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About Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (April 15, 2012)
14 APRIL 15,2012 Smoke Signals PUBLIC RECORDS ORDINANCE AMENDMENT OPEN FOR COMMENT The Tribal Council, in consultation with the Tribal Attorney's Office, is considering adoption of an amendment to the Public Records Ordinance. The proposed amendment was given a First Reading at the April 4, 2012, Tribal Council meeting. The purpose of the proposed amendment to the Public Records Ordinance is to fulfill the requirements of Chapter 644, Oregon Laws 2011 (Senate Bill 412) for the Tribal Police Department re quiring the Tribe to adopt a provision of Tribal law that provides members of the public with the right to inspect records of the Tribal government related to the exercise of the authority granted to au thorized Tribal Police Officers in a manner substantially similar to Oregon law. The proposed amendment adds the definition of "law enforcement records" as those records "related to the exercise of the authority granted to authorized Tribal police officers under Chapter 644, Oregon Laws 2011" and amends Section (f) as follows: (0 INSPECTION OF TRIBAL RECORDS. (1) Right to view and copy Records: Aj Only enrolled members of the Tribe have a right to view or obtain copies of Records under this Ordinance provided, however, that non-enrolled members of the public mav view law enforce ment records as defined herein. Such members of the public will have the same rights as Tribal Members to review and inspect law enforcement records and appeal denials as set forth within this Section (f). For a copy of the proposed amendment to the Public Records Ordi nance, please contact the Tribal Attorney's Office at 503-879-4664. The Tribal Council invites comment on the proposed amendment. Please send your comments to the Tribal Attorney's Office, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347. Comments must be received by May 15, 2012. TRIBAL TORT CLAIM ORDINANCE AMENDMENT OPEN FOR COMMENT The Tribal Council, in consultation with the Tribal Attorney's Office, is considering adoption of an amendment to the Tribal Tort Claims Ordinance. The proposed amendment was given a First Reading at the April 4, 2012, Tribal Council meeting. The purpose of the proposed amendment to the Tribal Tort Claims Ordinance is to fulfill the conditions established in Chapter 644, Oregon Laws 2011 (SB 412) requiring the Tribe to have adopted a provision of Tribal law that allows tort claims asserted in the Tribal Court arising from the conduct of an authorized Tribal Police Officer to proceed in a manner substantially similar to Oregon law. The proposed amendment to the Tribal Tort Claims Ordinance clarifies that authorized Tribal Police Officers are included within the definition of employees, and that claims arising from the conduct of an authorized Tribal Police Officer are included within the Tribal Tort Claims Ordinance - by modifying the definitions of "Employee" and "Injury" as follows: "Employee" means any person who is an employee, whether full time or part-time, permanent or temporary, of the Tribe, and shall include an authorized Tribal police officer, as defined in Section 1 of Chapter 644. Oregon Laws 2011 (SB 412). "Injury" means injury to a person, death, damage to or loss of prop erty of whatever kind, which, if caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of a private person would be a tort under Tribal law, applicable federal law, and, to the extent consistent with Tribal law, laws of the State of Oregon (including a tort as defined in ORS 30.260(8)) in effect as of the date of this Ordinance, regardless of the type or form of action or form of relief sought by the claimant. The proposed amendment also adds the following language to Sec tion (e)(1): Notwithstanding the foregoing, claims for monetary damages arising from the conduct of an authorized Tribal police officer shall be limited to the amounts listed in ORS 30.260 to 30.300 applicable to a local public body. For a copy of the proposed amendment to the Tribal Tort Claims Ordinance, please contact the Tribal Attorney's Office at 503-879-4664. The Tribal Council invites comment on the proposed amend ment. Please send your comments to the Tribal Attorney's Office, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347. Comments must be received by May 15, 2012. Changes to your Skookum Health Plan For Tribal members residing in the counties