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About Spilyay tymoo. (Warm Springs, Or.) 1976-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 2011)
I More News from Inchon Country Page 9 Spilyay Tymoo September 7, 2011 Feds approve casinos for 2 Calif, tribes Tribal police chief also SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The Obama administration has approved casino proposals from two California Native American tribes under a rarely-granted exception to the federal law that prohibits gaming on reserva tions established after 1988. The U.S. Department of In terior last week approved the Enterprise Ranchería of Maidu Indians’ proposed 1,700-ma chine casino and 170-room ho tel near the Northern Califor nia city o f Marysville and the North Fork Rancheria’s 2,500- machine casino and 200-room hotel in the Central Valley city o f Madera. Both the tribes’ proposed gaming sites are dozens of miles away from their current reser vations and put them closer to urban centers. The Enterprise Ranchería casino would be 40 miles north of Sacramento. The North Fork proposal would put it 30 miles north of Fresno, ac cording to the Department of Interior. Federal o fficials said the projects would benefit the tribes economically without hurting the surrounding community. “Both tribes have historical connections to the proposed gaming sites, and both propos als have strong support from the local community, which are im portant factors in our review,” Larry Echo Hawk, assistant sec retary of the interior for Indian Affairs, said in a statement about the decisions. But Doug Elmets, who rep resents half a dozen California tribes that already have casinos, said the decision sets a danger ous precedent. “It’s a horrible, flawed policy that is now going to allow tribes to build casinos away from their aboriginal territory simply for economic gain,” he said. “And probably more importantly, it opens the floodgates of urban gaming throughout California, if not the nation.” Under the 1988 Indian Gam ing Regulatory Act, tribes can build casinos on reservations that existed before Oct. 17, 1988, but not on lands taken into trust after that date. The law allows the Secretary of Interior to make an excep tion in cases where the off-res- ervation acquisition is in the tribe's best interest and does not hurt the surrounding commu nity. There have been only a hand ful of such exceptions granted since 1988, acco rd in g to Kathryn Rand, co-director of the Institute for the Study of Tribal Gaming Law and Policy at the University of North Da kota. Rand said last Friday’s deci sions by the Obama administra tion reflect a change in the fed eral government's approach to off-reservation gam ing from the Bush administration. The Bush Interior Depart ment in 2008 all but ruled out approval of tribal casinos that are not within commuting dis tance of reservations. It rejected applications from more than 20 tribes, including one for a ca sino 1,400 miles from the res ervation. “The Bush adm inistration was leaning in the direction that distance m attered more than anything else,” Rand said. Distance from the reserva tion remains a factor for the Obama White House, she said. The Interior D epartm ent last Friday also rejected a ca sino proposal from the Pueblo of Jem ez, which had proposed a casino on land close to El Paso, Texas, nearly 300 miles from its reservation in New Mexico. Federal officials cited concerns about the tribe’s abil ity to .oversee land that was so far away. Tribal officials have said they are reviewing their options. But Rand said overall, the administration appeared to be taking a more pragmatic, case- by-case approach. The E nterprise Rancheria and North Fork Rancheria pro posals are now before Califor nia Gov. Jerry Brown, who has one year to decide whether to approve them. The projects would also need state legislative approval, according to Charles Banks-Altekruse, a spokesman for the tribes. “We’re confident that the gov ernor shares our goal of bring ing jobs and business opportu nity and community investment to California,” Banks-Altekruse said. Evan Westrup, a spokesman for Brown, said the governor will review the decisions in the months ahead. “Each proposal will be as sessed individually, and our of fice will continue to engage all stakeholders to ensure the inter ests of the tribes, local commu nities and the people of Califor nia are all considered,” he said. The Interior Department on Friday also rejected a casino proposal from the Guidiville Band of Porno Indians, which had sought a gaming facility in the San Francisco Bay area city of Richmond, more than 100 miles from its existing tribal lands. The Guidiville proposal al ready appeared to have been scuttled earlier this year when the Richmond City Council re jected it. The Interior Department said in its decision that Guidiville did not have a modern connection or a significant historical con nection to the proposed site. A call to a tribal spokesman on Saturday was not immedi ately returned. accomplished dancer RO SEBUD IN D IAN RESERVATION, S.D. (AP) — Whether she is wearing a police badge and carrying a pistol or an eagle feather plume and the traditional regalia of a Native Ameri can fancy dancer, Grace Her Many Horses has earned the respect o f the community she serves. Her Many Horses is the first female chief of police for the Rosebud reserva tion and a champion pow wow dancer who has been winning titles since she was 12 . The Rapid