Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation

Rabbit Town, N.C. Res.-The Sage Fire burned a lot of the aria near the Tongue River. Most of the fire was contained, however the saw dust and wood chips from the abandoned sawmill continued to burn. Other Fires have burnt not too far from the Cheyenne town.

Marilyn Krause [Public Affairs Specialist, Northern Rockies Incident Management Team]

The high temperatures and low relative humidity, as well as gusty winds were attributed to the easy burn of the Watt Draw, Sage and King Mountain Fires. The Watt Draw Fire was located 13 miles southeast of Ashland, burning Custer National Forest and some private land. The King Mountain Fire is also burning on the Custer National Forest and near-by private land. It is only about five miles south of Ashland.

Lightning caused the Sage fire immediately northwest of Ashland. All evacuations were lifted on July 15, but fire engine and crews secured the fire. Sawdust piles from the Northern Cheyenne Sawmill caught on fire. This smoldered until it was finally contained. However, it was burning on some Tribal land and some private land.

On July 17^th, the Sage fire was 90% contained, but the smoldering wood chip piles located at the abandoned sawmill still needed more work. The King Mountain fire was also 90% contained, until it was 100% contained on July 18^th. It burned a total of 234 acres and mop up crews completed their work.

On July 18^th, the Sage fire was contained, however a lot of attention was still needed for the burning saw dust piles. Crews and heavy equipment spread the chips and sawdust out; apply water through sprinkler systems to contain the smoldering piles. Hazardous burned trees along the Tongue River banks are also being removed by sawyers. A total of 1,069 acres were burned by the Sage fire, some Northern Cheyenne Tribal members lost their homes to the blaze.

Nearly 480 fire fighters, 35 engines, and 7 dozers were deployed for the Watt fire; Chief Mountain and Idaho Panhandle Hot Shot crews burned out a buffer zone. By July 20, the Watt fire was 90% contained, at the size of 17,550 acres.

On Wednesday, Tim Reid’s Incident Management Team transitioned with a Type 3 fire organization from Wyoming to establish a unified command to manage the Buffalo Creek Fire. It is burning about 40 miles south of Ashland and 20 miles east o Decker, WY on both sites of the MT/WY border, between Hanging Woman Creek and Trail Creek. The Montana portion of the fire is estimated at 10,285 acres, with the total incident at 22,920 acres. Most of the fire perimeter has a dozer line around it and crews will be extinguishing hot spots to keep it from flaring up again. It is considered 95% contained.

On Thursday, crews and engines patrolled the fire perimeter and focused their efforts on woody areas with concentrations of fuel. An infra-red flight on Friday morning will identify pockets of heat remaining inside the fire line so crews can complete mop up on any hot spots and start rehabilitating dozer line. The Montana portion of the fire is estimated at 10,285 acres, with the total incident at 22,920 acres. It is considered 95% contained. One hundred fire fighters are in a “spike camp” for easier access to the fire area. The lightning caused, wind-driven fire started in Wyoming and burned into Montana on Monday. It is burning on private, State, and BLM lands in mostly grass and sage. One Hundred fire fighters will be in a “spike camp” for easier access to the fire area. The lightning caused, wind-driven fire started in Wyoming and burned into Montana on Monday. It is burning on private, State, and BLM lands in mostly grass and sage.

Fire restrictions are now in place. Please check with your local land management agency before heading to the field to determine what level of restrictions is in effect. Please contact Marilyn Krause (406) 533-7617 (office), (406) 490-0367 (cell), or at email: marilyn_krause@blm.gov.

Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation (Page July 2006 Vol. I No. 8), page 1.

Wildfires, Tribal Administration Update, and Slow but Sure Progress of the Northern Cheyenne Nation

Eugene D. Little Coyote [Northern Cheyenne Tribal President]

So there’s no single focus for this month’s Tribal Report, but I do have a number of issues I’d like to share my thoughts with my fellow Cheyenne: the wildfire in Ashland that burned several tribal members’ homes; improving tribal administration through self-monitoring; and addressing the increasing questions of when some of the Tribe’s projects will be coming online, especially the new casino.

Wildfires

When I was informed of the severity of the “Sage Fire” threatening the Ashland area I immediately went with BIA Superintendent Marjorie Eagleman and Range Manager Desi Rolefson to assess the threat. By the time we made it to the fire site we saw that it was being pushed east from the edge of Happy Flats, past Tongue River, and down into the White Moon Park/Powwow Grounds. We drove through the thick smoke and heat and saw that most homes were saved but sadly, we also saw at least one engulfed in flames. I directly told a high-ranking BIA forester to focus on protecting tribal people, their homes and tribal resources.

Days later, urged by my father, I returned to see the burned homes. It was saddening, without a doubt. Without mentioning their names, I would like those tribal members to know that the Tribe is aware of their losses and despite our own meager resources, the Land Authority and my office are discussing what we can do to help. The first step is an official inquiry to the BIA Fire Management on how this fire got away, which resulted in the loss of their homes. Once we get a substantive response we’ll be able to progress from there. Another task we must do is to finalize the Tribe’s disaster plan and insure that wildfires are taken into account. Also, I may ask the Tribal Council to adopt legislation that would authorize them to declare disasters and state of emergencies. This would enable the Council to have clearly defined powers to effectively deal with disasters and emergencies.

