Collection, Storage, Preservation and Scientific Study of Fossils from Federal and Indian Lands

Senate Report 105-227 on the Fiscal Year 1999 Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act states that the "Secretary of the Interior, in consultation with appropriate scientific, educational and commercial entities, should develop a report assessing the need for a unified Federal policy on the collection, storage, and preservation...of fossils." A key step in developing the report to Congress will be a public meeting with groups and individuals who have an interest in these topics. The Consulting Agencies have prepared this paper to give background for those who may attend about how the agencies currently manage fossils under the laws, regulations, and policies under which they work.