Karuk Tribe of
Council Meeting Minutes
January 24, 2008
The meeting was called to order at 5:02 PM by Arch
Super, Chairman.
Roll Call
Present
Arch Super, Chairman
Leaf Hillman, Vice Chairman
Florrine Super, Secretary
Leeon Hillman, Treasurer
Roy Arwood, Member
Sonny Davis, Member
Alvis Johnson, Member
Absent
Robert Goodwin, Member
Quorum is established.
Leaf Hillman began the meeting with an opening prayer.
The mission statement was read aloud by
1) Approval of
the Agenda for January 24, 2008
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve the Agenda for January 24, 2008. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
2) Approval of
the Minutes for December 27, 2007
3) Susan Gehr
Susan was present to
introduce her father, Robert Smith, who would like to make a presentation to
the Tribal Council. He states he
received some papers last year from an estate requesting he put his name in to
claim his portion of a family inheritance.
He did not feel comfortable accepting the money but after consideration
and suggestions from others he decided to receive the information and then
contributing the money to the Tribe not knowing the inheritance would wind up
being $10,000. He and Susan put together
a grant project for the Tribe to obtain interest letters from departments to
help support them. He announced that the
funding will be going to the natural resources, education, and social services
programs.
Leaf thanked Robert and
states that it means a lot that he remembered his membership and that it was a
very unselfish act that does not go unnoticed.
Jennifer also thanked him for the funding that was received that will
support the higher education program for two years that would not have existed
without his donation. Barbara Norman
also thanked them for the grant that was received for the foster family program
through social services. Sandi thanked
them for a donation that will fund placards with English and Karuk titles in
the native garden that is planted in the park here by the office in
Arch also presented Robert
with a formal thank you letter from the Tribe for this wonderful act of
generosity.
Susan also presented her report
at this time so that she can travel with her family tonight. She states she would like to add that she has
the budget numbers. She has a report due
for ANA that will require Arch’s signature.
She also states she has a question regarding a call from Jerry Mosher at
the Forest Service. She states he called
to inquire about the proper spelling of a Lake in the local area; when she told
him how she felt it was spelled she was recommended to apply to USDA to have it
changed to the proper spelling as it is a Karuk name and should be spelled
properly. She states she will pursue
this and will get with Sonny for a spelling discussion as he grew up across the
River from that lake and is a fluent speaker.
4) LaVerne
Glaze
LaVerne states she has been
providing basket classes in Orleans for many years and has been able to obtain
grant funding to support that but she did not receive any grant funding this
year and has been doing it for the past month on her own. She was hoping that the Tribe could support
her program financially to compliment the program in Happy Camp. Jennifer states that the Happy Camp class if
funded through a mini-grant so they cannot use that funding but they can keep
an eye out for other funding to support that.
Leaf asked if there is a
dollar amount that she is requesting.
She states she usually applies for $20/hour for 4-5 hours each week
which is $80-100 per week to provide the class for the community. He suggests that she meet with Dave and Rick
during the meeting to discuss her specific needs so that they can apply for
funding to assist her.
She also wanted to thank
Davey for fixing her steps on her home but states her roof is still leaking;
Davey states that is on the list of items to look into.
5) Dwayne Myers
Dwayne was present to inquire
about questions he has gotten from elders regarding the dam removal and where
they are at in the process. He
understands that all dams will be removed except
Sandi states they can
schedule a third round of public meetings to inform the public on their
progress. They have had low attendance
at their meetings in the past. Dr. Burns
states he had a meeting in Happy Camp that no one attended; he would be
interested in piggy-backing with their meeting if he can. Dr. Burns states that for the grand opening
of the medical clinic they had 250 people attend with free food and
entertainment, maybe they should go that far to get folks there.
