Navajo Nation Passes Legislation Promoting Green Jobs, A First For Natives

Navajo Green Jobs Bill – SMSC Loans $86 Million To Other Tribes

The legislation sponsored by Navajo Council Speaker Lawrence T. Morgan and Delegate Amos Johnson passed 62-1, with Delegate Curran Hannon – vice chairman of the Resources Committee – voting in opposition. Twenty-five delegates either were not present or did not vote.

The Navajo Green Commission Act legislation was tabled during Council’s spring session in April to allow more time to educate delegates about the commission. For months, the Office of the Speaker and the Navajo Green Jobs Coalition worked intensely to educate Council and the general public about the act.

Tuesday morning, more than 50 supporters from across the reservation marched a quarter-mile to the Council Chamber, wearing bright green “Green Jobs” T-shirts.

“This is the just the beginning for Indian Country. We hope our efforts pave the way for other tribal nations to bring local sustainable green jobs to their communities,” said Wahleah Johns, co-director of the Black Mesa Water Coalition.

Speaker Morgan said he was ecstatic about passage of the legislation. “It is vitally important that we as Navajo people, as Native American people and people in general, continue protecting our Mother Earth and all her precious resources.

“The intent of this legislation is not a foreign concept to us. Our livelihood as Navajo people has always depended upon the unique relationship we have with the land, and these same concepts are reflected in this legislation. It is surely a reflection of our core values as Navajo people,” he said.

Tony Skrelunas, former executive director of Navajo Division of Economic Development and a member of the Green Jobs Coalition said there are many green business opportunities that fit perfectly with Navajo culture.

“We have thousands of homes that don’t have electricity; we have thousands of families that now have homes, and we can build an economy just by providing those people very good green homes.

“We can create businesses and markets here where we help those families and we help people get into the business of providing renewable energy systems, providing renewable energy installation, doing straw bale construction,” he said.

Shonto Delegate Jonathan Nez joined the marchers – mostly Navajo youth — in front of the Council Chamber for a press conference after the vote, saying it was a perfect example of a grassroots community-based initiative.

“This is real power, in how you all persuaded your lawmakers to vote for this legislation,” he said. “I think it’s a great moment for the Navajo Nation, even for Indigenous people throughout the globe, that young people are getting involved in government at this level.”

Morgan said he was pleased that the Navajo Nation has now joined the world effort to go green. “The Navajo Nation will no longer take a back seat in addressing issues hurting our environment,” he said.

Despite Tuesday’s action, many in the grassroots movement have taken the opposite view of the Navajo Nation Council in its support of the proposed 1,500 megawatt Desert Rock coal-fired power plant, which grassroots members believe will cause impacts to human health and the environment in the Four Corners region.

“What the Navajo Nation passed today is a step toward the way of life that our people have lived for countless generations,” Johns said. “We have a high unemployment rate, and we hope this legislation is going to build stability for our communities again – stability and self-sufficiency … Today, we’re just watering that seed that was planted a long time ago for our elders.”

Elsa Johnson, who has been working with the Green Jobs Coalition, said the grassroots people have been at the heart of what they were trying to accomplish. “There is a lot of work ahead, but I think that once we procure funding, it will be just like planting our fields. We’ll go to the fields, which is our local communities, and watch all of this take root and then mature, and then we’ll reap the rewards of all of your hard work,” she told the youth.

SMSC Announces $86 Million In Economic Development Loans
Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Indians to Receive Funds

Submitted by Tessa Lehto
July 23rd, 2009
Prior Lake, MN – The Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community announces $86 million in loans to two out of state Indian tribes and to one Minnesota tribe for economic development projects.

Stockbridge Munsee Band of MohicansA $48 million loan will go to the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians in northern Wisconsin. The loan will fund construction and development of the Mohican North Star Casino located between Green Bay and Wausau. The casino currently has 1,225 slot machines, bingo, table games, two restaurants, and an RV Park. The loan will make possible construction of a 105 room hotel, administrative space, additional gaming space, and two restaurants, as well as pay off the casino’s existing debt. Construction will take up to 18 months for completion and is expected to begin in the fall of 2009.

Tribal President Bob Chicks commented on the loan, “We are very grateful to the Shakopee Mdewakanton and their Business Council for offering its assistance to the Stockbridge Munsee. Our tribal members and our patrons really appreciate this. It is a very good thing when one tribe can help another.”

