The Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (Pub.L. 96-95 as amended, 93 Stat. 721, codified at 16 U.S.C. §§ 470aa–470mm), also referred to as ARPA, is a federal law of the United States passed in 1979 and amended in 1988. It governs the excavation of archaeological sites on federal and Indian lands in the United States, and the removal and disposition of archaeological collections from those sites.[1]