Stop excavation and every other ground-disturbing activity in the discovery area immediately when workers encounter human bones, an unmarked burial, funerary objects, or artifacts that may be associated with a burial. Secure the area, do not move or clean anything, and notify the officials designated by the land’s jurisdiction. On federal or tribal lands, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) requires written notice, protective measures, and official certification before work can resume; the statute generally imposes a 30-day waiting period after certification. State procedures vary considerably, so a project cannot rely on a single nationwide call list.
This is a U.S.-focused orientation, not a state-specific legal determination. A project owner should have counsel, the applicable land-management agency, and qualified archaeological or cemetery professionals confirm the exact obligations before disturbing a suspected burial site.
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The immediate rule: stop work in the affected area
A discovery during construction usually creates an immediate duty to halt the activity that could disturb the remains or associated objects. The safest operational boundary is the discovery area plus a buffer large enough to prevent vibration, vehicle traffic, trenching, grading, stockpiling, or unauthorized entry from damaging evidence. Do not assume that an old or apparently isolated burial is exempt because it is not in a marked cemetery.
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“Human remains” can include bones that are incomplete, weathered, or mixed with soil. A burial-related discovery may also include coffin hardware, grave goods, funerary objects, burial markers, or a feature that appears to be a grave. If the identification is uncertain, treat the find as potentially protected until the authorized official evaluates it.
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What must stop
- Excavation, grading, drilling, blasting, trenching, and demolition that could affect the find.
- Driving or parking heavy equipment over the discovery or within a protective buffer.
- Removing soil, bones, artifacts, coffin materials, stones, or other associated objects.
- Cleaning, washing, sorting, testing, or “bagging” materials for later review.
- Relocating the find to a safer-looking place without official direction.
Work in a genuinely separate part of a large site may sometimes continue, but only after the responsible authority or project archaeologist defines the boundary and confirms that continuing elsewhere will not compromise the discovery or the required consultation. A contractor should not make that determination alone.
What to do in the first hour
- Stop the threat. Shut down the equipment and activity that could disturb the discovery. Keep workers and the public out of the area.
- Establish a buffer. Use temporary fencing, cones, tape, or a monitor. Do not drive stakes through soil that might contain additional remains.
- Leave everything in place. Do not touch, collect, expose, straighten, clean, or reposition bones or objects. Avoid walking through the area.
- Record essential facts. Note the date and time, exact location, project activity underway, what was visible, who observed it, and the protective steps taken. Keep records private and secure.
- Make the first required calls. The recipient depends on whether the property is federal, tribal, state, or private and on the state’s law. Use the land manager, tribe or Native Hawaiian organization, law enforcement, coroner or medical examiner, state archaeologist, State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), or local building official specified by that jurisdiction.
- Ask for written direction. Confirm who will inspect the site, whether an archaeologist or medical examiner is required, what report or permit is due, how tribal consultation will occur, and who can authorize resumption.
Photographs should be taken only if the authorized official requests them and gives instructions that will not disturb the site. Do not publish images or location details; they can expose a sensitive burial to looting or unwanted visitation.
Federal and tribal lands: NAGPRA’s specific process
Under 25 U.S.C. § 3002(d), a person who knows or has reason to know that Native American cultural items have been discovered on federal or tribal lands must notify the responsible federal agency or, on tribal lands, the appropriate Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization when it is known or readily ascertainable. Cultural items can include human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony covered by the statute.
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Required actions
- Cease the activity in the discovery area when the discovery is connected with construction or another activity.
- Make reasonable protective efforts to safeguard the items from additional damage, theft, or unauthorized access.
- Provide written notice. The notice should identify the location, describe what was found, state what activity was occurring, explain any threats, and list the protective measures taken.
The National Park Service describes the field response in the same sequence: immediately stop threatening activity, report the location and circumstances with protective steps, and do not resume until the appropriate official issues written certification.
When can work resume?
After the required written notification, the responsible official or tribe must certify receipt. The activity may resume only after that certification and the statutory 30-day period have passed, unless a different lawful direction governs the particular situation. A verbal assurance from a subcontractor, inspector, or equipment operator is not the certification contemplated by NAGPRA. Keep the notice, receipt, certification, and any consultation record in the project file.
