S moke S ignals
april 15, 2014
Final informational session to be held April 16
ELECTION continued
from front page
June 6.
A similar event came later in the
day in Eugene at Lane Community
College’s longhouse.
The final informational session
for Tribal members will be held
on Wednesday, April 16, in Grand
Ronde at approximately 6 p.m. in
the Governance Center following
that day’s Tribal Council meeting
The first proposed amendment
removes the oversight role that
the Department of the Interior,
through the Bureau of Indian Af-
fairs, has held over Tribal consti-
tutional amendment elections. If
the amendment passes, oversight
of and approval for future consti-
tutional amendments will both
become Tribal responsibilities. The
BIA supports the amendment.
“The BIA’s role,” said Acting Su-
perintendent Arthur E. Fisher, who
also is the Election Board Chair
and Realty Officer for the federal
agency’s Siletz Agency Office, “is to
make elections as objective as pos-
sible and as inclusive as possible.”
Fisher said that removing over-
sight from the understaffed Siletz
Agency Office will eliminate a nega-
tive element from the process.
The thinking behind the change
also came because years ago the
Tribe did not have the administra-
tive depth or experience to run a
Tribal-wide vote. Today, the Tribe
has both the depth of personnel
and experience to do the work on
its own.
Finally, BIA oversight has re-
quired the Tribe and its members
to follow two sets of regulations
for different kinds of elections: For
Tribal Council elections, run and
overseen by the Tribe, and consti-
tutional amendments, run by the
Tribe but overseen by the BIA.
The differing rules mean two sets
of voter registrations. Two registra-
tions have meant more mistaken
names and addresses. Tribal Coun-
cil hopes that a single registration
will translate into more Tribal voter
registrations and greater participa-
tion in future elections.
In the last Grand Ronde con-
stitutional election, said Angela
Ramirez, administrative assistant
for the Siletz Agency Office, 40
to 50 registration packets sent to
Tribal members were returned
undeliverable.
The April 12 meetings also marked
opening day for BIA registrations.
At the end of the Portland meeting,
where registration packets were
available for those attending, the
BIA logged six of 3,976 potential
registrations.
Called an expansion of Tribal
sovereignty, the amendment comes
from an advisory vote of Tribal
members in 2009.
“That’s how long it took to study
the issue,” said Giffen. “It doesn’t
change a lot, but taking the BIA out
of these elections expands Tribal
sovereignty.”
Even with passage of the amend-
ment, much BIA oversight will
remain. The agency continues to
have approval responsibilities for
many trust land functions, includ-
ing fee-to-trust land designations.
Currently, BIA oversight covers
some 11,000 Tribal acres, Fisher
said. Also still under BIA super-
vision are per capita plans, fire
suppression, forestry and social
services activities.
The second proposed amendment
would set term limits for future
Tribal Council members. In 2010,
a survey of Tribal members found
more than 75 percent of those pro-
viding input supported term limits.
At that time, the survey respon-
dents favored limits of two terms.
The amendment, however, allows
three-term limits with a year off
required before a Tribal member
may run again for three more con-
secutive terms. The amendment
would not affect those currently on
Tribal Council who have already
served more than three consecu-
tive terms.
The limits were arrived at, said
Giffen, by taking an average of
the length of time Tribal Council
members have served since Res-
toration.
If passed, terms of the amend-
ment will take effect for the Tribal
Council election held after the
amendment has become law.
Here are important dates for the
process:
April 9: BIA voter registration
packets were sent to all Tribal
members who will be 18 or older
on July 19.
May 9, at 4 p.m.: BIA registra-
tion packets must reach the Siletz
Agency Office.
May 14: Proposed list of reg-
istered voters will be posted at
various locations around the Tribal
campus for review.
May 22: Official ballots will be
sent to eligible BIA-registered vot-
ers.
May 27: End of the dispute period
for names on the proposed list.
May 28: Final official list of BIA-
registered voters will be posted.
Noon June 6: The election will
be held; ballots must reach the Si-
letz Agency Office by noon.
To pass these amendments, 30
percent of BIA-registered voters
must vote. Of those who vote, two-
thirds must vote in favor.
More information is available
on the Tribal website and at the
Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Siletz
Agency Office by calling 1-800-323-
8517, ext. 221 or 223.
The events in Portland and Eu-
gene were lightly attended, but
those who attended were engaged
with the process.
“I appreciate the opportunity
of having the information avail-
able to the Tribal members who
came,” said Mike Portwood of Ti-
gard. He was concerned, however,
that removal of BIA’s neutral
oversight will make it easier for
Tribal Council to alter the Tribal
Constitution.
“I’m going to continue thinking
about the positives and negatives
of ending BIA oversight,” he said,
and added, “I can’t think of any
downside to the term limits amend-
ment.”
Senior Staff Attorney Daneen
Aubertin Keller noted that those in
attendance asked “really insightful
questions.” Those in attendance
were engaged, she said. “I only wish
we had more people.”
Also in attendance were Tribal
Council members June Sherer, Jon
A. George and Ed Pearsall. From
the Grand Ronde Tribal Attorney’s
Office were Greene, who walked
the group through a PowerPoint
program that also was handed out
in a printed packet, and Keller,
who specializes in election issues
for the Tribe.
In addition, Tribal Council Execu-
tive Coordinator Stacia Martin and
temporary Administrative Assis-
tant Shannon Simi also attended.
George offered the invocation. n