Karuk Tribe of California

Tom was present to address the Tribal Council and thanked them for the past ten plus years he has had the opportunity to serve them as a Practitioner in Orleans. He gave them and overview of the way he came to work for the Tribe and the ways that Saint Joseph’s Hospital was able to ensure that there were services for the community in Orleans as they were severely under-served. He states that the Contract is coming to an end on January 31, 2004. He states the new position has been advertised since January of last year, however; he has refused to apply because it does not address the community needs for after hours and weekend care, it only covers the clinic from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM. He states he will continue to serve the community through the clinic in Willow Creek and he feels that the decision they have made to cancel this contract was not the best decision and the community will suffer as a result. The community currently does not have an ambulance service and with this staff change there will be no on call care outside of the clinic hours and he feels that they are going backwards from the point they have come to. He states Willow Creek will continue to provide after hours and weekend care. He again thanked them for the opportunity to work with them for the last decade and states he will never forget this time with them. The Council thanked him for his years. Florence states that she knows there are many community members and Elders that trust Tom and will follow him to Willow Creek because they trust him. She states her family will miss him dearly. Bettesue states that there are many community members and Elders that could not come to the meeting tonight and they would like to request a community meeting in Orleans that they can all come to and meet with the Council and get answers to their questions and what is happening with the Clinic. Lessie stated that she cannot receive the services she needs in Happy Camp and has always gone to Orleans to get the quality of care she needs. She states that she has been with the Tribe for a very long time and remembers that it was nearly impossible for them to obtain a full time physician in the community until Tom came to Orleans and purchased a home and made the commitment to work with the Tribe and serve that community. She states that she has never heard him say a bad word about anyone and he has always respected his patients and cared for them. She states that she and her family have always gone to him and he has always cared for them. She states that her family is deeply hurt that the Contract has been canceled and as a Tribal Member she is hurt that they did not take the patients needs and concerns into consideration when they made this decision. Arch asked Wes if there could be a committee compiled to go to Orleans to meet with the community members to discuss the change. Wes states they can schedule a meeting. Tina asked why the Contract was canceled as she does not know either. Wes states that the major reason for the decision was financial and they started looking at it about a year ago when the Contract amount was raised. Tina states they should notify the Happy Camp and Orleans community members so that they can go to the community member. Wes announced that there will be a Family Nurse Practitioner hired to work in the Orleans Clinic to provide care. Sandi asked if they can receive care in Willow Creek with Tom and Norman. She also asked if CHS would cover that. Wes states that if they follow the referral process for CHS then it will be covered, if they choose that as their primary care and don’t go to the Clinic, then it won’t be covered by CHS. Sandi asked if there will be any kind of after hours care with the new provider and if she will relocate to the community. Wes states he will not be able to tell them that at this time as he does not know. Wes also stated that Hoopa is interested in locating an ambulance in Orleans so that they will have that service and have EMT’s for after hour service and emergency transportation to the hospital in Eureka. Discussion followed regarding the possibilities of these changes.

1. Tina King

Tina was present to discuss the fact that her daughter was recently taken off the Childcare program as the child is a descendent and now her daughter cannot get care to be able to finish high school. She is pursuing other sources for assistance, however; it will take time. She would like to request assistance for a month while they try to get assistance elsewhere. They are hoping that she can graduate by March. The need is four hours per day during the week. It was averaging around $96.00 bi-weekly. She states that all of the programs that she has applied for childcare assistance with have required that she be on welfare, TANF, or CalLearn to be eligible. She does not want her daughter forced into applying for welfare and does not want her to not graduate from high school because of this. They don’t have the funds to pay for the childcare and she has watched how hard she works to get through and would like to see her get assistance as she is a Tribal Member. They state they would need to discuss it with Laura to see what is available in the budget.

1. Sherile Grant

Sherile was present to request assistance with their youth tournament that is coming up. The entry fee is $185 in Yreka the first week of February and also they would like to go to a tournament in Reno in May and would need help with gas, lodging, and the entry fee. They are trying to do it themselves and were able to do it all last year. The team is all Indian youth and all girls from Yreka. Florrine is the coach for the team and she also coaches if she is not able to play due to age limitations. She states they are also raffling off two gift baskets and plan on doing another one. They again state they will talk to Laura to see what the budget says.

1. Judy Waddell

Judy states she is submitting her last report and took the opportunity to thank the Council and all of the Tribal employees for giving her the opportunity to work with the Tribe for the last four years as tomorrow will be her last day as the TERO Director. She states she has one request tonight pertaining to the Election and sending the election results to all Members that voted by absentee and also an article in the newspaper publicizing the results of the election.

The article was based on a previous article announcing the results, it will also go in the Newsletter. Some of the wording will need to be revised as it was typed up about a month ago. By giving the results to the individuals that voted absentee it may encourage them to do so again.

