Mr. President, Montana has a long history with its first citizens, the Native American Indian people that comprise my State's eight tribes. Montana's history with our tribes, like those at the…
Mr. President, Montana has a long history with its first citizens, the Native American Indian people that comprise my State's eight tribes. Montana's history with our tribes, like those at the Federal level, has fluctuated greatly over the years. At first treatment was shameful, characterized by war and violence. After the wars, the Federal Government engaged in neglect, by placing Indians on remote reservations and trying to forget about them. At long last, we have moved to the more progressive and enlightened policy of today-- self-determination. This shift has been a long time in coming, but it is critical. Under this new policy, we appreciate tribes as sovereign units of government and work with them in that capacity to become self- sufficient through self-determination.
One of the good things Montana does on a biennial basis is ask an elected tribal chairman to address a joint session of the Montana Legislature and present a State of the Indian Nations speech. On March 10, 2009, James Steele, Jr., who is both chairman of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation and, the recently elected Chairman of the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council, addressed my former colleagues in the legislature. I found his speech to be a thoughtful call for cooperation in addressing the current economic problems we face. It was also a fascinating description of the history of State/tribal relations. I think my colleagues in Congress will appreciate, and learn from it. I therefore ask unanimous consent to have Chairman Steele's speech printed in today's Record.
There being no objection the material was ordered to be printed n the Record, as follows:
Good afternoon.
Thank you House Speaker Bob Bergren.
Thank you Senate President Robert Story.
Thank you also to Margarett Campbell, a Fort Peck Tribal
member and the first Indian House Majority Floor Leader.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak in this
distinguished chamber and for the opportunity to speak to the
leaders of Montana, who have gathered here for this State of
the Tribal Nations address.
I also thank the Montana National Guard that presented the
colors. You have served our Nation well in putting yourself
in harms way and you continue to serve through your community
service. As United States Senators John McCain and Dan
Inouye--themselves both war heroes have often pointed out--
American Indians have a proud tradition of serving in the
military in the highest percentage of any ethnic group in the
United States. We ask our Creator for Godspeed for all
Americans that serve this great country in places far away
and pray for their families who also make tremendous
sacrifices for the freedoms we have.
May I ask Bruce Sun Child from the Chippewa Cree Tribe to
lead us in a prayer.
(Sun Child speaks in the Cree language.)
Thank you Bruce for your words of prayer.
I am pleased to introduce the Tribal Government leaders
that have joined us today.
(Identifies tribal leaders by name)
Tribal leaders, I am honored to represent you today, as
Chairman of the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council and as
Chairman of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes.
Honorable Governor Brian Schweitzer and Lieutenant Governor
John Bohlinger, thank you. Throughout your administration,
you have opened the front doors of the Capitol to the Tribes
and we have walked through those doors many times. We look
forward to continuing our government-to-government
relationship throughout the next four years.
I thank the distinguished members of the Senate and House
of Representatives and in particular, the American Indian
legislators of Montana:
Representative Shannon Augare, House Majority Whip
Representative Tony Belcourt
Representative, Frosty Calf Boss Ribs
Representative Carolyn Pease-Lopez
Representative David Roundstone
Senator Carol Juneau
Senator Sharon Stewart-Peregoy, and Senator Jonathan Windy
Boy
We look to you for leadership and guidance as the
legislative session continues.
I would also like to recognize the state-wide elected
officials in attendance today Superintendent of Public
Instruction, Denise Juneau, the first Indian woman to be
elected to state-wide public office; Attorney General Steve
Bullock; Secretary of State Linda McCulloch and State Auditor
Monica Lindeen.
There are members of the Governor's cabinet present today,
as well as representatives from the offices of Senator
Baucus, Senator Tester, and Representative Rehberg.
I would especially like to thank and honor today Mr.
Gilbert Horn, Sr. an Assiniboine of the Fort Belknap Indian
Reservation, who, like the more storied Navajos, used the
Assiniboine language with Gerald Red Elk of the Ft. Peck
reservation to create a code our enemies in World War II were
never able to break. At one point in the war Gilbert Horn
successfully attacked a Japanese machine gun post and despite
finding his uniform riddled with machine gun bullets managed
to survive unscathed. He was awarded the Congressional Medal
of Honor but this humble man felt like he didn't deserve
special recognition because he was only doing his job. Thank
you Gilbert Horn for your service to this country.
Thank you all.
Elected leaders, tribal elders, ladies and gentlemen: On
behalf of the Tribal Nations across the State of Montana, I
am honored to present the State of the Tribal Nations
address. My name is James Steele, Jr., and I am the Chairman
of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes and the
Chairman of the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council.
We live in times of tremendous change, politically and
economically. We have seen history made in the election of
President Barack Obama and his appointments of the most
diverse cabinet in the history of the nation.
And we have also lost a great leader. This past month, Crow
Tribal Chairman Carl Venne passed away--a tremendous loss for
the Crow Nation, Montana, and the Country. Carl was a former
Chairman of the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council and
gave this address during the 2007 legislative session. Please
let us honor the passing of this great leader, this great
man, and my friend, with a moment of silence.