6) Ann Escobar
Ann is present to review
Sami’s report. She has one informational
item to distribute which is a copy of the article that recently appeared in
Indian Country Today. She has been
contacted by the local media requesting an article on this subject as well. She is requesting Council approval for
Housing Staff to meet with Brad Smith of Siskiyou Daily News on their green
building practices; the Housing Committee has already approved this. Leaf states this ties into the project that
Natural Resources is doing to make homes in the area more energy efficient
through an assessment and implementation of changes then an analysis after the
changes have been made and hopefully help them with obtaining funding to make
those changes.
Consensus: To allow Housing to meet with local media
regarding their green building practices.
6a) Davey
Davey thanked them for moving
him up on the Agenda to review his and Fred’s reports and answer any questions
they may have. Leaf asked if they are
ready for the next snow storm. Davey
states they are; vehicles/generators are ready for Elders, the snow plow is
getting ready, the backhoe is ready.
Leaf thanked them for the efforts they have made to be ready.
Leeon states in the report
there was a reference to surveillance cameras at the shop. He asked if there had been any problems
recently. He states not in the recent
past but there have been problems that have added up to quite a bit for gas and
equipment that has been missing and repairs that have to be made to vehicles or
equipment when someone breaks in and they have to repair them or be without
that vehicle or equipment.
Davey also wanted to discuss
a reference to a permit in
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Fred’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
6b) Jim Berry
Jim Burcell was present to
review Jim Berry’s written report. He
updated them on his ANA Grant activities and the numbers of students that are
enrolled in classes at this time. He
states one piece of information he needs is how many students are taking
classes through online or other methods because the colleges cannot give that
information to them and if he is not working with them he has no way of knowing
who is taking classes.
He states that they should
have an answer on their 501(c)3 application for KCLF in about a month; they
have received the funding for this project as well. Eddie is in the office at the old
He states the beginning
stages of the
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve the KCDC report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
7) Barbara
Norman
Barbara was present to
address the Council. She states her
closed session item was requested to be dropped by the Tribal Member; that is
the recommendation of the ICWA Committee as well.
She presented the Indian
Child Welfare Committee Policies for them to review and approve. It has been reviewed and prepared by the ICWA
Committee. Arch inquired if they want to
approve them now or on Wednesday. They
will approve them Wednesday.
Barbara states that in
November the County returned the DUI Program application; she was able to meet
with a representative from the State and they have cashed the check to show
they have accepted the application; Barbara will be making the changes that
have been requested and will get them made as quickly as possible.
Karuk Diversified Enterprises
no longer exists and she has completed that task.
Arch asked if it is allowable
for the Yreka Council Members to stay in Happy Camp if the weather is bad.
Consensus: Council members can stay overnight in Happy
Camp at the
8) Hector
Garcia
Carrie was present as Hector
could not be here tonight. She states
she turned in her report late and it was put in the Council’s boxes. She states they have received the free file
fireproof cabinets from OST which has saved them many thousands of dollars.
She requested that when
policies or ordinances are revised that a copy be submitted to the Self
Governance Offices so that they have a current copy. She states of 168 Resolutions last year only
22 were missing which is a huge improvement over past years.
Hector is traveling home from
9) April
Attebury
April submitted a written
report only. She is on travel this week. She will be at the Wednesday Meeting to
request approval of her
Florrine Super moved and
10) Kayla Super
Kayla sent her written report
with Sara for distribution; she did not travel down due to the weather.
10) Rick Hill
Rick was present to review
his written report with the Council.
He states his first action
item is an application for a grant to put in an elder’s garden in the Yreka
Community; Housing has some items to donate toward this project. They are applying to the SEVA Foundation for
$4,000. Florrine states that when they
use the water in the current location, it takes all of her water pressure so
they need to either fix the water pressure or find a new location. Rick states that Sami and David Eisenberg
requested he bring this to the Council.