Leaf also suggests doing some follow up regarding what makes a ballot invalid so that they don’t make the same mistake again in the next election. There was discussion regarding the number of requirements for the absentee ballots and if it can be changed. Judy states the committee can review that at their next meeting.

They thanked her for her work and the good job she has done.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Judy’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Laura Mayton

Laura was present to review her written report. Her first action has to do with a change to the current annual leave policy for regular employees that work seasonally for Davis Bacon wages. Currently they are paid their vacation at the rate they are currently making so if they earn the leave at $10 an hour and then cash it in at $20 an hour it will make the fund go over. The request is to pay them for their fringe benefits while making Davis Bacon and stop their accruals during that time only. April asked about the Tribal Wage Rate Ordinance. Erin pointed out that it does not cover certain jobs as they require Davis Bacon. This amendment will be added under the Annual Leave section.

Karen Derry moved and Florence Conrad seconded to approve the amendment to the Personnel Policy. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Her second item is to schedule a follow up budget meeting the end of January. At the next meeting she would like to finish up what they discussed at their last meeting and have it all approved. January 21, 2003 at 10:00 AM in Happy Camp was set.

Karen Derry moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Laura’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Sandi Tripp

Sandi was present to review her report with the Council. She states they completed the draft of the Newsletter today and she distributed it to the Council. They would like their comments so that it can be sent out by Tuesday if possible.

Her first action item is approval to purchase four (4) Hydrolab Datasondes from Hydrolab/Hack Co. in the amount of $24,750 from Water Quality funds. The data collected will show the positive effects of Tribal Restoration Efforts.

Leaf Hillman moved and Roy Arwood seconded to approve the purchase of four (4) Hydrolab Datasondes from Hydrolab/Hack Co. in the amount of $24,750 from Water Quality funds. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Her second action item is approval to purchase a five foot rotary screw trap and custom trailer to haul the trap from EG Solutions in the amount of $15,225 from Klamath River Inter-Tribal Fish and Water Commission funding. The new trap will be utilized on Indian Creek and she gave them some background into the history of this funding and how it came to the Tribe.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve the purchase of a rotary trap and trailer from EG Solutions in the amount of $15,225 from Klamath River Inter-Tribal Fish and Water Commission funding. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

She also wanted to let them know that their GAP grant is up for renewal this year and she will need to submit that in mid-January and it has not been written yet. She states she is going to ask for more funding this year to go into the Performance Partnership Agreement they have in place with EPA. She requested a mid-month meeting and suggests getting it approved at that meeting. January 12, 2004 at 10:00 AM was set for the meeting in Happy Camp.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Sandi’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Fred Nahwooksy

Fred was present to review his written report. He states he has no additional items or action items. Leaf asked if he got his helper in the Sales Shop that he requested. He states he did, her name is Jennifer Jones and she is working out very well and is a big help. He announced there is a 10% off sale going now and they will be open until 12:00 PM on Christmas Eve.

Leaf suggests that they set a meeting to review and approve the Policies and Procedures for the museum to have a means for operation. Another suggestion is the appointment of a museum oversight committee to oversee all operations of the People’s Center. The meeting was set for February 2, 2004 at 10:00 AM. He will also get the document to them for review prior to that.

Leaf Hillman moved and Karen Derry seconded to approve Fred’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Toni McLane

Toni was present to review her report with the Council. She states that they have additional funds that need to be spent for this year so they have been making some purchases for their upcoming move into the Old Housing Building that is coming up soon. Their approximate move in date is late January to early February. They have been researching items such as desks, fax machine, printers, copy machine, etc.

She requested $3,100 for National Business Furniture to purchase desks and chairs. She has done the price comparisons but she has not completed the procurement documentation. They can approve up to $3,500 and then she can follow the procurement process with Laura and Erin.

Robert Goodwin moved and Karen Derry seconded to approve up to $3,500 for desks and chairs pending completion of procurement documentation. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

She also requested approximately $20,000 for a phone system, computers, laptop, digital camera, monitors, copy machine, and fax machine. These amounts are based on quotes from Gateway, they are awaiting other quotes. The Council would like to have a phone vote to approve this purchase since it is such a large amount. The services to install the phone system will also require a professional services contract be reviewed and approved as well.

She requested permission to purchase a conference table, office desk, and conference table base up to $1700 once she completes the procurement.

Robert Goodwin moved and Karen Derry seconded to approve the purchase of office equipment up to $1,700 pending completion of procurement documentation. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

The Council announced they have a meeting on December 29, 2003 at 2:00 PM and it could be approved then. Erin states that since she has approval to carryover the dollars to next year she can spend it in that year. She went over some other changes that have been suggested for the building such as safety items from their IHS inspection. She can check to see if IHS will pay for the items since they requested they be changed. She should also hear about her funding for the Yreka Head Start Center very soon and will keep them posted. The ICDBG grant was rejected and that proposal will not be considered, but they will rate and rank the grant so that they can revise it for next year.

