CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
$10 million to prepare Native Americans
for careers in information technology.
What Congress will do with the
president s request is an open question.
Individual tribes, national Indian
organizations, and our friends in Congress
must vigorously fight for the budget
increases the president has requested for
the needed programs.
Census 2000
Some people may wonder how
important the census is to the Indian people.
Based on past experience, information
gathered by the Census Bureau is very
important. The following are just a few
Chairman Delores Pigsley
Newly Elected Council Members
First, I want to congratulate
incumbents JoAnn Miller and Gerald Ben
and newly elected member Reggie Butler
for being elected to Tribal Council.
I want also to commend the Election
Committee for carrying out this important
responsibility, one of the most important, for
the Siletz Tribe. We had an excellent turnout
for the election and although there were the
usual assertions of unfairness by a few
members, the process proved successful.
A dedicated Election Committee and
an independent, unbiased election director
conducted a fair and smooth election in
accordance with a carefully revised
ordinance governing the election process.
The newly elected members were sworn in
on Feb. 10,2000, at the tribal administration
office to serve three-year terms.
The President’s Budget Request
On Feb. 7, President Clinton
submitted his FY 2001 proposed budget to
Congress, which includes a $9.4 billion
budget request for new and existing
Indian programs.
The budget represents an increase
of $1.2 billion over the FY 2000 budget and
includes a multitude of Indian programs and
services, ranging the entire gamut from
school modernization and other education
programs to Medicaid and Medicare
reimbursement, from Indian housing to
tribal environmental programs to
trust services.
To ensure that Indian people acquire
the skills they will need in this rapidly
advancing technological age, the president’s
initiative also includes a request for
examples of how census information
is used:
• Billions of federal dollars are
allocated for various federal programs based
on census information, including education,
housing, and community development,
health care services for the elderly, job
training, and many others.
• Tribal, state and local governments
use census information for planning
purposes and to allocate funds for schools,
public transportation systems, etc.
The last time the census was taken,
10 years ago, the Indian population was
seriously undercounted and Indian
programs were adversely affected. It’s for
this reason there is a determined effort this
time to make sure all Indian people
are counted.
You may be concerned, however,
about how confidential the information will
be that you, as an individual, provide to the
Census Bureau.
By law, the Census Bureau cannot
share your answers with the IRS, the FBI,
BIA, tribal officials, tribal police, or the
welfare or any other government agency. No
court of law, not even the U.S. president,
can find out your answers. Census workers
census and can be reached at
1 -800-922-1399, ext. 258,or 541 -444-8258.
Once again, I remind our members
and friends of the importance not only of
registering to vote but of being informed on
Indian issues and the candidates’ positions
on these issues, and to cast your votes
accordingly on election day.
Measure 92, to Make Video Poker Illegal
We were pleased to hearthat Greg
Kafoury, principal proponent of Measure 92,
announced he is withdrawing the measure
from the 2002 election. He withdrew the
measure because of the failure to generate
support from churches. Support declined
when some influential supporters, who
understand the economic importance of
gaming to Indian tribes, learned that the
passage of this measure could adversely
impact Indian casinos.
According to tribal attorney Craig
Dorsay, who with Council member Jessie
Davis was active in strategizing against the
measure, It was not video poker in
particular that concerned the tribes, but that
video gaming obviously is a major part of
tribal casino revenue, and anything that
could affect that gaming was a concern to
the tribes.”
I suspect that those opposed to
gambling in general and Indian casinos in
particular are already plotting their next
move. Even though Measure 92 has been
withdrawn, tribes must be ever alert to future
attempts to introduce legislation that would
negatively impact Indian casinos.
Salem Property to be Put into Trust
On the evening of Feb. 10,1 signed
the deed to the North Salem property, which
means that the Bureau of Indian Affairs will
take the 20-acre parcel of land into trust
within the next month.
Although our original plan to
establish a gaming center on the Salem
property was not approved, the Siletz Tribe
decided to retain ownership of the property.
We therefore now own a prime piece of land
within the city of Salem that will be under
federal trust status, strategically located for
are sworn to secrecy and face severe
penalties if they give out any information
from your census form.
Because of the importance of the
upcoming census, I urge all Siletz members
to make sure you are counted by filling out
the census questionnaire that will be mailed
to each household. On Indian reservations,
census takers will hand-deliver these
questionnaires.
Lisa Norton, tribal enrollment
specialist, and former council member Mike
Darcy attended meetings to help the Siletz
Tribe gear up for Census 2000. Lisa is
economic development purposes adjacent
to the I-5 interchange.
We have tentative plans for
developing the property and will provide
information regarding these plans, as
prepared to answer questions regarding the
appropriate, in future issues of Siletz News.
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