The Stockbridge Munsee Band has 1,565 members many of whom live on their 22,139 acre reservation. The Band employs 740 people and is the largest employer in Shawano County. The Band also operates a convenience store and gas station, Pine Hills Golf & Supper Club, a liquid propane company, and a Forestry Management Program.

Standing Rock Sioux TribeA $30 million loan was approved for the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North and South Dakota. The loan will be used for continued development of their Prairie Knights Casino & Resort, located 35 miles south of Bismarck/Mandan on the North Dakota side of the reservation. The resort, which opened in 1993, currently contains a marina on the Missouri River, a hotel, two restaurants, and an RV Park.

The casino and hotel will undergo construction for a 100 room addition to the hotel which will double its capacity; an indoor pool; 240 underground parking spaces; banquet and convention space; administrative offices; and laundry facilities. With the new laundry facility, the casino will no longer have to outsource laundry services. The Tribe anticipates breaking ground by September 2009, with construction expected to take about 18 months.

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe has 10,859 members and a reservation of 1,408,061 acres which straddles the North and South Dakota borders. The Tribe currently operates the Prairie Knights Casino and Lodge, Prairie Knights Quik Mart, Grand River Casino and Resort, Standing Rock Farms, and Standing Rock Sand and Gravel. The district also operates businesses such as Bear Soldier Bingo, Big Foot Bingo in Little Eagle, and bingo operations in Cannon Ball, Fort Yates, and Porcupine which support their local districts. Bear Soldier has a grocery store; Cannon Ball has a convenience store/gas station; Bullhead has a trading post; and Little Eagle has a Laundromat. The SRST also operates a Paleontology Field School, a Tourism Office, and a pre-school program.

“Prairie Knights is a very successful casino with excellent management, and they continue to set record profit numbers in 2009,” said Scott Financial Corporation President Brad Scott, who coordinated the financing of this project. “Shakopee has done a great service to the tribal community by empowering them to enhance their economic development. With these loans Shakopee does an excellent job promoting and enhancing new employment. The Shakopee Community is a unique and qualified lender in this case because they understand better than anyone the business they are lending into: Indian gaming.”

Bois Forte Band of Chippewa IndiansThe Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Indians will receive an $8 million loan for construction of a new 47,000 square foot administration building in August 2009. Funds for the project were committed before the previous administration building was completely destroyed in a fire July 20, 2009. The building housed the Tribe’s administration and finance offices, its leasing, grant administration and language preservation program, planning, fuel assistance, IT, a registrar, and the tribal council chambers. A nearby, secondary tribal government building known as the DNR building, which houses the Tribal Council, the DNR and water quality, was not damaged by the fire.

The new Government and Community Services Facility in Nett Lake will be home to tribal government offices, a Community Center, and a Band member owned Credit Union. The current tribal government offices were old, dilapidated, and very crowded. The Community Center is newer, but much too small to host most events. Funding for the project is coming from the following sources: $2.4 million in New Market Tax Credits; $2 million in grants from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community over fiscal years 2008 and 2009; an $8 million loan from the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community; and $2 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development grant and loan program.

The Band’s enrollment is just over 3,500 people on a reservation of 127,000 acres in northern Minnesota. The Band operates several successful enterprises including: Fortune Bay Resort Casino; the Wilderness Golf Course, PoweRain Manufacturing Inc; WELY End of the Road Radio Station; the Y-Store; Nett Lake Convenience store, and Bois Forte Wild Rice. The Band employs over 500 people, annually injecting more than $30 million into the economy of northern Minnesota.

Past Loans: In recent years the SMSC has made loans to the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa ($3 million, 2006); the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe ($2.8 million, 1996; $3 million, 2009); Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe ($41.5 million, 2003); Oglala Sioux Tribe ($38 million, 2005); Omaha Tribe of Nebraska ($3 million, 2008); Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians ($31 million, 2008); Rosebud Sioux Tribe ($3 million, 2006); Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate ($32 million, 1998; $5 million, 2003; $17 million, 2005; $6 million, 2008; $8 million, 2009); and the Upper Sioux Community ($23 million, 2001).

For more information about the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe go to www.standingrock.org. For more information about the Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, go to www.mohican.com. For more information about the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Indians, go to www.boisforte.com.

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