The Sovereign Systems Mandate
The Sovereign Systems Mandate: Why Compliance is No Longer Optional.
For decades, the management of Indigenous collections was defined by institutional control and "benign neglect." That era ended on January 12, 2024.
For decades, the management of Indigenous collections was defined by institutional control and "benign neglect." That era ended on January 12, 2024.
The implementation of the NAGPRA 2024 Final Rule and the rigorous enforcement of 36 CFR Part 79 have created a "Regulatory Supercycle" that transforms Indigenous Data Sovereignty (IDSov) from an ethical preference into a mandatory legal requirement.
The "Ignorance Defense"—the claim that data is too complex or funding too scarce—has been removed. The new regulations eliminate the "Culturally Unidentifiable" loophole, mandating the geographic affiliation of thousands of legacy records. Simultaneously, the codified "Duty of Care" (43 CFR 10.1(d)) requires Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) for all access, exhibition, and research.
Legacy systems like PastPerfect and SharePoint are structurally incapable of managing these complex, consent-based relationships. They were built to catalog objects, not to govern sovereign rights. An institution that cannot query its database to verify who consented to what is in active violation of federal law.
The Compliance Cliff: The Nuclear Math
The cost of inaction is now mathematically higher than the cost of compliance. As of January 16, 2025, the Department of the Interior has adjusted civil penalties for inflation:
$8,531 per violation (Failure to Comply).
$1,707 per day (Continued Failure to Comply).
For an institution with a backlog of uninventoried ancestors, the financial liability is compounding daily. The cost of a single week of "Continued Failure" ($11,949) nearly equals the cost of a total system diagnostic.
The Solution: The IDSov Readiness Sprint
Native Earth Studio introduces the IDSov Readiness Sprint—a 10-Day Diagnostic and Risk Audit designed to secure your "Safe Harbor."
What: A comprehensive audit of your Indigenous data against the Native Earth Regulatory Canon (NAGPRA, 36 CFR 79, CARE Principles).
Deliverable: A Red/Yellow/Green "Compliance Risk Map" and a defensible, grant-aligned "Readiness Roadmap."
Mechanism: Priced at $14,800 (Fixed Fee), specifically engineered to fit under the Federal Micro-Purchase Threshold. No RFP required. Immediate execution via Government Purchase Card.
Do not wait for the whistleblower complaint. Secure your compliance baseline today.