(a)    The Archaeology Office shall:

(1)    cooperate in excavating historically or archaeologically significant sites in the custody or control of any other State unit;

(2)    encourage the preservation of prehistoric or historic sites on privately owned land in the State;

(3)    coordinate the work of retrieving and preserving archaeologically significant objects and materials found during public construction in the State;

(4)    cooperate with and help museums, institutions of higher education, and other scientific or historical institutions and organizations in preserving and protecting objects and materials of archaeological nature in their custody or control;

(5)    cooperate with similar units of other states in preserving archaeologically significant sites, objects, and materials; and

(6)    keep institutions or units of other states from exploiting archaeologically significant sites, objects, and materials in this State.

(b)    The Archaeology Office also shall:

(1)    make available to museums, institutions of higher education, and other scientific or historical institutions and organizations objects and materials suitable for demonstrating the archaeological history of the State;

(2)    make available to public and private schools in the State exhibits on, and help to teach students about, the life of the early settlers and Native Americans of the State;

(3)    disseminate archaeological information by publishing reports of archaeological research and investigation; and

(4)    establish an educational program to train interested members of the public to identify, investigate, and register terrestrial archaeological historic property.

(c)    The Archaeology Office also shall:

(1)    prepare a list of prioritized research goals and objectives to guide the Trust and the Department’s Division of Historical and Cultural Programs in choosing archaeological research projects to perform;

(2)    develop, in consultation with the Committee, a policy that specifies the circumstances under which the Trust may directly perform archaeological investigations to comply with State or federal law that the Trust or the State Historic Preservation Officer administers; and

(3)    provide to the Committee each year a copy of the part of the Trust’s annual report to the Governor, required by § 5A-318(c)(16) of this subtitle, that relates to the Trust’s archaeological activities.

(d)    (1)    Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, an archaeologist who is not working for the Trust need not adhere to the archaeological research goals and objectives developed by the Archaeology Office under this section.

(2)    An archaeologist who performs a project governed by any State or federal law that the Trust or the State Historic Preservation Officer administers shall adhere to those goals and objectives to the extent required by law.