Tribal Council expands debt forgiveness program

By Dean Rhodes

Smoke Signals editor

Tribal Council approved expanding the Tribe’s debt forgiveness to deceased members who may still owe money to the Housing Department during its Wednesday, Jan. 22, meeting.

Previously, the Tribe has only forgiven student debt, Finance Officer Chris Leno said during the Tuesday, Jan. 21, Legislative Action Committee meeting.

Debt forgiveness requests are sent to the Executive Review Committee, which includes General Manager David Fullerton, Leno and Tribal Attorney Rob Greene for approval or denial.

“Delegating authority to waive deceased member debt … will clear outstanding debt of deceased members and allow the clearing of accounts receivable owed to the Tribe,” states an executive summary regarding the issue.

Leno said he would keep Tribal Council informed of forgiven debt through his weekly Finance Office updates.

In other action, Tribal Council:

• Approved paying the Tribe’s $25,000 dues to the National Indian Gaming Association and re-appointed Tribal Council member Denise Harvey as the principal delegate;
• Approved a $750,000 grant application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to fund an expansion of the Tribal Community Center to include a 2,000-square-foot addition that would house Domestic Violence Program offices. Tribal Planning & Grants Manager Kim Rogers said the project was selected out of nine possible recommendations on the Tribal campus;
• Approved the agenda for the Sunday, Feb. 2, General Council meeting to be held at the Monarch Hotel & Convention Center in Clackamas. The program report will be by the Grand Ronde Health & Wellness Center and a Community Input session will be held after the meeting;
• Approved a lease with 7-11 Inc. to locate a convenience store at Chemawa Station in Keizer, which is co-owned by the Grand Ronde and Siletz Tribes;
• And approved 31 Restoration Roll corrections. In 2019, Tribal Council approved 204 corrections to the Restoration Roll. The corrections will now be sent to the Secretary of the Interior for approval.

To view the entire meeting, visit the Tribal government’s website at www.grandronde.org and click on the Government tab and then Videos.