City Journal reports that 53-year-old Her Many Horses often works 60 to 70 hours each week overseeing 12 officers on the vast reservation covering 21 communities and 2,000 miles in South Dakota. Suicide and violence are common on the reservation. The mother of three children — ages 28, 21 and 17 — says she pays special attention to crimes against children. Creighton to study diabetes among Neb., SD tribes OMAHA, Neb. (AP) - C reighton U n iversity has been aw arded a $207,000 grant to study whether tradi tional Talking Circles help A m erican Indians on N e braska and South Dakota res ervations address their diabe tes. The university says Talk ing Circles are similar to mod ern therapy groups and could help American Indians better self-m anage their diabetes. American Indians have the highest diabetes death rate of any ethnic group in Ne braska and South Dakota. S taff w ith C reighton's School of Nursing will work with health care providers at the Omaha Tribe's reserva tion in Macy and the Rose bud Sioux Tribe's reservation in Rosebud, S.D. A total of 40 tribe members will be in cluded in the two-year study. The grant money came from the National Institutes of Health. Resolutions of Tribal Council (The following are recent resolu tions o f the Tribal Council.) Casino compact Whereas by Tribal Council Resolution No.l 1,380 approved February 9, 2011, the Tribal Council agreed to move the Tribe’s existing Class III casino located at Kah-N ee-Ta High Desert Resort and Casino to a temporary facility located along U.S. Highway 26 across from the Museum at Warm Springs (“Highway 26 casino”; and, W hereas T ribal C o un cil Resolution No. 11,380 also ap pointed a Tem porary Casino Planning Team to plan and carry out the development of the new Highway 26 casino, including the requirement of amending the existing Warm Springs/Oregon Compact governing Class III gaming at Kah-Nee-Ta (“Kah- Ne-Ta Compact”); and, Whereas the Temporary Ca sino Planning Team has worked diligently over the past several months negotiating with repre sentatives of the State of Or egon regarding amendments to the Kah-Nee-Ta Compact to accommodate the relocation of Class III gaming from Kah-Nee- Ta to the Highway 26 facility; and, W h e re a s the “2011 Amended and Restated Tribal- State Government-To-Govern- ment Compact for Regulation o f Class III G am ing on the W arm Springs R eservatio n ” (“H ighway 26 C om pact” at tached as Exhibit: “A” to this R esolutio n) rep resen ts the amended and restated Compact providing for the relocation of Class III gaming from Kah-Ne- Ta to the Highway 26 location; and, Whereas the Temporary Ca sino Planning Team has review the proposed Highway 26 Com pact with the Tribal Council and recommends its adoption; and, L Whereas the Tribal Council believes that approval o f the proposed Highway 26 Compact and submission of the Compact to the Department of Interior for approval pursuant to the pro visions of the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act would be in the best interests of the Tribe and its members; now, therefore, Be it resolved by the 25th Tribal Council of the Confed erated T ribes o f the W arm Springs Reservation of Oregon, pursuant to Article V, Section 1(a), (f) and (1), of the Tribal Constitution and By-Laws, that the Tribal Council hereby ap proves the Highway 26 Com pact, attached hereto as Exhibit: “A”, and the Chairman of the Tribal Council, or his designee, is hereby authorized to execute such Compact on behalf of the Tribe; and, Be it further resolved by the Tribal Council that the Highway 26 Compact’s limited waiver of tribal sovereign immunity for the sole purpose of enforcement of the Compact’s agreements and commitments, as set out in Section 17.2.c.(ii) of the High way 26 Compact, is approved: T his w aiver o f sovereign immunity of the tribes from suit or action is adopted pursuant to the term s o f W arm Springs Tribal Code Chapter 30 and shall be strictly construed and limited to its specific terms and the specific w aiver granted. (Resolution no. 11,484.) Criminal fines Whereas the Warm Springs Tribal Code provides that any person not subject to the crimi nal jurisdiction o f the Warm Springs Tribal Court who vio lates any provision of the Warm Springs Tribal Code may be sub ject to civil penalties; and, W hereas W STC 200.050 currently provides that such a civil penalty shall not exceed the sum o f $500 for each infrac tion; and, W hereas W STC 307.030 similarly provides that civil pen alties for liquor violations shall not exceed the sum of $500 for each infraction; and, Whereas the Warm Springs Tribal Court may impose a fine of up to $5,000 on a criminal defendant for com m itting a criminal offense set forth in the Warm Springs Tribal Code; and, Whereas the Tribal Council believes that the Warm Springs Tribal Court should have the discretion to impose a civil pen alty on a person who is not sub ject to the criminal jurisdiction o f the Warm Springs Tribal Court that is comparable to a fine that it may impose on a criminal defendant; and, Whereas WSTC 200.360(3) requires a non-Indian applicant for admission to practice in the Warm Springs Tribal Court to post a cash bond of $180; and, Whereas the Tribal Council believes that the bond amount contained in WSTC 200.360(3) should be raised from $180 to $200; now, therefore, Be it resolved by the 25th Tribal Council of the Confed erated T ribes o f the W arm Springs Reservation of Oregon, pursuant to Article V, Section 