Leaf Hillman moved and
He distributed a document
entitled Revitalizing Karuk Cultural Resources: A Comprehensive Framework for
Revitalizing the Cultural & Ecosystem Health of the Karuk Tribe. He states he met with Tom Carlson and
Jennifer Sowers, professors from UC Berkeley, who have offered to help initiate
and facilitate UC Berkeley scientific collaborations with the Karuk Tribe. He is requesting the Council’s blessing on
this project and ideas and a decision is not necessary today. Leaf states he supports the effort and feels
this is a good idea and a beneficial project; he would like to see Ron come
along with him to a future meeting to discuss this further. Rick states they would like the Council to
review this and assist them with setting priorities within this project and
ensure that the Council supports these initiatives. Leaf states there is nothing new on this list;
it continues on their longstanding agenda for the Tribe, he does not feel
anything in there is new other than their attempt to integrate many things they
have been working on for many years.
Roy states that they stayed
with these folks when they took the youth down for their trip to the Bay Area;
he states that this man has been all over the world and made a difference in
every project they have worked on, it is a definite passion of his and he
supports the Tribe working with them.
Roy Arwood moved and
Florrine Super seconded to approve Rick’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
11) Lisa Aubrey
Lisa was present to review
her written report and answer any questions they may have for her. She has no action items.
12) Dion Wood
Dion was present to
distribute his report as it was submitted via email after the packet deadline. Daniel was present along with him.
He states he was at the
Regional Office last week in
Daniel states he would like
to speak with ACF one more time and recommends they keep their plan as
approved. The caseload data cannot be
renegotiated until 2010 and it is not guaranteed that their grant can be adjusted
at that time. Dion suggests waiting for
an answer back from the DC Office before making a decision on their
negotiation.
Leaf states that beginning
March 1, 2008 they have obligated discretionary dollars to begin funding TANF;
Laura also states that the Indirect Cost Plan was also amended to include this
program and if they do not get the program started they will have a shortfall
in that budget. There are many things
hinging on this program and when its start date is.
Dion states that they have
the opportunity to double their budget amount if they are able to submit
additional data. Laura asked what
information they have that will allow them to increase their budget. The question everyone wants answered is how
long will they have to wait this time for the re-negotiation? He states they do not know and as soon as he
has an answer he will give that to the Council.
Dion updated them on his
childcare activities. He included the
minutes of their California Tribal CCDF-State-Federal Workgroup Advisory
Committee Meeting on January 15, 2008.
He included a thank you
letter from
He included a request to
purchase software that will purchase the TERO and Childcare modules of Eaglesun
Systems. This is the same vendor that
they will purchase TANF software from as well that will talk to other systems
that can be implemented in other departments that are all compatible. The cost is $13,585; $8,585 from childcare
and $5,000 from TERO which has already been approved by the TERO
Commission. He states they will be
holding training February 25-29, 2008 in Banning,
They will vote on both of these
items Wednesday.
Arch asked if anyone has a
specific question that needs to be answered before they can make a
decision. Leeon states that they simply prefer
to have information in advance so they can think about it before making a
decision on items.
Leaf Hillman moved and
13) Laura
Mayton
Laura was present to review
her written report with the Council. The
travel report was distributed for their review as well.
She states in 2002 there was
a program audit finding regarding a drawdown issue that was discovered; they
are now requesting a fiscal policy amendment to be put in place. They already practice this and it is in their
policy just not in such specific wording as they have requested. She requests they approve this amendment.
Roy Arwood moved and
She states she has received
many calls from Tribal Members regarding the propositions that are on the
ballot for February regarding the Gaming Compact Amendments. She states that some Tribal Members are
seeking direction from the Council regarding their position on these
propositions. They currently do not have
a position on these propositions and will not be taking one.
She states that she has found
where all of the Tribes except for one will still pay into the Revenue Sharing
Trust Fund and the Special Distribution Fund; Agua Caliente will no longer pay
into the Special Distribution Fund which is where half of their discretionary
dollars come from.
Her remaining items are for
closed session.