Tribal Administration Update

Moving on, the next subject is improving tribal administration through what is known as “self-monitoring.” I suppose it may be easier to explain what self-monitoring is by explaining that the BIA performs an annual monitoring-review of our 638 federal contract programs like the Courts, Prosecution, Scholarships, etc. (It should be noted that my administration is the first NCT administration that the BIA has done monitored and reviewed.) What happens during the monitoring-review process is the BIA thoroughly examines all components and details of all programs funded by the American Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act of 1975 (U.S. Congress Act 638). The purpose is to ensure that the services are being provided correctly and the funding is spent correctly – this is called compliance and quality assurance. Well, after last year’s BIA monitoring-review, a good number of these 638 Contracts had an alarming number of findings that were out of compliance on certain items. This meant that the services we provided our tribal members weren’t being done as well as they should have. To fix these “alarming findings” we drafted and executed what is known as “corrective action.” This corrective action assures both the BIA and the Tribe that the 638 contracts are being correctly administered.

The Office of the President, which includes the Executive Administrator and the Grants Management Planner, have found that more Tribal programs were out of compliance and in some cases they were in jeopardy of losing funding, jobs, and ultimately the services we provide our tribal members. And even though it is the individual directors who were directly responsible to run the programs, Ordinance 5 (97) System of Operations charges the President with being the supervisor of all State and Federal programs. Because of this responsibility, the administrative staff and I must provide quality assurances

that all 100+ tribal programs/grants/contracts are being run consistently and effectively – not just the BIA 638 contracts. Now using annual audits and the BIA’s annual monitoring-review as models, I’ve taken it a step further: instead of waiting until the end of the year to see if there are compliance issues, I’ve called for the development of a “monthly program performance checklist” which will be streamlined reports from the directors, to my office. So if there are compliance and/or financial problems, we’ll know about them right away and we will be able to fix them right away too. This performance checklist is in its finalization stages and I will mandate it to begin in August. I intend for this self-monitoring/quality assurance measure to allow me and my staff to spend more time and energy established my Presidential goals and projects.

At this point I think it’s important to remind my fellow Cheyenne and especially our tribal employees, of what I spoke of at the Tribal Summit. I basically publicized that the Tribe, as an organization, serves the tribal members – especially those impoverished. Recently I’ve refined a philosophical statement to: “the bottom line is the Cheyenne People we serve.”

Slow but Sure Progress of the Nation

Alright, to wrap up this Tribal Report article I’ll address the questions of when will the Tribe’s projects be complete – especially the new casino. I did put timelines of these projects in a previous Tribal Report, so most who read the Report should know when the projected timelines are. Nevertheless, some timelines are subject to change, pending financing and federal approvals. In the case of the proposed casino at the Tongue River Reservoir, the Tribe needs the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, Section 20, Two-Part Determination, to be approved by the U.S. Secretary of Interior, essentially he would legally declare our trust lands fit for gaming.

The Tribe and our consultants look to finalize the application in the next 45 days; it includes an extremely detailed environmental review. The Tribe will then submit it to the U.S. Secretary of Interior for review and approval (pray he approves it). Bear in mind that there are a number of other “gatekeepers” that could help or hinder our Section 20 application. These gatekeepers include the Montana Governor, Bighorn County, the EPA, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, and numerous others. We’ve been in contact with them all, including our Senators; being good neighbors to get their support for this wonderful economic development project. With all of its potential for revenue and the jobs for tribal members, the new casino is the most anticipated project we have –– and so it’s understandable why people may become impatient. Just remember these projects take time, sometimes these projects take years. After all, Rome wasn’t built in a day.

With all of this summer’s cultural events we’ve been a part of, our Hestanehe’o Park fell behind schedule. We still have the financial and human resources to make it happen; it will happen! Acting Housing Director Lafe Haugen has recently designated a project manager, Don Rapos, to focus solely on insuring the park is constructed before the end of the summer. When the basketball courts are finished, you’ll actually see me come out of early retirement to return to play again! Ehhh! (Many of you may not have known I was MVP for NCHS in 1990 and played on Wyoming Indian High Schools’ 1988-1989 State Boys Basketball Championship team but that was 25 pounds ago.)

We have good plans for the good of our people. I know the criticism has been rampant these last few weeks, but nonetheless I’d ask my fellow Cheyenne to continue to encourage and support us as we move forward. Break the dysfunctional cycle of hate and envy so this generation and future generations can succeed. We can do it – let’s go! Taxaa’e!

Tribal Report of the Northern Cheyenne Nation (Page July 2006 Vol. I No. 8), page 1.

Rabbit Town, N.C. Res.-The Sage Fire destroyed a lot of property belonging to the Cheyenne Tribe and to individual Cheyenne Tribal members. Crews are still working to put out “hot spots” in some areas. High temperatures, gusty winds, and low humidity have contributed to the various fires near the Eastern boundary of the Reservation. Ashland borders the Northern Cheyenne Reservation, but most of the people affected by the Sage fire are Northern Cheyenne Tribal members.

Main