The Charles M. Russell painting that dominates this Chamber
serves as a reminder of the historic relationship between the
Tribes and those who came west to this great country. Charlie
Russell recognized that the coming of Lewis and Clark had a
profound impact on the Indian people, as our way of life
was changed forever. In 1805, the economies of Native America
were strong and thriving. In fact, in his orders to Lewis and
Clark, President Jefferson instructed the two captains to
take note and report to him on the economic activities of the
Tribes, for Jefferson knew they were vibrant. Our families
were strong units. We depended on each other for our
survival. There was food, clothing and shelter with a strong
religion and value system. An interesting aspect of Thomas
Jefferson is that he had studied the governing structure of
the six nations that comprise the Iroquois Confederacy and he
was fascinated by the idea that there could be independent
tribal governments who had autonomy from one another but who
also coalesced for their common good. Historians believe that
the relationship between those tribes influenced Jefferson
and played a role in the crafting of the Constitution and the
establishment of the United States.
The Russell mural depicts an event that took place on
September 4, 1805 when Lewis and Clark's journey embarked on
Salish territory at Ross Hole. The encounter between them and
the Salish tribal people was a monumental event that
ultimately led to the success of the expedition. The Salish
people graciously provided the explorers with fresh horses,
food and other vital supplies that were needed for their trek
across the Bitterroot Mountains to the Pacific Ocean.
Without our assistance at Ross Hole and that of other
tribes along the way, who knows what the outcome of the
journey would have been. These people came looking for a new
life, for opportunity, for the freedom to practice any
religion they chose. They came looking for hope and
opportunity, and we as Indian people hold that in common with
them today. Maybe if Indian people had a strong policy on
immigration things might have turned out quite differently!!
Today, we begin another partnership. It is a partnership
that must be based on mutual respect and an understanding. We
all must benefit if we as a state are to move forward. What
is essential if we as Indian people are going to survive is
that the State of Montana accepts the most basic premise that
Indian tribes are sovereign units of government. It should be
noted that the Constitution of the United States identifies
three units of government and those are federal, state and
Indian tribal governments. We are not racial groups who
happen to live on a particular land base and want what other
interests groups want. We are the successors in interest to
those who signed treaties with the United States that allowed
for Montana to be created. The United States does not sign
Treaties with interest groups, they sign treaties with
governments and our treaties were ratified by the United
States Senate. They are binding contractual agreements in
which we reserved to ourselves the rights of self-government
and when the western states joined the Union their enabling
acts committed them to respecting that authority. There
are times when this phenomenon has created jurisdictional
problems but to a great extent Montana, particularly in
more recent years, has come to understand that our
relationship is one of two governments that must be built
on mutual respect. I believe that by carrying out this
relationship in a mutually respectful fashion we can
better the lives of the people who live on Indian
reservations as well as those who do not. I believe that
Indian reservations are good for Montana and can in fact
significantly aid Montana in the area of economic
development.
At this time it is important that we focus on economic
development, job creation, education and health care. These
things go hand in hand and our concerns are the same as
yours. For too long our people have struggled in economically
depressed communities. Our country is in the most severe
economic downturn in a generation. But for Indian Country,
this is not new as reservations have long suffered with high
levels of unemployment. The question is how can Montana help
its tribes develop and how can those tribes in turn assist
Montana to develop its economy? One source of information
that I would ask Montana's officials to look at is the study
funded by the State & Tribal Economic development Commission
and the University of Montana called the Uncovering Economic
Contributions of Montana's American Indian Tribes.
Montana's reservations contribute to the state economy by
purchasing goods and services from surrounding communities
throughout the state with revenue generated from natural
resource-based jobs, tribal businesses, federal funds that
support some tribal operations and revenue from tribal
assets.
Cooperative agreements between the Tribes and State will
improve the economic conditions of the reservations and would
benefit the State of Montana.
State and tribal leaders, consider these areas for
cooperative agreements:
Partnerships focused on bringing a business development
approach to tribal communities though technical assistance
and strategic partnerships.
Improve management skills and the ability to land job-
creating grants by using tribal colleges to train the
workforce.
Assist Tribes with due diligence on energy development
technologies.
These are just a few items to consider in the efforts to
improve the health and well-being of our communities.
The Salish and Kootenai Tribes are mapping out our future
as energy providers. This effort will reach a new stage in
2015 when CSKT purchases Kerr Dam and becomes a supplier of
hydroelectric energy. CSKT has also successfully managed our
local electric utility, Mission Valley Power, for the past 20
years and now serves 14,000 Indian and non-Indian customers.
The great Crow Nation has taken a bold step and signed an
agreement with the Australian Energy Company to form the Many
Stars Coal-to-Liquids Project. This effort will bring
significant opportunities to the Crow people and to all
Montanans, through the creation of 4,000 Montana-based jobs,
an increased tax base, and will have a vast positive economic
impact.