of Washington, Multnomah, Til lamook, Yamhill, Polk and Marion, you will soon be receiving a new Skookum card with changes to your health plan ID number. This does NOT affect Tribal employees with the Shasta employee plan. We are making a few changes to your health plan group identifier, which means that you will need a new ID card. The first three letters of your current ID number will be changing from GRT to GRC. o Your current ID number looks like: GRT123456. o Your new ID number will look like: GRC123456. Your ID number affects how your claims are paid, so to ensure your claims are paid correctly, please THROW OUT your old card and KEEP the new card starting with the GRC ID number o When you go to a doctor, dentist, pharmacy or eye doctor, make sure you give the provider your new ID card so the bill will be processed for payment correctly. The final change relates to your Explanation of Benefits (EOB). Going for ward you will only receive an EOB if you owe the provider a portion of the claim costs or if the claim has been denied. If you have any questions on the above changes, please call Shasta Admin istrative Services' Customer Service at 1-800-880-5877 or Contract Health Services at 1-800-775-0095. Again, these changes only affect Tribal members residing in Washington, Multnomah, Tillamook, Yamhill, Polk and Marion counties! This does not affect Tribal employees. TRIBAL POLICE ORDINANCE OPEN FOR COMMENT The Tribal Council, in consultation with the Tribal Attorney's Office, is considering adoption of a Tribal Police Ordinance. The proposed Ordinance was given a First Reading at the April 4, 2012, Tribal Council meeting. The Tribal Police Ordinance establishes the structure of the Grand Ronde Tribal Police Department, the duties of the Chief of Police, and the appointment, qualifications, minimum training standards, and duties of the Tribal Police Officers. The purpose of the Tribal Police Ordinance is to establish the lawful authority of the Tribe's Police Department and vest its Chief of Police with the accompany ing authority to plan, operate and lead the public safety efforts and community policing programs for the protection and security efforts targeted for the overall benefit of the Tribe. The Ordinance will also meet requirements of Chapter 644, Oregon Laws 2011 (Senate Bill 412) for the Tribal Police Department as it contains provisions relating to participation in a deadly force plan, records retention, and preservation of biological evidence. For a copy of the proposed Tribal Police Ordinance, please contact the Tribal Attorney's Office at 503-879-4664. The Tribal Council invites comment on the proposed Ordinance. Please send your com ments to the Tribal Attorneys Office, 9615 Grand Ronde Road, Grand Ronde, Oregon 97347. Comments must be received by May 15, 2012. Other Native American Tribes have primary elections VOTE continued from front page survey sent to Tribal members in September 2010. Tribal members who responded to the survey sup ported a primary election 582-366, or 61.4 percent in favor. Recent Tribal Council elections regularly have seen candidate slates exceeding 10 with those be ing elected usually receiving less than 20 percent of the total vote. In 2011, 17 Tribal members ran for office and Tribal Vice Chair Reyn Leno, who captured the most votes, received 12.64 percent of the vote. In 2010, 14 Tribal members ran for Tribal Council and incumbent Chris Mercier, who led the field, received 17.54 percent of the vote. In 2009, 18 Tribal members ran for Tribal Council and newcomer Toby McClary, who topped the field, received 11.59 percent of the vote. In 2008, 13 Tribal members ran for Tribal Council and the top vote getter, incumbent Kathleen Tom, received 14.52 percent of the vote. Other Native American Tribes have primary elections. For in stance, the Shoshone Bannock Tribes of Idaho currently have 10 challengers running for the Fort Hall Business Council. The top three vote-getters will face off against the three incumbents in the general election. Also in September 2010, the Tribe asked its members if they supported Tribal Council term limits, which were endorsed by 75.5 percent (701-227) of those who responded to the survey. In January, Tribal Council mem ber Toby McClary was the only one to vote against sending the primary idea to Tribal voters because, he said, he thought Tribal Council should move forward with resolu tions on both survey questions in an effort to save money. D
