Tym oo
J u ly 11
Coyote News, est. 1976
2013
V o i. 3 8 , N o . 4 4
J u ly - Pat’ak-Pt’akni - Summer - Shatm
Motorsports vote falls short by 46
There are three ways to vote: yes,
no, and no show. ‘Teople can vote
with their feet, h>y not showing up
at the polls,” Jo A nn Smith was spy
ing earlier this week.
When the polling place closed on
Tuesday evening, a little more than
two-thirds of the eligible voters had
not cast their ballots. ,
This resulted in the official con
clusion: “Did not meet the Consti
tutional requirem ent o f one-third
qualified voters casting their ballots.”
T rib al C o u n cil c e rtifie d th e
m o to rsp o rts referendum results
Wednesday morning; and there was
discussion that the matter would not
be put to another vote o f the m em
bership.
The official results were 550 in
favor and 459 against, for a total
o f 1,009 total votes cast.
There were 3,165 eligible voters,
which would have required a. turn
out o f at least 1,055; so the refer
endum fell short by 46 ballots.
O rdinance 44
Tribal Council earlier in the Week
discussed the tribal voting process,
specifically T ribal O rdinance 44.
T here has been som e confusion
about the ordinance, as it appeared
there were two different versions of
Ordinance 44.
Tribal attorney Howie A rn ett
clarified that one o f the versions was
a draft that a previous Tribal Coun
cil had amended; and yet the draft
Dave McMechan/Spilyay
Tribal election worker William Rhoan prepares ballots for Peggy Poltra and Slslly Scott.
version was, still being circulated.
Council directed that this situation
be corrected.
Councilman Carlos Smith sug
g e ste d th a t th e o rd in a n c e be
amended in order to reflect the cur
rent voting practices o f the C on
federated Tribes.
For instance, there is a two-wit
ness requirement for absentee bal
lots, which has n ot been enforced
for many years. A t the very least,
this requirement should be removed
from the Ordinance, said Council
man ScOtt Moses,
Councilman Smith suggested that
the tribes consider switching to a
vote-by-mail system for all tribal
m em ber voters. “The point is to
make it as easy as possible for mem
bers to vote,” he said. '
Councilman Raymond Tsumpti
said such a change in the voting
method would require consultation
with the membership.
Councilman Reuben Henry said
the voting age requirem ent should
be looked at. Presently, a m em ber
m ust be 21 years old or married
in order to participate in a tribal
election. T he tribes should look
at setting the voting age at 18,
Councilman Henry said.
Changing the voting require
m ent would require an amend
m ent to the tribal Constitution,
said C oun cilw o m an E valine
Patt. This m atter, and the vote-
by-m ail su g g estio n , w arran t
further Council discussion, she
said.
M is -
Dave McMechan
P.0. Box 870
Warm Springs, OR 97761
ECRWSS
Postal Patron
U.S. Postage
PRSRTSTD
Warm Springs, OR 97761
50 cents
Work
starting on
water line
Work is scheduled to begin this
m onth on the new waterline and
re s e rv o ir th a t w ill serv e th e
Simnasho-SchooEe Flat residents.
A completion date for the work
is scheduled for late December.
For several years the Simnasho-
SchooEe Flat water system has tested
high fo r the presence o f arsenic,
which is a health risk and can cause
cancer.
While the tribes have worked to
secure funding for the new weU and
pipeline, the Simnasho-SchooEe Flat
residents received bottled water for
domestic use.
Funding for the waterline project
was achieved through a combina
tion o f tribal and federal doUars.
Last m onth the tribe held a pre-bid
m eetin g and aw arded th e new
Simnasho wateriine and reservoir
project. (See the Public Notice on page
8 o f this publication.) ,
Insurance
matter
at Council
T h e T ribal C ouncil voted on
Monday to estabEsh a board to re
view health insurance issues facing
th e C o n fe d e ra te d T rib e s o f W a rm
Springs.
The board will consist o f the
members o f the review board for
the tribal P ension program . The
members are the C oundl chairman,
the secretary-treasurer, chief opera
tions officer, and representatives
fro m K a h -N e e -T a a n d W arm
Springs Forest Products Industries.
T he Confederated Tribes and its
enterprises, Eke other employers in
the U.S., face a potentiaUy compE-
cated chaUenge in coming m onths
regarding im plem entation o f the
Affordable H ealth Care Act. U n
der these circumstances, the tribes
need to assure that aU health-care
insurance options are being consid
ered, said Councilman Carlos Sfnith.
C ouncilm an Sm ith m ade the
m o tio n to a p p o in t th e P en sio n
board as the tribal insurance review
team , seconded by C ouncilm an
Scott Moses. Also in favor were
C ouncilm en K ahseuss Jack so n ,
R e u b e n H e n ry a n d R ay m o n d
T su m p ti, W arm S prings C h ie f
Delvis H ealth and Wasco Chief J.R.
Smith Jr.
T he v o te was 7-1-1. C ouncil
Chairman Austin Greene Jr. did not
vote, as the chairman votes only in
case o f tie. Councilwoman EvaEne
Patt voted against. She said the for
mation o f a new board could dupE-
cate a role being carried out by the
tribal Health and H um an Services
Branch, as the branch implements
the A ffordable Care Act.
Pi-Ume-Sha
The Confederated Tribes hosted the Forty-Fourth Annual Pl-Ume-
Sha Powwow In late June. See page 6 for more on the powwow.
Stick Game and Parade results.in the next Spilyay.
GET YOUR KICKS ON HIGHWAY
Warm Springs Oregon
Yvonne Iverson photos.
See HEALTH CARE on 2