Amends existing law to prohibit certain acts regarding graves and to provide exemptions.

LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO Sixty-eighth Legislature Second Regular Session - 2026 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES HOUSE BILL NO. 856 BY WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE AN ACT1 RELATING TO PROTECTION OF GRAVES; AMENDING SECTION 27-502, IDAHO CODE, TO2 REVISE PROVISIONS REGARDING PROHIBITED ACTS, TO PROHIBIT CERTAIN ACTS,3 TO PROVIDE EXEMPTIONS, TO PROVIDE A PENALTY, TO PROVIDE FOR SEIZURE OF4 EVIDENCE AND REMAINS, AND TO MAKE TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS; AND DECLARING5 AN EMERGENCY AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.6

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:7

SECTION 1. That Section 27-502, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby8 amended to read as follows:9 27-502. PROHIBITED ACTS. (1) Except as provided in section 27-503,10 Idaho Code, no person shall wilfully willfully remove, mutilate, deface,11 injure or destroy any cairn or grave. Persons disturbing graves through in-12 advertence, including by construction, mining, or logging, shall cause the13 human remains to be reinterred. The expense for such reinterment shall be at14 least partially borne by the state historical society with the exception of15 acts prohibited by subsection (2) of this section that are not exempted by16 subsection (3) of this section.17 (2) No person or entity shall:18 (a) Possess, sell, purchase, or lease any artifacts or any human re-19 mains taken from a cairn, grave, or burial site or human remains taken20 from a cairn or grave on or after January 1, 1984, in a manner other than21 that authorized under section 27-503, Idaho Code., or subsection (3) of22 this section;23 (b) Publicly display or exhibit any human remains.; or24 (c) Sell any human artifacts or human remains taken from a cairn or25 grave.26 (c) Sell or advertise the sale of any material advertised as real human27 remains.28 (3) The provisions of this section do shall not apply to:29 (a) The possession or sale of artifacts discovered in or taken from lo-30 cations other than cairns or graves or artifacts that were removed from31 cairns or graves by other than human action; or32 (b) (a) Actions taken in the performance of official law enforcement33 duties., county coroner, or any other governmental duties and actions34 taken in accordance with the instructions of government officials;35 (b) Actions taken in the care of a decedent in compliance with Idaho law36 by a licensed medical practice or care center, mortuary, cemetery, hu-37 man remains transportation service, first responder service, or medi-38 cal transportation service;39 (c) Actions taken by state-licensed medical centers, medical research40 facilities, or other research centers in good standing with the state41

2 of Idaho and federally registered as a tax-exempt organization with the1 internal revenue service;2 (d) Actions taken by public museums or regionally accredited certifi-3 cate-granting or degree-granting postsecondary education institutions4 registered in good standing with the state of Idaho and federally regis-5 tered as a tax-exempt organization with the internal revenue service;6 (e) Actions taken by an entity to facilitate transportation of human7 remains to or from such museums or regionally accredited certifi-8 cate-granting or degree-granting postsecondary education institutions9 in accordance with contractual obligations to such museum or educa-10 tional entity;11 (f) Any work in compliance with the revised uniform anatomical gifts12 act, chapter 34, title 39, Idaho Code, or the national organ transplant13 act, 42 U.S.C. 274e(c)(2);14 (g) Any possession of a decedent by a loved one or good Samaritan await-15 ing response by those described in paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this16 subsection;17 (h) Any action deemed exempt by the Idaho attorney general;18 (i) Any action or human remains specimen as provided in section 27-503,19 Idaho Code, or the federal native American graves protection and repa-20 triation act;21 (j) Any action taken in accordance with or by the representative hold-22 ing right of disposition of cremated human remains;23 (k) Possession of cremains, as defined in section 54-1102, Idaho Code;24 (l) Possession of protected religious relics as provided in section25 73-402, Idaho Code; and26 (m) Actions taken by persons to turn in human remains, in good faith, to27 law enforcement or the county coroner.28 (4) A violation of the provisions of this section shall be a felony pun-29 ishable as provided in section 18-112, Idaho Code.30 (5) Seizure of evidence of a violation:31 (a) Evidence of a violation of the provisions of this section shall be32 subject to seizure by persons authorized to enforce the provisions of33 this section and subject to forensic and DNA testing.34 (b) Evidence seized pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection shall35 be subject to forfeiture upon the order of a court if the court deter-36 mines by a preponderance of the evidence that the evidence was used in,37 or constitutes the fruit of, a violation of this section.38 (c) Human remains forfeited pursuant to paragraph (b) of this subsec-39 tion shall be sent to the county coroner at the conclusion of all pro-40 ceedings related to the violation of the provisions of this section.41

SECTION 2. An emergency existing therefor, which emergency is hereby42 declared to exist, this act shall be in full force and effect on and after43 July 1, 2026.44