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Federal projects and the 2023 burial-sites policy
The Advisory Council on Historic Preservation adopted an updated Policy Statement on Burial Sites, Human Remains, and Funerary Objects on March 1, 2023. It states that federal and state agencies, contractors, and other relevant entities should, at a minimum, seek to implement standards and guidelines that give burial sites, human remains, and funerary objects appropriate consideration and protection.
The policy is particularly important when a federal agency undertaking triggers review under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Section 106 review can require identification of historic properties, consultation with tribes and other parties, assessment of effects, and measures to avoid, minimize, or mitigate harm. The policy statement itself is not a universal stop-work statute for every private project. State and local burial-remains laws still control many encounters outside the federal process.
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The following examples show why the property’s location and the exact type of discovery matter. They are not interchangeable rules.
| Jurisdiction | Trigger and immediate halt | First notice | Timing or resumption detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana | Possible human remains should be left undisturbed. For an artifact or burial object found during ground disturbance for another purpose, ground disturbance must stop. | County coroner, Indiana DNR Division of Law Enforcement, and DNR Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. | Indiana DNR summarizes a two-day notification period for the artifact or burial-object provision. Ground disturbance within 100 feet of a burial ground or cemetery may also require a cemetery survey and, for certain structures, a development plan. |
| Florida | Under Fla. Stat. § 872.05, all activity that may disturb an unmarked human burial discovered outside an authorized archaeological excavation must cease immediately. | District medical examiner. The State Archaeologist has additional roles, especially for discoveries made during archaeological excavation. | In specified archaeological-excavation cases, an archaeologist’s report to the State Archaeologist is due within 15 days. The statute assigns the later investigative and authorization steps. |
| Alabama | Alabama Administrative Code 460-X-10-.01 requires work to cease in the area when remains or funerary objects are connected to construction, mining, logging, agriculture, or another land-disturbing activity. | Law enforcement immediately; law enforcement contacts the Alabama Historical Commission as warranted. | Reasonable protective measures are required while law enforcement investigates and makes the necessary contacts. |
| New Hampshire | For covered construction or agricultural encounters with unmarked remains, disturbance ceases immediately. | The county medical examiner and State Archaeologist have jurisdiction over unmarked remains. | Work cannot resume without the authorization specified by RSA 227-C:8-b. The code page lists an amendment effective July 10, 2026; verify the current codification and timing before relying on it. |
| Rhode Island | Discovery of an unknown cemetery, unmarked cemetery, archaeological burial site, or skeletal material during construction, excavation, or another ground-disturbing activity triggers immediate notice. | Local building official first; that official notifies the state medical examiner and, when the discovery appears historic, the Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission. | The regulation, 530-RICR-10-00-2.6, controls the notice chain and subsequent direction. |
Indiana: two-day notice and a 100-foot planning issue
Indiana DNR advises that possible human remains be left undisturbed and reported as soon as possible to the county coroner, DNR Division of Law Enforcement, and DNR Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. Its summary of IC 14-21-1-29 states that an artifact or burial object discovered during ground disturbance for another purpose requires the work to stop and the department to be notified within two days. Separate Indiana planning rules can require a cemetery survey and, for certain structures, a development plan when ground disturbance is proposed within 100 feet of a burial ground or cemetery.
Florida: medical-examiner notice and archaeological reports
Florida’s unmarked-burial statute distinguishes a discovery outside an authorized archaeological excavation from a discovery made during one. In the first situation, activity that may disturb the burial must cease immediately and the district medical examiner must be notified. The State Archaeologist manages additional steps, and in specified cases an archaeologist must submit an opinion or report within 15 days. The project team should ask which category applies before assuming that an archaeological permit alone resolves the matter.
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Alabama: law enforcement leads the initial response
Alabama Administrative Code 460-X-10-.01 places immediate notification with law enforcement when human remains or funerary objects are found on state or private land. If the find is tied to a land-disturbing activity, work in that area must stop and reasonable protective measures must be taken while law enforcement investigates and contacts the Alabama Historical Commission as warranted. Contractors should preserve the scene for investigators rather than attempting an informal archaeological assessment.
New Hampshire: verify the 2026 amendment
RSA 227-C:8-b gives the county medical examiner and State Archaeologist jurisdiction over unmarked remains. Covered construction and agricultural encounters require immediate cessation, and the statute specifies who must authorize resumption. Because the cited code page identifies an amendment effective July 10, 2026, a project beginning after that date should check the current text, agency guidance, and any implementing forms before setting a deadline or restarting work.
