S d efy "Heart
Chairman’s Report
Page 2
Why a review of tribal business decisions
and legal advice is so important to our
tribe’s financial well-being
Confederated Tribes of
Siletz Indians
Siletz Administration Office
201 SE Swan Avenue
PO Box 549
Siletz, Oregon 97380-0549
1-800-922-1399
FAX: (541) 444-2307
Contract Health Services
PO Box 320
Siletz, OR 97380
1-800-628-5720
FAX: 541-444-9645
Siletz Community Health Clinic
107 SE Swan Avenue
PO Box 320
Siletz, OR 97380
1-800-648-0449
FAX: 541-444-1278
Portland Area Office
3715 SE 39th Avenue
Portland, pregon 97202
503-238-1512
FAX: 503-238^2436
Salem Area Office
3789 River Road North, Suite D
Keizer, Oregon 97303 .
503-390-9494
. FAX: 503-390-8099 .
Springfield Area Office
188 West "B"St.> Building P*
Springfield, Oregon
541-746-9658
FAX: 541-746-0049
General Managers
Mike Kennedy
. Sharon Edenf ield .
Tribal Council
Pat Duncan, Chair
Lillie Butler, Vice-Chair
Clifford Case, Secretary
Mary "Dolly" Fisher
Geneva Johnson
JoAnn Miller
Bonnie Petersen
Denise Peterson
Delores Pigsley
CTSI on the Internet
www.ctsi.nsn.us
PAT D U N C A N
Tribal Chairman
agreement to purchase the casino
ou have read the recent letters
site property, and the gaming
to the editor questioning the
negotiations.
The
actions I have taken since compact
becoming your Chairman. I want
current attorney billings are being
questioned by some tribal
to respond to these letters, as well
members, but I have seen the
as to the threatening phone calls I
have received.
millions of dollars our tribe has
lost by not carefully examining
Throughout the past number of
every contract, agreement and
years, our tribe has been plagued
proposal. Most recently, the Tribal
with bad business decisions and
Council has been reviewing
legal advice. I have already
proposals based upon the advice
mentioned
previously
the
of the previous tribal attorney.
$4 million that we have to pay
After review of the issue by the
Comstock because the legal
current tribal attorney firm, it was
review of the contract did not
determined that we would have
protect our interests. You have
faced millions of dollars in losses
seen the STEDCO report regard
if we had gone forward based on
ing the losses incurred by all the
the previous tribal attorney's
business ventures. The Salem
advice. .
property, Lakeside Village and
The cosfsdssociated with à
' the property on Logan Road in
legal re vieware only a fraction-of
Lincoln City were , purchased a
the costs that could be incurred
number of years ago, but they are
without thorough consideration
still undeveloped.
Chinook
of the legal implications. We have
Winds initially cost approx
learned this by reviewing what
imately $20 million, by adding a
had occurred in the past arid the
few thousand square feet, the
financial, obligationsthat have to,
price doubled to over $40 million.
be factored into our current
Millions of dollars had been taken
budget-planning process.. The
oiit of our investment account
legal area is only a part of the
which had been earning 18%. I
overall plan to assure you that the
remember, as I am sure you will,
Tribal Council is being respon
the initial community meetings to
sible.
gain input on how you want to
Another area is the tribe's
see the gaming revenues distrib
primary working documents; the
uted. Because of decisions in the
majority of the ordinances are
past and the legal advice, there
inconsistent with the Coristitutiori
has been a considerable delay in
and/or current practices, even to
the distribution of revenues, as
the point of nonexistence. I am
well as in the development of the
amazed at the lax attitude of
properties mentioned previously.
"that's the way it's always been
I have directed Hobbs, Straus,
done." The Tribal Council had
Dean & Walker to review all the
almost twenty years to adhere to
projects assigned to the previous
the Constitution to enact a recall
tribal attorney. There were many,
ordinance. Since March, we have
many important issues that had
had a number of work sessions to
fallen through the cracks, and
revise the election ordinance.
many issues that should have
Besides including the recall
been handled differently. Four
provision within the ordinance,
major areas being addressed are
we are revising the election
the Ross-Simmons joint venture,
process to assure fair and honest
the case against the election
elections. We plan to review all
board, the covenant in the
Y
the
documents
to
assure
consistency in the tribe's policies,
procedures and Constitutional
provisions.
Tribal
members
have
questioned the many hours we
have had to work in assuring the
accountability of your tribal
government. My typical day
(including weekends), except
when I am traveling on behalf of
the tribe, is to be on the phone
from approximately 8:00 a.m.
throughout the day and work on
reports until approximately
midnight. I personally have put
everything
else
aside
to
concentrate on my job as your
Chairman. Other Tribal Council
members are also committed to
attending every meeting, review
ing all documentation, answering
phone calls and being responsive
to the membership. Years ago we
had fewer programs, fewer
enrolled members and a much
smaller financial base.* Today,
there are so many, issues that it is
impossible to just meet one day a
month, and there are tons of
paperwork that must be reviewed
in order to make informed
decisions. The tribe has too much
at stake for the Tribal Council to
make uninformed decisions
regarding the future of the tribal
members.
I believe that we, as a
responsible government, are
moving in the right direction. The
recent letters to the editor were
tribal members who want our
tribe to go back to the old ways of
conducting business with no
accountability and no long-range
planning. I truly believe that the
majority of tribal members want
the change and want to be
assured that we are acting
responsibly. If you disagree with
the direction we are headed,
please let me know.