Montana Code 22-3-432. Antiquities permits
22-3-432. Antiquities permits. (1) A person may not excavate, remove, or restore any heritage property or paleontological remains on lands owned by the state without first obtaining an antiquities permit from the historic preservation officer.
Terms Used In Montana Code 22-3-432
- Antiquities permit: means the permit granted for excavation, removal, or restoration of heritage properties or paleontological remains provided for in 22-3-432. See Montana Code 22-3-421
- Applicant: means a person who applies to a governmental entity, including a federal, state, or local governmental entity, for a permit, license, or lease on property owned by the governmental entity. See Montana Code 22-3-421
- Heritage property: means any district, site, building, structure, or object located upon or beneath the earth or under water that is significant in American history, architecture, archaeology, or culture. See Montana Code 22-3-421
- Historic preservation officer: means the officer provided for in 2-15-1512. See Montana Code 22-3-421
- Paleontological remains: means fossilized plants and animals of a geological nature found upon or beneath the earth or under water which are rare and critical to scientific research. See Montana Code 22-3-421
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Property: means real and personal property. See Montana Code 1-1-205
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- State agency: means any executive agency of the state of Montana. See Montana Code 22-3-421
(2)Antiquities permits are to be granted only after careful consideration of the application for a permit and after consultation with the appropriate state agency. Permits are subject to strict compliance with the following guidelines:
(a)Antiquities permits may be granted only for work to be undertaken by reputable museums, universities, colleges, or other historical, scientific, or educational institutions, societies, or persons with a view toward dissemination of knowledge about cultural properties, provided a permit may not be granted unless the historic preservation officer is satisfied that the applicant possesses the necessary qualifications to guarantee the proper excavation of those sites and objects that may add substantially to knowledge about Montana and its antiquities.
(b)The antiquities permit must specify that a summary report of the investigations, containing relevant maps, documents, drawings, and photographs, must be submitted to the historic preservation officer. The historic preservation officer shall determine the appropriate time period allowable between all work undertaken and submission of the summary report.
(3)All heritage property and paleontological remains collected under an antiquities permit are the permanent property of the state and must be deposited in museums or other approved institutions within the state or may be loaned to qualified institutions outside the state. These procedures must consider the needs of approved in-state museums or institutions that are most proximate to excavation. For fossils that do not meet scientific criteria as significant, approval may not be unreasonably withheld.
(4)An antiquities permit is not a substitution for any other type of permit that a state agency may require for other purposes.