Rhode Island: the building official starts the chain
Rhode Island’s 530-RICR-10-00-2.6 directs immediate notice to the local building official when skeletal material or a previously unknown cemetery or burial site is found during construction or excavation. The building official then notifies the state medical examiner and, when the site appears historic, the Historical Preservation & Heritage Commission. Calling only a private archaeologist does not replace that prescribed notice.
Who should make the call?
Use the following decision sequence, then confirm it with the landowner’s emergency plan and the applicable statute:
- Federal land: contact the responsible federal land-management agency or project agency. If Native American cultural items are involved, follow its NAGPRA contact and written-notice procedure.
- Tribal land: contact the appropriate Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization when known or readily ascertainable, along with any agency identified by the governing agreement.
- State or private land: follow the state’s designated first recipient. Depending on the state, that may be law enforcement, a county coroner or medical examiner, a state archaeologist, SHPO, or a local building official.
- Uncertainty or suspected forensic significance: preserve the scene and call law enforcement or the coroner/medical examiner while seeking the state historic-preservation contact. Do not wait for a contractor’s certainty that the remains are “historic.”
Documentation and site protection
Create a contemporaneous incident file with a site plan or coordinates, the date and time of discovery, equipment and task underway, names of observers, a neutral description of visible materials, weather or ground conditions that affect protection, and every notification made. Record the name and title of each recipient, the time of the call, instructions received, and the time and method of any written notice.
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Protect the area from rain runoff, animals, looting, and accidental entry without placing tarps, sandbags, stakes, or other materials directly on a burial feature unless an authorized professional directs that measure. Assign one project representative to communicate with officials so that workers do not provide conflicting accounts or distribute photographs.
What must be resolved before construction resumes
Do not restart because the bones were covered, the schedule is tight, or no one has called back. Obtain a clear decision from the authority named by the governing law or permit. Depending on the jurisdiction and discovery, the file may need:
- A medical examiner or coroner’s determination about forensic jurisdiction.
- An archaeologist’s inspection, written assessment, or treatment plan.
- State Archaeologist or SHPO review.
- Tribal consultation and a culturally appropriate treatment or disposition agreement.
- A cemetery survey, development plan, revised site design, or protective easement.
- A permit amendment or written release defining the area and conditions where work may proceed.
- For NAGPRA discoveries, written notice, certification of receipt, and the required 30-day period.
Keep the authorization with the construction drawings and daily reports. If the approved boundary, equipment, depth, or method changes, ask whether a new review is required.
Preventing a discovery from becoming a project shutdown
Before grading or trenching, review county and state cemetery records, historic maps, land patents, prior archaeological surveys, tribal information provided through consultation, and agency files. Walk the property with a qualified archaeologist or cemetery specialist when records or landscape features suggest a burial ground. A professional cemetery survey can identify marked and likely unmarked graves; archaeological assessment or geophysical work may help define sensitive areas without excavation.
Put the response procedure in the contract and site-safety plan. Name the after-hours contacts, provide a written stop-work authority to every operator, map the reporting chain, and train crews to recognize bones, grave shafts, coffin hardware, and funerary objects. Preconstruction planning cannot eliminate every discovery, but it reduces unlawful disturbance, preserves evidence, and makes the required notifications faster and more accurate.
Three practical scenarios
A trench exposes several bones on private land
Stop the trench crew, secure the area, leave the bones and soil profile untouched, and call the state’s designated medical examiner, coroner, law-enforcement, or other first recipient. Ask whether a state archaeologist or SHPO must also be notified. No trenching resumes until the official with authority gives written or otherwise documented direction.
A grader finds a burial object on federal land
Stop the grading in the discovery area, establish a protective buffer, notify the responsible federal agency in writing with the required location and activity details, and follow its NAGPRA process. Resume only after written certification of receipt and the applicable 30-day period, unless the agency and statute provide a different lawful instruction.
A project is planned within 100 feet of a cemetery in Indiana
Before ground disturbance, determine whether the structure falls within the Indiana provision summarized by DNR. Arrange the required cemetery survey and, where applicable, development plan rather than waiting for a grave to be exposed. Include the survey and approval conditions in the construction documents.
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When construction uncovers suspected human remains or a burial, stop the activity that could disturb the find, secure and preserve the area, notify the officials required for that land and state, and restart only after the authorized process is complete. The correct contact and waiting period depend on jurisdiction; federal and tribal NAGPRA discoveries require written notice, certification, and a 30-day post-certification period.
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