14) Dave
Wrobleski
Dave was present to review
his written report.
He states they will be able
to teach a college accredited class in archaeology at the
He states he has a Contract
to request approval on which is with Cabot Vineyards, Contract 08-C-013 in the
amount of $2,797 to provide services for a 5 acre survey. He would like to use the revenue that remains
after purchasing necessary equipment and pay salaries to obligate toward basket
class.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Contract 08-C-013. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
He states that he has
meetings coming up to go over policies and procedures for the Center as well as
begin planning the Spring Basketweaver’s Gathering. He is working on many other projects
including development of the manual, repatriation of Karuk items, etc.
Leeon asked if they can
stagger their lunch hours at the Center so that they are open during lunch; Dave
states that yes, he will make that change.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve Dave’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
15) Jennifer
Goodwin
Jennifer was present to
review her written report. She states
there is a typo; she does not have any action items at this time. She will have that letter prepared shortly. Arch states that they have received
information from the ATNI Meeting regarding the Student Apprenticeship Program
and he will be forwarding the information to her. They are taking students in their first or
second year of college to be paid during the Summer to work through a training
program.
She requested a date to hold
an Education Committee Meeting. They
will set the meeting for February 5, 2008 at 1:30 PM. She will email them and await a response.
Leaf states he was recently
told that the school is discontinuing the sports bus that was already operating
on a reduced schedule. He is curious
about the impact aid money and their discussion regarding parent input toward
how that funding is spent. Sandi states
that some of the kids who ride the sports bus don’t necessarily play sports;
they have to wait because that is their only way home from school. There is one parent who complains about their
child having to wait for the sports bus; however, there are at least 10
children who are tribal and play sports and cannot get a ride home now and have
to be carpooled. Sandi states that the
School Board should make a decision based on the needs of a majority of the
kids rather than a minority. She states
that the Tribal Council supporting this and voicing their opinion to the School
Board and making sure they are heard would be very helpful. Sports are good for the kids to keep their
grades up, keep them in school, and keep them out of trouble. The next meeting is on February 6, 2008 and
she will email them the information.
16) Sami
Difuntorum
Presented earlier by Ann
Escobar.
17) Sandi Tripp
Sandi was present to review
her written report. She does not have
many action items but does have some information to distribute to them.
Her first item is a
Memorandum of Understanding between the Karuk Tribe and the Forest Service (
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leaf Hillman moved and
Alvis Johnson seconded to approve Sandi’s report. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
18) Erin
Hillman
The first is approval of a
revision to the Direct (General) Assistance Policy under Adult Care Assistance
to implement a weekly maximum amount that will be paid for this service. They will implement a cap of $450 per week
for this type of assistance with their approval.
Leaf Hillman moved and Roy
Arwood seconded to approve the amendment.
7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
Her second action item is
Contract 08-C-014 with Timberworks in the amount of $904,604 for the construction
of the Orleans Community/Maintenance Facility and Housing Offices. It will be another joint project similar to
the
She states the LIAP Committee
exceeded their $1,000 budget and would like to request $200 of additional
funding to assist a Tribal Member for the month of January; in past months they
have under spent.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Her fourth action item is a
request for modification of scope of work for the Disaster Preparedness Grant
to change the purpose of the grant funds.
Instead of using the funding for contractual services to update the
Emergency Response Plan and implement the plan, staff will handle these tasks
internally; the funds will be used instead to purchase equipment to equip the Incident
Command Centers such as vests, flashlights, first aid kits, cameras, clip
boards, etc. using FEMA guidelines to purchase equipment. Staff can then have a mock drill to utilize
these items.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Her fifth action item is
approval of procurement in the amount of $7,879.21 to purchase necessary items
to prepare emergency preparedness kits for households as provided in the grant
that was awarded for this purpose. The
purchase will be made online from the American Red Cross. They will go to Tribal Elders 60 and over and
Tribal Families with children under the age of 10 in the home. She states they can afford up to 160 of these
kits; no to exceed $7,900.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Her sixth action item is
approval of travel to
She is also requesting travel
for Arch Super, Laura Mayton, Erin Hillman, Hester Dillon, and Sandi Tripp, as
well as the directors who attend the first round in March 2008 to
Leaf Hillman moved and
Sonny
19) Scott Quinn
Written report only; not
present; on travel. Sara distributed the
written report.
