CA SB61

Requires the University of California office of the President to comply with California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 2001 requirements as a condition for using state funds to handle Native American human remains and cultural items.

Mandates UC institutions develop and implement a plan for comprehensive search of all curation facilities, repositories, laboratories, and other locations for misidentified or undocumented Native American human remains and cultural items.

Requires UC institutions to issue guidance by July 1, 2024, on how to proactively work with California Indian tribes to facilitate repatriation and establish a uniform consultation process for all Native American human remains and cultural items in institutional inventories.

Requires UC institutions with collections representing a minimum of 20 Native American individuals to employ full-time repatriation coordinators by July 1, 2024, and submit detailed repatriation plans with budgets for committee review and approval.

Prohibits institutions from accessing Native American human remains and cultural item collections for any purpose until they comply with required repatriation planning requirements and mandates the UC President's office provide funding to support institution-level repatriation efforts.