report as a separate component on the activities carried out under the provisions of this chapter, and he shall make such rec- ommendations as he deems appropriate as to changes or improvements needed in the provi- sions of this chapter. Such report shall include a brief summary of the actions undertaken by the Secretary under section 470jj of this title, relating to cooperation with private individuals. (Pub. L. 96–95, § 13, Oct. 31, 1979, 93 Stat. 728.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Section 469a–3 of this title, referred to in text, was re- pealed and restated as section 312504 of Title 54, Na- tional Park Service and Related Programs, by Pub. L. 113–287, §§ 3, 7, Dec. 19, 2014, 128 Stat. 3094, 3272. Prior to repeal of section 469a–3, language in subsec. (c) of that section that required submission of an annual report was struck out by Pub. L. 104–333. § 470mm. Surveying of lands; reporting of viola- tions The Secretaries of the Interior, Agriculture, and Defense and the Chairman of the Board of the Tennessee Valley Authority shall— (a) develop plans for surveying lands under their control to determine the nature and ex- tent of archeological resources on those lands; (b) prepare a schedule for surveying lands that are likely to contain the most scientif- ically valuable archeological resources; and (c) develop documents for the reporting of suspected violations of this chapter and estab- lish when and how those documents are to be completed by officers, employees, and agents of their respective agencies. (Pub. L. 96–95, § 14, as added Pub. L. 100–555, Oct. 28, 1988, 102 Stat. 2778.) CHAPTER 1C—PALEONTOLOGICAL RESOURCES PRESERVATION Sec. 470aaa. Definitions. 470aaa–1. Management. 470aaa–2. Public awareness and education pro- gram. 470aaa–3. Collection of paleontological resources. 470aaa–4. Curation of resources. 470aaa–5. Prohibited acts; criminal penalties. 470aaa–6. Civil penalties. 470aaa–7. Rewards and forfeiture. 470aaa–8. Confidentiality. 470aaa–9. Regulations. 470aaa–10. Savings provisions. 470aaa–11. Authorization of appropriations. § 470aaa. Definitions In this chapter: (1) Casual collecting The term ‘‘casual collecting’’ means the col- lecting of a reasonable amount of common in- vertebrate and plant paleontological resources for non-commercial personal use, either by surface collection or the use of non-powered hand tools resulting in only negligible disturb- ance to the Earth’s surface and other re- sources. As used in this paragraph, the terms ‘‘reasonable amount’’, ‘‘common invertebrate and plant paleontological resources’’ and ‘‘negligible disturbance’’ shall be determined by the Secretary. (2) Federal land The term ‘‘Federal land’’ means— (A) land controlled or administered by the Secretary of the Interior, except Indian land; or (B) National Forest System land con- trolled or administered by the Secretary of Agriculture. (3) Indian Land The term ‘‘Indian Land’’ means land of In- dian tribes, or Indian individuals, which are either held in trust by the United States or subject to a restriction against alienation im- posed by the United States. Page 908 TITLE 16—CONSERVATION § 470aaa–1 1 So in original. A closing parenthesis probably should precede the semicolon. 1 So in original. Probably should be ‘‘lands’’. (4) Paleontological resource The term ‘‘paleontological resource’’ means any fossilized remains, traces, or imprints of organisms, preserved in or on the earth’s crust, that are of paleontological interest and that provide information about the history of life on earth, except that the term does not in- clude— (A) any materials associated with an ar- chaeological resource (as defined in section 470bb(1) of this title; 1 or (B) any cultural item (as defined in section 3001 of title 25). (5) Secretary The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the Interior with respect to land controlled or administered by the Secretary of the Inte- rior or the Secretary of Agriculture with re- spect to National Forest System land con- trolled or administered by the Secretary of Agriculture. (6) State The term ‘‘State’’ means the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other territory or pos- session of the United States. (Pub. L. 111–11, title VI, § 6301, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1172.) § 470aaa–1. Management (a) In general The Secretary shall manage and protect pale- ontological resources on Federal land using sci- entific principles and expertise. The Secretary shall develop appropriate plans for inventory, monitoring, and the scientific and educational use of paleontological resources, in accordance with applicable agency laws, regulations, and policies. These plans shall emphasize inter- agency coordination and collaborative efforts where possible with non-Federal partners, the scientific community, and the general public. (b) Coordination To the extent possible, the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture shall coordinate in the implementation of this chap- ter. (Pub. L. 111–11, title VI, § 6302, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1173.) § 470aaa–2. Public awareness and education pro- gram The Secretary shall establish a program to in- crease public awareness about the significance of paleontological resources. (Pub. L. 111–11, title VI, § 6303, Mar. 30, 2009, 123 Stat. 1173.) § 470aaa–3. Collection of paleontological re- sources (a) Permit requirement (1) In general Except as provided in this chapter, a paleon- tological resource may not be collected from Federal land without a permit issued under this chapter by the Secretary. (2) Casual collecting exception The Secretary shall allow casual collecting without a permit on Federal land controlled or administered by the Bureau of Land Manage- ment, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the Forest Service, where such collection is con- sistent with the laws governing the manage- ment of those Federal land 1 and this chapter. (3) Previous permit exception Nothing in this section shall affect a valid permit issued prior to March 30, 2009. (b) Criteria for issuance of a permit The Secretary may issue a permit for the col- lection of a paleontological resource pursuant to an application if the Secretary determines that— (1) the applicant is qualified to carry out the permitted activity; (2) the permitted activity is undertaken for the purpose of furthering paleontological knowledge or for public education; (3) the permitted activity is consistent with any management plan applicable to the Fed- eral land concerned; and (4) the proposed methods of collecting will not threaten significant natural or cultural resources. (c) Permit specifications A permit for the collection of a paleontolog- ical resource issued under this section shall con- tain such terms and conditions as the Secretary deems necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter. Every permit shall include require- ments that— (1) the paleontological resource that is col- lected from Federal land under the permit will remain the property of the United States; (2) the paleontological resource and copies of associated records will be preserved for the public in an approved repository, to be made available for scientific research and public education; and (3) specific locality data will not be released by the permittee or repository without the written permission of the Secretary. (d) Modification, suspension, and revocation of permits (1) The Secretary may modify, suspend, or revoke a permit issued under this section— (A) for resource, safety, or other manage- ment considerations; or (B) when there is a violation of term or condition of a permit issued pursuant to this section. (2) The permit shall be revoked if any person working under the authority of the permit is convicted under section 470aaa–5 of this title or is assessed a civil penalty under section 470aaa–6 of this title. (e) Area closures In order to protect paleontological or other re- sources or to provide for public safety, the Sec-