CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
On Nov. 20, 2004, we celebrated
the 27 th anniversary of the restoration
of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz
Indians at Chinook Winds Casino Re
sort. We were reminded that we are the
successor in interest to the historic
Rogue River Tribe under the Rogue
River Treaty of 1853.
We once owned and occupied a
treaty reservation of 1.1 million acres
along the Oregon coast, but later fell
victim to the ill-conceived federal “ter
mination” policy of the 1950s. This
abolished our entire reservation and any
connection to the federal government’s
protection of trust responsibility.
Although virtually none of our
original reservation was restored to us,
restoration gave us renewed energy and
hope. The social, economic, and cul
tural achievements of the past 27 years
are evident all around us as we celebrate
the restoration of our tribe.
Reflections on the
National Election
The long, bitter national campaign
is over. President George Bush will be
our president for another four years -
and his continued presidency will have
solid Republican majorities and control
of both houses of Congress.
What does all this mean for Indian
tribes? For one thing, we know that
federal programs and funding for them
- on which tribes rely - will be in Re
publican hands and for another,
appointments to the Supreme Court that
decides critical constitutional issues
affecting Indian tribes will basically
depend on the Republican Congress.
Another significant change with
potential adverse consequences was the
defeat of Sen. Tom Daschle of South
Dakota, Senate minority leader and
long-time advocate of Indian tribes.
All this is not to say, however, that
Indian tribes are without friends in the
Republican-controlled Congress. We
have Republican friends, like Reps. J.D.
Hayworth of Arizona and Richard Pombo
of California, who have actively advo
cated for Indian programs and causes.
We must not forget that for many
years, Sen. John McCain of Arizona has
been a champion of Indian tribes, tribal
sovereignty, and Indian gaming. We
also have our own Sen. Gordon Smith,
who has listened to Oregon tribes and
championed and supported Indian leg
islation. We will count on all of our
tions, he was present throughout mine.
Here are a few highlights of what I said:
“The principle of tribal sovereignty
is given substance only when the state
treats tribes as sovereigns. It is through
these annual summits that the tribes and
state government departments are able
to address concrete tribal issues on a
govemment-to-govemment basis ...
Chairman Delores Pigsley
friends to play a key role on behalf
of tribes in the U.S. Congress and
the administration.
As for the state of Oregon, we are
pleased that Reps. Hooley, Defazio,
Blumenauer, and Wu were re-elected.
They know the Indian tribes and are
relatively knowledgeable of Indian
issues. We will continue to communi
cate with them and solicit their help, as
appropriate, on specific Siletz issues.
At the same time, we will support their
efforts in Congress when it’s in our
mutual benefit.
As chairman, I want to emphasize to
our members how important it is for us
to be actively involved in state and na
tional inter-tribal Indian organizations.
At the national level, it’s organi
zations like the National Congiess
of American Indians (NCAI) and the
National Indian Gaming Association
(NIGA) that keep us abreast of current
legislative issues and what we must do
as a tribe to help prevent or advance the
enactment of Indian bills in Congress.
“Although the Siletz Tribe’s casino
has been a major asset, the backlog of
unmet social and economic needs is far
greater than are being met by our gam
ing revenues ...
“In the area of health, we are in a
crisis situation as a result of diminishing
federal funding, rising costs of medi
cal care, increased tribal membership,
and unexpected, costly, catastrophic cases.
“Regarding higher education, we are
funded at the same level that we were
in 1995 by the federal government. If
it weren’t for casino revenues, Siletz
students desiring to go to college would
not have had that opportunity. All stu
dents who have the desire to attend col
lege must be given the means by which
their aspirations can be realized.
“Gaming is the only viable revenue
source available to meet tribal needs.
But there is no guarantee Indian gaming
will be here tomorrow. We are very aware
of the need to diversify our economic
base so we are not totally dependent on our
casino. The Siletz Tribe is actively explor
ing a variety of economic development
potentials. And we look to the state to
help the tribe realize those potentials.
“Meanwhile, the Siletz and other
tribes are not only using gaming rev
enues wisely to meet tribal needs, we
are contributing significantly to the sur
rounding non-Indian communities and
to the state of Oregon.”
2005 Standing Committee
Applications Due
Deadline for consideration for 2005 committees is Jan. 31, 2005
Any tribal member interested in serving on a committee for a two-year
term must fill out the following form and return it to the address below prior to
Jan. 31, 2005, to be considered for the following committees.
Please mail or fax your application to Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indi
ans, Attn: Executive Secretary to Tribal Council, P.O. Box 549, Siletz, OR
97380-0549; Fax: 541-444-8325.
Name: Roll No:
Address:____________________________________________________________
Governor’s Summit with
Oregon Tribes
The annual Governor’s Summit
with Oregon Tribes was held in
Pendleton on Oct. 26-27, with all nine
tribes represented.
Gov. Ted Kulongoski spoke in very
cordial terms about the relationship
between the state and tribes. He also
had strong words about the state’s need
to uphold tribal sovereignty.
Officials of the various state depart
ments also had an opportunity to listen
to the tribes’ concerns, which included
issues involving health care, education,
natural resources, fisheries, and water.
Although Gov. Kulongoski left be
fore the tribes finished their presenta
City:State:ZIP
Telephone: Day (
) Evening (
)
Choose the first, second, and third choice of committees you are request
ing by numbering your preference 1, 2, 3 in the space provided. If you only
want to request one committee, please indicate this by inserting the number 1.
Committee appointments are for a two-year term.
Education Committee
Natural Resources Committee
Health Committee
Cultural Heritage Committee
Housing Committee
Pow-Wow Committee
Budget Committee
(one-year appointment)
Tribal Council will review applications and approve appointments at the
Regular Tribal Council meeting in February 2005. If you have any questions,
please call Tami Miner or Trish Carey at 1-800-922-1399 or 541-444-2532.
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December 2004
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Siletz News
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