1 (i), (1), and (u), of the Tribal Constitution and By-Laws, that the T ribal C o un cil hereby amends WSTC 200.050 to pro vide for a maximum civil pen alty of $5,000 by replacing the phrase “$500 for each such in fraction” with “$5,000 for each episode resulting in one or more civil infractions”; and Be it further resolved that the T ribal C o un cil hereby amends WSTC 307.030 to pro vide for a maximum civil pen alty of $5,000 by replacing the phrase “$500 for each such in fraction” with “$5,000 for each episode resulting in one or more civil infractions”; and Be it further resolved that the T ribal C o un cil hereby amends WSTC 200.360(3) to req uire a cash bond in the amount of $200 by replacing the term “$180” with “$200”; and Be it further resolved by the Tribal Council that the amend m ents to W STC 200.050, W STC 307.030, and WSTC 200.360(3) set forth above shall be effective immediately. (Reso lution no. 11, 438.) Fishing guides W hereas the Treaty with The Tribes of Middle Oregon June 25, 1855 reserved to the Confederated Tribes o f the Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon the” exclusive right of taking fish in the streams run ning through and bordering the Reservation”; and Whereas the Fish and Wild life Committee in conjunction w ith the N atural Resources Department has reviewed and proposed to the Tribal Council the 2011 Fishing Guide Service Regulations for tribal member owned fishing guide services conducted on lakes and rivers within and bordering the reser vation; and Whereas the Tribal Coun cil has reviewed the proposed 2011 Fishing Guide Service R egulatio ns and has d e te r mined that enactment of such regulations w ould be in the best interest of the tribe, its members, and o f the natural re so u rc e s o f the W arm Springs R eservation o f O r egon; and now; therefore, Be it resolved by the 25th Tribal Council pursuant to Ar ticle V, Section 1 (I) and (u), of the Constitution and pursuant to Warm Springs Tribal Code Section 340, that the following rules and regulations are hereby adopted for the 2011 season: 1. Tribal member preference (Resolution 8363 and 8363a) _ shall be used in the selection of all guides. 2. Tribal members have top priority for fishing opportunities on the reservation. Any and all fishing guide business is to be conducted in a way so as not to interfere with any tribal mem ber fishing from waters running through and bordering the Res ervation. 3 . Annual approval by the Tribal Council of each new fish ing guide service is required before the start of the fishing guide season for guide services which have not previously been approved by the Tribal Coun cil. Once a guide service has dem onstrated a satisfacto ry business record and is approved by Tribal Council, it may pro vide guide services indefinitely, subject to securing appropriate liability insurance and subject to any changes in rules and regula tions, unless and until its ap proval is revoked or rescinded by or at the direction of Tribal Council. 4 . The fishing guides will en sure that their non-tribal mem ber clients com ply w ith the Warm Springs Visitor Fishing R egu latio n s; F ishing G uide Regulations developed by the Fish and Wildlife Department any applicable state fishing regu lations. Guides will provide cop ies of these annual tribal and state fishing regulations to all clients. 5 . Fishing Guide Services will only be permitted to launch and take out from the Warm Springs Boat Launch, Annie Dick’s Property (River Mile 85), Whiskey Dick (River Mile 78), and the North White Horse Rap ids A rea (R iver M ile 74.5), North Junction and Hardy. No other launching or take out ar eas will be permitted. 6. If guiding is conducted with a vehicle and or by hiking into a fishing area, the operator of the guide service must ob tain written authorization from allotm ent owner, whose land may be utilized to access the river. Overnight guiding will be permitted subject to the fore going restriction. The guides must have this authorization document in their possession at all times. Use of allotted lands without owners written consent will subject the guides and cli ents to citations for trespass vio lations and will subject the guide service operator to revocation of his/her Tribal Council ap proval. 7 . Permitting or securing ac cess to Reservation waters for non-tribal members does not, by itself, constitute approved guid ing or guide services. Fishing guides must be in unaided vi sual or voice contact with their clients at all times, physically di recting the non-tribal fisher’s angling travel and activities throughout the duration of the non-tribal fisher’s angling activi ties on Reservation waters. 8. Monthly fishing reports must be submitted to the Fish & Wildlife Committee or Fish & Wildlife Committee secretary or to the N atural Resources, Fish and Wildlife Department. Monthly reports will be in a for mat developed by the Fish and W ildlife Com m ittee and the N atural Resources, Fish and Wildlife Department. 9 . Any violation of the rules and regulations applicable to Fishing Guide Service set out in this Resolution will subject the Fishing Guide Service operator to revocation of the Tribal Council’s approval to operate a fishing guide service on the waters running through and bor dering the Warm Springs Indian Reservation. Be it further resolved that for the 2011 season, the guide services owned and operated by: Alysia Aguilar are hereby ap p ro v ed . (R eso lu tio n no. 11,475.) J