Council Dispatch #178     July 18, 2023

 

Tribal Council

 

  • Martin Charlo thanked everyone for attending yesterday and SKC for providing the  Nicole Ducheneaux unexpectedly passed away and he wants CSKT to send condolences to the family and law firm and send flowers. She was an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe and a descendant of CSKT, and she worked at the Big Fire Law & Policy Group.  It was the consensus of council to have Jennifer Trahan follow up.

 

  • Chairman McDonald thanked everyone for attending the celebration of life for Vern Clairmont yesterday.

 

  • Chairman McDonald discussed support letters for Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks for various grants. The Heart of the Rockies are putting in for a grant for grizzly bear management. It was the consensus of council to approve a letter of support.

 

  • Chairman McDonald discussed the new foundation to put zoos and aquariums in the forefront of landscapes on Indian reservations. Tom serves on that board. There was no money to work with tribes and zoos to restore animals so they started this foundation as the funding mechanism. There is a fieldtrip with potential donors in August and he wants to use the council budget to use a bus to tour the Bison Range that Saturday and drive up to McDonald Lake and other locations on the reservation. There will be 12-18 people in attendance. It was the consensus of council to approve the use of the council budget. Jennifer Finley suggested having swag to give to visitors and that the tribal webpage have the tribal council members’ bios.

 

  • Martin Charlo requested a $100 donation to the 2023 Montana Memorial Cup disc golf tournament in Missoula this weekend. It was the consensus of council to approve the donation.

 

Natural Resources Department

 

  • Council received a request to approve a resolution for financial assurances to the Army Corps of Engineers as it relates to the permittee-responsible mitigation plan for the Lower Jocko J Diversion project. This resolution provides a commitment to fund the Lower Jocko J restoration project components as described in the 12-component mitigation plan, and commits financial resources to maintain the restoration projects in the long term. The resolution ensures that sufficient resources will be available for use to complete or replace a mitigation provider’s obligations to implement a required mitigation project and meet specified ecological performance standards in the event that the mitigation provider proves unable or unwilling to meet those obligations. No action taken. Council requested that a resolution be presented for approval and advised the funding source needs to be included in the language of the resolution.

 

  • Council authorized the department to serve as a host and participate in the annual cleanup event with the regional group of nonprofits, state water commissioners, and conservation districts, and authorization to use the tribal logo for promotional purposes. The cleanup event is scheduled for August 12 to clean along the Flathead River and other waterbodies in the watershed.

 

  • Council approved a request from the Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks for a collection permit to finish collecting data on the potential suitability of Gray Wolf Lake (off-reservation) to support a translocated population of bull trout and a waiver of the conservation permit fee. No data would be collected on reservation, but they would need to cross tribal land to access the property. The council approved a one-year permit last year, but the work was not completed within that time.

 

Financial Management

 

  • Council approved a request from the Tribal Health Department to purchase capital equipment after the July 1 deadline consisting of a Panoramic x-ray unit for the Dental program in the amount of $24,878.08.

 

  • Council approved the Tribal Council Election Schedule of Events and adopt it as the official schedule.

 

 

NOTE:  The official Council Minutes will contain more complete details about lengthy discussions and should be considered the official record of Council. Dispatches are written from notes taken live and may occasionally contain partial information, over-simplified characterizations or an occasional error. Council reviews and corrects the draft minutes before approving as the official record.  Comments (both affirmations and concerns) are part of change and are expected and encouraged. Along with any specific comments, please also share what you would like to hear more about in upcoming communications. The email address for comments is: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..