Small Town News

Tribal council passes resolution to cover BIA assistance shortfall

---

The lurtle Mountain Band ot Chippewa tribal council passed a unanimous resolution last week to make a loan to assist more than 600 individual tribal members who have been cut off their General Assistance. The loan is for $210, 000 from the Rolette State Bank. Tribal Chairman Richard Marcellais signed the resolution last Friday.

Due to a Bureau of Indian Affairs budget shortfall again this year in the General Assistance line item, the individual single family household recipients of the GA program at BIA Social Services were cut off their monthly benefits. BIA officials say that was the only decision they could make in order to keep welfare benefits going to families with children until the end of the fiscal year (Sept. 30). That has led to many single people, who are reliant on the small monthly check for, in danger of getting their utilities shut off. Several local college students at Turtle Mountain Community College were struggling to find gas money to get to their classes last week as the first days of college began.

"I helped out a few students with some gas money. A lot of them haven't received their college funding yet. There are a lot of people besides the students who are hurting because of this cut. People don't realize how much people depend on that check when they can't find work, " stated Councilman Ted Henry.

Councilman Jim Baker, who made the motion to pass the resolution last week, indicated that the hopes of the tribal council are that the checks for August and September will be issued from the tribal office within a week from today.

"I spoke with bank officials on Friday and I was told that the chairman just has to sign a few more papers and it's a done deal, " stated Councilman Baker. "A few people are complaining; saying that we're helping out the BIA. We're not helping the BIA, we're helping our own people who are in need. As a tribal council, that's what we're supposed to do."

Baker said the large shortfall "hit the Tribe by surprise" and despite efforts by the tribal leadership to hold the BIA accountable for the shortfall and find a way to get the money in some other budget line item, the tribal council realized they had to take matters into their own hands.

In the resolution, it states, "due to the very high unemployment rate" on the reservation, the tribe obliges the loan to pay for two months of benefits for the single BIA welfare assistance recipients.

According to Baker, the tribe has been able to find separate funding sources in the past when there were shortfalls of this nature, but a new law cited by BIA Superintendent Lyle Morin prohibits any more movement of funding in these line items.

On a brighter note, the Department of Interior has given a verbal notice through the office of Sen. Kent Conrad that they will assist in the BIA funding shortfall with an emergency appropriation of $24, 000.

Word of that funding decision was received by Chairman Marcellais late Friday afternoon from Sara Garland, Chief of Staff for Sen. Conrad. Garland had been made aware of the budgetary need in her visit to the Turtle Mountain Chippewa Reservation last Thursday.

Councilman Baker said that BIA and tribal officials must be aware that this same kind of shortfall will more' than likely occur again next year so everyone must be prepared for it 01 find some way to avert it in the future.



Copyright 2010 Turtle Mountain Star, Rolla, North Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.

© 2011 Turtle Mountain Star Rolla, North Dakota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

More from Turtle Mountain Star