She also included a copy of a memo regarding paint and carpet in the building. She has requested that Housing cover that expense. Leaf states he will take it to them. She would like carpet, paint, and the wall that was built completed.

Karen Derry moved and Florence Conrad seconded to approve Toni’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Erin Hillman

Erin was present to review her report with the Council. She requested approval of Contract 04-C-010 with Jim Bray in the amount of $18,009 for the as built plans as required by BIA for the Yreka Roads Project. The cost will be covered through a contract modification from BIA and Jim Bray has been requested and recommended by BIA to do this work and they will be paying for it. That is the reason for no other quotes.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Contract 04-C-010 with Jim Bray in the amount of $18,009 for the as built plans for the Yreka Roads Project. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

She also requested their approval of the Internal Audit/Self Monitoring Procedures. This will take care of an audit finding from last fiscal year and has been reviewed and approved by the Management Team. This was requested by the previous Chairman and Vice Chairman to make sure they have all of their programs in compliance with their regulations to ensure there are no more findings. Karen would like it to specify that the Contract Compliance Specialist will set the date for the review to make it clear who is responsible. It will be added to the Fiscal Policies and Procedures Manual.

Leaf Hillman moved and Karen Derry seconded to approve the Internal Audit/Self Monitoring Procedures. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Karen Derry moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Erin’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. April Attebury

Not present, written report only.

Karen Derry moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve April’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Rod Hartman

Rod was present to review his written report with the Council. He states he does not have the permits for the HIP homes he promised last month. He states the County has no experienced engineers in their public works department so they are relying on FEMA documents to use in approving plans. He has explained to them how elderly these people are that are waiting for their homes. The County has been forbidden from approving plans without going through this process by FEMA. Robert states it would be nice if they could give them a list of what they need to do so they don’t have this problem in the future and don’t keep adding things as they go along and make them do additional paperwork. Rod predicts it will take until December 31, 2003 for them to sign off on the permit. The County has reviewed the parcel map for Jo Elaine Aubrey’s property so that it can be approved and recorded. They have stated that it will not be approved by the end of this year. Rod states that they have kept throwing items back at the Tribe and did not think they would be able to do it and were not prepared to have to actually deal with it.

He gave them some additional updates on the other projects he is working on. They asked what his suggestion is for the Pharmacy windows. The windows will be metal bars welded to a steel frame and then installed on the windows to make it not so un-attractive. They will also be looking into a security system.

Leeon Hillman moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Rod’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Lisa Aubrey

Not present, written report only.

Karen Derry moved and Florence Conrad seconded to approve Lisa’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Tom Waddell

Not present, written report only.

Karen Derry moved and Roy Arwood seconded to approve Tom’s report. 5 haa, 2 puuhara (Robert Goodwin and Florrine Super - they would like to discuss it in closed session.), 0 maanata.

1. Susan Gehr

Not present, written report only.

Leaf Hillman moved and Florrine Super seconded to approve Susan’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Scott Quinn

Scott was present to request approval of several Resolutions for land items.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Resolution s 03-R-103 through 03-R-108. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

He gave them an update on what Carrie has been working on as well. He states they will also work on any properties that are not under the Karuk Tribe of California’s name to get them changed over.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Scott’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Sami Jo Difuntorum

Jessaca Lugo was present to discuss the Tribal Court’s proposal to revise their Grievance Procedures. She states currently tenants go to the Superior Court to appeal evictions from the Housing Committee. The Tribal Court would like to revise the policies to read that any Administrative Action can be appealed at the Tribal Court. That would mean someone could appeal anything at the Court. They want it to only be a forum for eviction appeals. She states that they just wanted to let the Council know what their opinion is.

They only want the Tribal Court to replace the Superior Court in the process, no other changes. It is suggested to have a joint meeting between the Housing and the Tribal Court. What they are wanting is to expedite the eviction process as it currently takes about three months to evict someone in the State Court System. They don’t want the Tribal Court to oversee appeals for Lease violations, etc. Currently they are using the Superior Court about once every two months. Leaf states that April had the same understanding that everyone else has, this change is coming from the Judge’s recommendation. April states they are very close to hearing cases in the Tribal Court and has proposed a meeting to go over these issues and move forward. Jessaca can contact him and find out when he is available to meet.

There was also a position description for a Loan Officer included in Sami’s report for approval to manage all of the Loan Programs for the Housing Authority. There will be a Loan Committee in place below the Housing Committee to review and approve these loans also. They will serve all three housing communities.

