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Chairman's Report
Historic Signing of the Memo of
Understanding at Oak Flats
On behalf of the Siletz Tribe, I
want to take this opportunity of
commending the tireless efforts of
Teresa Miller and Frank Simmons of
the Interdisciplinary Team that
brought to fruition, the signing of
the Memorandum of Understanding
between the Confederated Tribes of
Siletz Indians and the U.S. Forest
Service. This could not have been
achieved without the commitment of
the Forest Service.
The Tribe has always had a
problem of communications with
the Forest Service and having
meaningful input into Forest Service
planning. The MOU establishes the
process by which the Tribe and the
Forest Service "will jointly identify,
communicate and coordinate
actions of common concern relating
to the management of lands and
resources, arid provide a
mechanism for continuing
involvement in the development and
revision of land management plans."
It was an especially historic
event because the signing ceremony
was held at Oak Flats, the very site
where the Rogue River Treaty was
signed one hundred and forty years
ago. Bud Lane’s feather dancers,
the Dancing Again Singers and the
runners made this occasion veiy
special. Little Miss Siletz, our
elders and many tribal members
were in attendance to witness and
enjoy the day.
We are proud of Teresa and
Frank's work and all the others who
made this historic event possible. I
urge you to read the detailed
account on page 14 of this issue of
the Newsletter.
Comments on Lincoln City's
Reaction to Proposed Fee-to-Trust
We regret that the Lincoln
City Council reacted the way it did
to the Siletz Tribe's recent request to
have 37 acres of Lincoln City
property put into trust status.
In a letter to the Tribe dated
September 12, 1995, Mayor
Achenbrenner said, "If the Tribe is
interested in pursuing opportunities
for a cooperative relationship, I
suggest an initial meeting . . . at the
Lincoln City Hall (from which the
meeting can be televised)."
But the Mayor had already
declared in the same letter, that the
City Council "unanimously voted to
oppose the Tribe's application . . . in
the strongest possible terms".
Further, City Attorney Chris
Thomas warned that the Tribe's
action goes beyond Lincoln City:
that i t ". . . is an extremely
significant development for the
central coast. . . and could have
significant effects for the state . . .if
other tribes pursue a similar
course."
As we stated in public
meetings a year ago, the Siletz Tribe
hopes to buy properties in Lincoln
City that have economic develop
ment potential. It would be
absolutely naive to think we would
do otherwise. But the Tribe must,
first of all, have the financial
resources to buy the property and
then, must go through a federal
process to have the land placed in
trust. Once in trust, the land would
not be subject to property taxes or
state and local regulations.
However, the taking of land
in trust is discretionary with the
Secretaiy of the Interior and there
must be a finding by the Secretary
of no significant impact on the city
and county.
Furthermore, the Siletz
Tribe's policy and practice has
always been to make voluntary
contributions to local governments
for municipal services and to abide
by reasonable local standards.
As for the complaint that the
City and County governments were
not notified of the acquisition of the
Lakeside Village property, they were
notified and are being given the
opportunity to comment on the
Tribe's fee-to-trust application.
We regret that the City
reacted as they did. But we have
come to realize that this may be
standard operating procedure for
the Lincoln City Council; Targeting
Chinook Winds sandwich board
signs is symptomatic - in that case,
it was the City's impulsive, perhaps
even racist, approach to issues.
Having said that, I believe it
is important for us to work with the
city with dignity and patience to
maintain a positive attitude in the
same way we have always worked
with federal, state and other local
governments.
In response to the Mayor's
letter I stated that we were more
than willing to discuss this matter
but that the meeting should be on a
government to government basis.
We will keep you posted on this 9
matter.
Anti-Indian Climate in
Washington, D.C.
I have commented in
previous issues of the Newsletter
about the mood these days in J
Washington and the threat not onlv
to Indian funding of programs but
most importantly, tribal sovereignty.
Of major concern right now is
the taxing of Indian Gaming
revenues. Here again, the bill which
passed the House and is pending in
the Senate, will not only adversely
impact our revenues, it is an
invasion of our tribal sovereignty.
You will recall that Senator
Slade Gorton of Washington State
was an outspoken opponent of
Indian fishing rights and is generally
known to be anti-indian. He is
vigorously campaigning to tax our
gaming revenues. Unfortunately,
there are others like him in
Congress.
We have joined forces with
other Tribes in fighting against this
invasion of our sovereignty and of
protecting federal funding of Indian
programs.
In this connection, I would
like to remind our members and
friends of the upcoming election to
replace Sen. Bob Packwood. It is
veiy important for us to study the
backgrounds of the candidates,
their positions on issues of
importance to Indians and to vote
accordingly. Ballots are scheduled
to be mailed out on November 18th.
Inter-tribal Communications and
Coordination
As Tribal Chairman, I have
been in communication with leaders
of other Oregon tribes because of
issues that are common to us all.
Our tribe will host an Oregon Tribes
Meeting in Salem on 10-19-95 to
discuss current issues.