- Details
- By Native News Online Staff
Top officials from the University of California will be called to account Tuesday morning for their ongoing failure to return thousands of Native American human remains and hundreds of thousands of sacred cultural artifacts, as required by both federal and state law.
The hearing — scheduled for 9 a.m. in Room 1100 of the Capitol Annex Building at 1021 “O” Street — is a joint session of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee and the Assembly Select Committee on Native American Affairs.
Despite three critical audits over the past five years — in 2019, 2021, and most recently in April 2025 — UC has made limited progress in complying with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), enacted more than 30 years ago, and a similar California law passed 24 years ago.
Leading the hearing will be Assemblymember John Harabedian, Chair of the Joint Legislative Audit Committee, and Assemblymember James C. Ramos, Chair of the Select Committee on Native American Affairs. Ramos is the first and only California Native American serving in the California legislature. Ramos is the former tribal chairman of San Manuel Band of Mission Indians.
Testifying on behalf of the University of California will be Katherine Newman, Provost at the Office of the President; Rich Lyons, Chancellor of UC Berkeley; and repatriation coordinators from two UC campuses.
Tribal leaders scheduled to testify include Leo Sisco, Chair of the Tachi Yokut Tribe; Mary Ann Carbone, Mayor of Sand City and representative of the Venturina Chumash; John Potter Jr., Chair of Redding Rancheria; Valentin Lopez, Chair of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band; and Lester “Shine” Nieto, Chair of the Tule River Tribe.
Some key excerpts from the latest state audit released in April 2025:
- “…it has been more than 30 years since the establishment of [the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)], and the university’s campuses still hold the remains of thousands of individuals, as well as hundreds of thousands of cultural items…”
- “This report concludes that the university lacks the accountability and urgency needed to promptly return Native American remains and cultural items.”
- “The Office of the President has not effectively overseen the university’s compliance with NAGPRA, despite years of increased external attention” nor has it “ensured that campuses proactively search for undiscovered remains and items.”
- “The university does not know the full extent of its NAGPRA collections” and it “does not know how much work remains to achieve full repatriation and has not properly cared for all items it possesses”—including “one campus [that] has several outstanding loans of potential cultural items and…another campus [where] some potential cultural items were stolen in 2022.”
- “The university is not spending significant portions of [its] NAGPRA funding, including funding intended to support tribes with their repatriation expenses…We found that three of the four [investigated] campuses—Berkeley, Santa Barbara, and San Diego—[had] each repeatedly carried over these funds to the next fiscal year.”
- After citing “the pervasive weaknesses we observed in the Office of the President’s oversight of NAGPRA,” the auditor’s report suggested “the Legislature can regulate the university’s conduct through its power to control the funding appropriated to the university. Therefore, the Legislature should consider directly appropriating funding specifically Dor NAGPRA and CalNAGPRA compliance and including a set of conditions that the university must comply with in the use of those funds.”
WATCH the News Briefing on Tuesday, August 19, 2025 at 8:15 pm - PDT.
More Stories Like This
50 Years of Self-Determination: How a Landmark Act Empowered Tribal Sovereignty and Transformed Federal-Tribal RelationsFederal Court Halts Construction of Alligator Alcatraz Near Miccosukee Villages
Offices Reopen for Grand Traverse Band After Threat to Staff Prompted Shutdown
Bodéwadmi Confederation Articles Signed at 2025 Pottawatomi Gathering
Help us tell the stories that could save Native languages and food traditions
At a critical moment for Indian Country, Native News Online is embarking on our most ambitious reporting project yet: "Cultivating Culture," a three-year investigation into two forces shaping Native community survival—food sovereignty and language revitalization.
The devastating impact of COVID-19 accelerated the loss of Native elders and with them, irreplaceable cultural knowledge. Yet across tribal communities, innovative leaders are fighting back, reclaiming traditional food systems and breathing new life into Native languages. These aren't just cultural preservation efforts—they're powerful pathways to community health, healing, and resilience.
Our dedicated reporting team will spend three years documenting these stories through on-the-ground reporting in 18 tribal communities, producing over 200 in-depth stories, 18 podcast episodes, and multimedia content that amplifies Indigenous voices. We'll show policymakers, funders, and allies how cultural restoration directly impacts physical and mental wellness while celebrating successful models of sovereignty and self-determination.
This isn't corporate media parachuting into Indian Country for a quick story. This is sustained, relationship-based journalism by Native reporters who understand these communities. It's "Warrior Journalism"—fearless reporting that serves the 5.5 million readers who depend on us for news that mainstream media often ignores.
We need your help right now. While we've secured partial funding, we're still $450,000 short of our three-year budget. Our immediate goal is $25,000 this month to keep this critical work moving forward—funding reporter salaries, travel to remote communities, photography, and the deep reporting these stories deserve.
Every dollar directly supports Indigenous journalists telling Indigenous stories. Whether it's $5 or $50, your contribution ensures these vital narratives of resilience, innovation, and hope don't disappear into silence.
The stakes couldn't be higher. Native languages are being lost at an alarming rate. Food insecurity plagues many tribal communities. But solutions are emerging, and these stories need to be told.
Support independent Native journalism. Fund the stories that matter.
Levi Rickert (Potawatomi), Editor & Publisher