Karen Derry moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve the Loan Officer position description. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Sami’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Marty Waddell

Marty was present to review his written report. He states he has no action items and is present if they have any questions. Robert thanked him for stepping in at such a difficult time with everything that happened and assuming the responsibilities of the department. Leaf announced there is a meeting tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM to go over planning for that department between Marty, Marsha, Wes, and Leaf and any Council Members that are interested in attending. Marty let the Council know that he has been talking with Greg Gehr about his design of the website for the Tribe. He has been delegated by the Management Team to get the website up and make it the priority for the department.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Marty’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

1. Wes Valentine

Wes states his report requires closed session only.

1. Fred Burcell

Not present, written report only. In the report Mike Tiraterra requests permission to obtain bids to purchase a car lift. Mike also requested permission to auction off the vehicles by sealed bid as they have no value. It would be advertised and there would be a viewing date also.

Consensus: To move forward with both items.

Karen Derry moved and Roy Arwood seconded to approve Fred’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Wes also mentioned that the servicing of the Tribal vehicles has become very hard to track. They would like to suggest a time schedule instead of mileage schedule for servicing. That way they don’t have to track when the mileage is at a certain level, it just has to be serviced every two months during a specific week. If they don’t have it serviced it will be red-tagged. The IT department has also set up a website for the shop to be able to see what needs to be done and what has been done.

1. Phone Votes

a. Request for $300 for the Naa Vura Yee Shiip Annual Christmas Dinner. Passed.

23. Letter from US Attorney McGregor Scott

There was a letter included announcing a meeting to be held in Sacramento. Leaf nominates Arch Super to go to this meeting.

Leaf Hillman moved and Karen Derry seconded to send Arch to the meeting in Sacramento. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

23. Gaming Update

Alvis was present to update them on their recent trip to Sacramento to discuss the proposition that card rooms have going to be able to compete with Tribes for gaming. They need to oppose the proposition or the Tribes would have to give up 25% of their gaming revenues to the State. There needs to be a fight from the Tribes and it will be a long expensive fight that the Tribes very well may lose. Resolution 03-R-109 opposing the initiative was included for approval.

Karen Derry moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-109. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

23. Old Business

They wanted to check on the drivers under 25 to make sure they are covered. Laura and Sara state they will check on this to make sure. Laura states that Tina was told by the insurance company that they can be covered as long as their driving record is reviewed and the organization is comfortable with their record and experience. They will cover drivers all the way down to 21 years of age.

Closed Session from 8:53 PM to 12:40 AM

Consensus: To change the expiration date on Tribal ID cards to 6 years.

Leeon Hillman moved and Roy Arwood seconded to appoint Millie Grant to sit on the enrollment committee. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Consensus: For Karen Derry, Sara Spence, Lynn Parton, Kendra Whitman, and Carrie Davis to pursue becoming notary publics.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to pay $590 for Case FSCCFS 99-1828 to Superior court. 6 haa, 0 puuhara, 1 maanata.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to establish an ICWA committee with Florrine Super and Florence Conrad siting on this committee. Sara Spence is to advertise for an IWCA committee of 5 people (two council members and one person from each community). 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-110 authorizing designation of tribal representative in the Superior court of the State of California County of siskiyou. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-111 authorizing designation of tribal representative in the Superior court of the State of California County of siskiyou. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-112 authorizing designation of tribal representative in the Superior court of the State of California County of siskiyou. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-113 authorizing designation of tribal representative in the Superior court of the State of California County of siskiyou. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve Resolution 03-R-114 authorizing the return of the children to the Karuk Tribe of California in the event that either of them is detained. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to amend the personal policies in regards to termination of employees to reflect a 6 month rehire, 1 year rehire, and not eligible to rehire. 6 haa, 1 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Directive: For Arch Super to send a letter to Tribal Member #2851 that she will be eligible for rehire 6 months from her termination date

Directive: For Sara Spence to send letter to Tribal Member #2332 to uphold the decision that she is not eligible for to apply for a position for one year.

Consensus: To raise employee #4560 to $10.38 an hour.

Consensus: To raise employee #0988 to $9.84.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leaf Hillman seconded to send Cecilia Arwood to training in Las Vegas for travel. 6 haa, 0 puuhara, 1 maanata.

Decision regarding Tribal TANF delayed until next week.

Robert Goodwin moved and Leeon Hillman seconded to appoint Sandi Tripp as DNR Director. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Consensus: To reclassify employee #3175 as non-exempt.

Leaf Hillman moved and Robert Goodwin seconded to approve $250 for Yreka girls youth basketball team to come out of Indirect. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 maanata.

Next Meeting: January 22, 2003 at 5:00 PM in Yreka.

Meeting adjourned at 12:45 AM

Respectfully Submitted by,

_____________________________

Arch Super, Chairman

Recording Secretary,

Sara Spence