The GROS Ventre and Assiniboine Tribes of the Fort Belknap
Reservation have used their Indian Country Economic
Development funds for the creation of the Little River
Smokehouse. This has brought great pride to the Assiniboine
and Gros Ventre people. Thank you for this important program
and please continue its funding this session.
The Little Shell Chippewa Tribes continue to receive our
support in their endeavors to gain federal recognition.
Senators Max Baucus and Jon Tester and Congressman Denny
Rehberg have also supported the tribes in their 31-year
effort for recognition.
The Northern Cheyenne is delicately balancing energy
development to create jobs while being environmentally
conscience with their traditional values.
The Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck
Reservation are proud to report that they were the first to
sign a revenue sharing agreement with the State of Montana to
eliminate duplicate taxation of new oil and gas development
on the reservation. This creates a competitive business
environment on the reservation, leading to more development
of tribal oil and gas resources and increased economic
opportunities for tribal members.
The Chippewa Cree Tribe is engaging in energy development
on and around the Rocky Boy's Reservation that will create
more jobs, generate revenue, and provide direct control over
development of land and resources. The Tribe has partnered
with Native American Resource Partners (NARP) to create a
tribally-owned energy company for exploring and developing
oil and gas resources. The priorities will be on natural gas
exploration and development followed by wind energy
progress.
The Blackfeet Nation is working to upgrade Pikuni
Industries to manufacture materials for Defense Department
contracts; and oil drilling efforts have increased on the
western side of the Blackfeet Reservation. The Tribe is also
in discussion with wind energy producers about several wind
projects on the Reservation.
These are just a few examples--from among many--of the
efforts tribal governments are making to improve the health
and well-being of our peoples.
Even with high rates of unemployment, the seven Indian
Reservations of Montana and the state-recognized Little Shell
Band of Chippewa, contribute a combined total of $1 billion
annually to the Montana economy. Those numbers may surprise
some people, but to those of you who work every day to make
your home communities better for your people, these figures
come as no surprise.
This is an important time to come together. It's important
to remind ourselves and our surrounding communities that
together, we are greater than the sum of our parts. An
example of that played out when Transportation Director Jim
Lynch reached out to Indian Country to coordinate conference
calls about economic stimulus dollars and transportation
funds. Our Nations are hungry for improvement and the tax
status of Indian reservations can be attractive to industry.
In the more immediate term, during this legislative
session, you will hear many ideas to help make Montana, even
better.
The Governor has already signed into law Senate Bill 39,
sponsored by Senator Carol Juneau, extending the duration of
the Reserved Water Rights Compact Commission. I thank Senator
Juneau, this legislative body, and the Governor for taking
quick action on this bill, which is so vital to the economic
future of my people and all Montanans. SB 39 will allow the
CSKT and the State the time to negotiate a water compact that
is fair for all who live on the reservation.
While there are many bills worthy of support, I must urge
your support in particular for several bills that are vital
in Indian Country because of their effect on our economies:
House Bill 161, sponsored by Representative Shannon Augare,
ratifying the Blackfeet water compact. This bill represents a
vital step in the journey towards fair and just water rights
for the Blackfeet Tribe and tribal members, and I thank
Representative Augare for sponsoring the bill.
House Bill 135, sponsored by Representative Tony Belcourt,
funding the Peoples Creek mitigation account, as part of the
Fort Belknap water compact. With this bill, the State begins
to fulfill its obligations under the compact to the people of
the Fort Belknap Reservation. Thank you Representative
Belcourt--or Landslide Tony as some of us call him--for your
sponsorship.
Senate Bill 201, sponsored by Senator Jesse Laslovich,
revising the Crow water compact. This important bill allows
the Crow Nation to access their interest earnings on funds
appropriated as part of the State of Montana's obligation
under the compact. With these monies, the Crow will be able
to set up their
water administration office, as well as complete the
ratification process of their water compact in the U.S.
Congress. I thank Senator Laslovich for sponsoring this
legislation.
House Bill 158, sponsored by Representative Shannon Augare,
allowing for direct tribal access to economic development
funding. This bill allows tribes to directly access the
state's Big Sky Economic Development program funding.
Representative Augare understands that the tribes will need
to access all the resources they can to help their peoples
during these times of economic crisis.
Senate Bill 456, sponsored by Carol Juneau, exempting
tribally owned property from state property taxes, just as
all governments in Montana are exempt from state property
taxes. I am thankful for Senator Juneau's persistence in
sponsoring this important bill, which is a simple matter of
fairness and an important symbol of respect for the state-
tribal government-to-government relationship.
I thank you for supporting the Indian Country Economic
Development program, contained in House Bill 2. This program,
established as part of the Governor's budget in 2005, has
been a critical engine of economic growth in Indian Country,
and is now more important than ever given the economic
crisis.
Legislators, as you deliberate in making laws and decisions
that affect the great State of Montana, let Charlie Russell's
painting remind you of your obligation to include Native
peoples as your neighbors, partners and friends. Let us move
forward together.
Thank you.
Lem Lemts.