Leaf Hillman moved and
20) Susan Gehr
Presented earlier in the
meeting.
21) Fred
Burcell
Presented earlier in the
meeting.
22) Davey Davis
Presented earlier in the
meeting.
23) Sara Spence
Sara was present to review
her written report with Council which includes several action items.
The first is approval to
purchase a color laser printer through a grant from FEMA to produce emergency
preparedness materials to be distributed to Tribal households. The lowest price is $2,845 from Ray Morgan
Company.
Roy Arwood moved and Leaf
Hillman seconded to approve the purchase of the printer from Ray Morgan Company
in the amount of $2,845. 7 haa, 0
puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
The next is a proposal for
Tribal Council to purchase dishes and silverware to be used for meetings
instead of paper products to reduce waste.
The cost to purchase 100 place-settings for each community (Yreka, Happy
Camp, and
The next item is a request
from David Eisenberg to approve a grant application for the
Leaf Hillman moved and
Sonny
The next item is a request
from Malaya Rider to use the Council Chambers at the
Roy Arwood moved and Leaf
Hillman seconded to approve use of the facility for the support groups. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
The last item is approval of
procurement to purchase a tool package that includes a portable hot water
pressure washer, dual fuel generator, air compressor, direct drive motor, trash
pump, cordless kit, air tool kit, and cut off saw for $5,500. Procurement has been prepared and the lowest
price is through Multi-Power with delivery service to Happy Camp.
Leaf Hillman moved and Roy
Arwood seconded to approve the purchase from Multi-Power in the amount of
$5,500 from the Motor Pool. 7 haa, 0
puuhara, 0 pupitihara.
24) Requests
None at this time.
25) Phone Votes
26)
Informational
The NCIDC Meeting minutes
were distributed for their information.
27) Committee Reports
None at this time.
Closed Session from 9:26pm to 11:30pm
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to deny the request from Tribal Member #1602 in the
amount of $1,271.97. 7 haa, 0 puuhara, 0
pupitihara.
Request from Employee
#1017 tabled to Wednesday for further discussion.
Leeon Hillman moved and
Leaf Hillman seconded to fund Employee #4315’s salary through KCDC beginning
Monday, January 28, 2008 for a period of three months ending April 28, 2008. 6 haa, 0 puuhara, 1 pupitihara (Roy Arwood).
Tribal Court budget will
be discussed at the Wednesday Meeting.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leaf Hillman moved and
Council will discuss
scheduling of a Council Retreat at the Wednesday Meeting.
Consensus: To appoint Earl Crosby as the Acting Director
at Natural Resources until a replacement is hired.
Leaf Hillman moved and
Leeon Hillman seconded to approve changes to the Language Program Director
position description. 7 haa, 0 puuhara,
0 pupitihara.
Consensus: For Sara to issue a reminder to all staff
regarding distribution of statistical information outside of the Tribe as well
as an individual reminder to Employee #5138.
Then forward letter to requestor declining to support funding proposal
and requesting that information be returned.
Consensus: To schedule a meeting with Dave Wrobleski to
discuss concerns with the business plan and items that need to be addressed in
order to move forward on this project on a smaller scale.
Sonny
Consensus: To deny the request from Employee #9253.
Consensus: To deny the request from Tribal Member #1930.
Next Meeting Date:
February 28, 2008 at 5 PM in
Yreka.
Meeting adjourned at 11:32 PM.
________________________________________________
Arch Super, Chairman
Recording Secretary, Sara Spence