Minutes: October 31, 2018

SAC AND FOX TRIBE OF THE MISSISSIPPI IN IOWA

Tribal Council Meeting – October 31, 2018, 5:00 PM

Sac and Fox Tribal Chambers

  1. Meeting called to order at 5:14 p.m.
  2. Roll Call

Presiding Officer: Anthony Waseskuk, Chairman

Tribal Council present: Adrian Pushetonequa, Vice-Chairman; Delonda Pushetonequa, Treasurer; Troy Wanatee, Jarvis Bear; Harvey Davenport, Jr., Apollo Davenport

Absent: none

Staff present: Bessie Scott, Executive Director; Jay Finch, Attorney General; Bill Thurman, Comptroller; Yolanda Pushetonequa, Tribal Council Secretary; Dr. Willie Barney, MSS Superintendent;

  1. Ascertainment of Quorum – A quorum was ascertained with 7 council members present.
  2. Agenda approval

The Chairman asked for any changes or additions to the agenda. Motion made by Delonda Pushetonequa to approve the agenda with the addition of Item K – IT Media Dept. Jarvis Bear seconded. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.

  1. Minutes – October 10, 2018
  2. Delonda Pushetonequa makes a motion to approve the meeting minutes of October 10, 2018. Adrian Pushetonequa seconds. Vote 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
  3. Reports – none
    1. Harvey reports that he obtained a home ownership toolkit at a conference and he will pass it on to Jon Keen.
    2. Delonda reports there is a planning committee for a Rec Center. The Committee visited the Waterloo Rec Center last week and will see another one soon. Delonda also stated that Red Earth Gardens to know who is their liaison and they’d like to meet with them. Troy advises that the departments should approach the Tribal Council all together.
    3. Harvey raises the question about whether numbers were released during a recent Meskwaki, Inc. presentation.
  4. New Business
    1. Community Member Request
      1. Robert Morgan Post 701 – Tashina Azure and Sidney Keahna present a request for a $3,000 donation that would cover the cost of a flag, American Legion head caps, flagpoles, and miscellaneous items. Miscellaneous items include travel to powwows for invited participation and other samples an automatic trumpet for when Matt Bear is unable to help. Tashina advises she was recently nominated as the finance officer and will be able to do more budgeting like this going forward to show council. Sidney shares examples of other tribes’ veteran’s associations. He points out that other tribes fund their veterans but our tribe doesn’t have a line item. He explains that a place is needed for Meskwaki veterans to gather and support each other. It is suggested that the veterans add in the other items they would like to include for example the new rifles and a travel line item similar to the examples mentioned.

Motion by Jarvis Bear to approve the $3,000 for the Robert Morgan Post 701 as requested. Delonda Pushetonequa seconded. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.

    1. MSS – Edgenuity Contract: Approval for Limited Waiver of Sovereignty. Dr. Barney presents a request to have the Edgenuity service be approved. This requires a limited waiver of sovereign immunity due to the company not willing to agree to the tribe’s immunity and arbitration in tribal court. Jay Finch helps explain the implications. Dr. Barney explains the value and number of students using the service for their education plans.
    2. Jarvis Bear motions to approve the Edgenuity contract for $3,500. Delonda Pushetonequa seconds. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    3. Grants – Johnson O’Malley Grant Committee. Chris Spencer explains the JOM grant from BIA pays for text book and lunches at South Tama. There must be a committee for this. The Tribal Council will appoint members. There is a need to appoint new members because the goal was to have tribal members who were also employees and who have students who attend South Tama. Tamara Mauskemo and Mylene Wanatee are current recommendations. Both are willing.
    4. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to appoint Tamara Mauskemo and Mylene Wanatee to the Johnson O’Malley Grant Committee. Seconded by Troy Wanatee. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    5. Grants – Well Mark Grant. Chris Spencer states the Wellmark grant covers intersections of pedestrian trails. They match $2 for each dollar we provide. This particular grant was flagged by the Attorney General’s office regarding sovereignty. The provider, Wellmark, has refused to sign off to the tribe’s the sovereignty due to wanting to safeguard the $6,000 they’ll provide. We must agree to arbitration in order to receive the grant. The deadline is mid-November.
    6. Motion by Jarvis Bear to table this until the Tribal Council has more information about the plans for the pedestrian trail. Second by Delonda Pushetonequa. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    7. Meskwaki Natural Resources – Resolution 20 – Self Determination Contracts PL93-638. Jarrett Pfrimmer, MNR Director, presents a number of items for Tribal Council approval. There is an ongoing need for a bobcat and the tribe frequently borrows one but there is a request to purchase a bobcat of our own. Motion by Jarvis Bear to purchase the bobcat. Jarvis amends his motion to make a motion to approve resolution 20-2018, which would allow purchasing the bobcat. Seconded by Harvey Davenport. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried. Jarrett Pfrimmer also presents an Interdepartmental Memorandum of Agreement between MNR and Housing regarding indoor air quality. He requests Tribal Council to approve this program for checking indoor air quality for homes on the Settlement. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to approve the Interdepartmental Agreement for Indoor Air Quality and Energy between Meskwaki Natural Resources and Meskwaki Housing. Jarvis Bear seconded. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no.Jarrett Pfrimmer also requests for a purchase of a new pickup truck in the amount of $40,500. Jarvis Bears makes a motion to approve the purchase of a new pickup truck in the amount of $40,500. Adrian Pushetonequa seconds. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    8. Jarrett also presents a request approval to apply for a COPS grant. This is a 4 year great that pays for equipment, a vehicle, a utv, a conservation officer where the goal is to be a tribal member who is in training. The first three years are covered by the grant and the fourth year is covered by the Tribe, but at that time we can pursue other grants to cover that. We would receive $375,000 over 3 years Jarvis Bear makes a motion to approve the Department of Justice COPS Grant. Delonda Pushetonequa seconds. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    9. Jarrett Pfrimmer also presents a request to approve purchasing training through the Precision Hawk software service. The total would be $42,389.28 if all items are. Motion by Harvey Davenport to approve drone, hardware, licensing, training, and tablet. Seconded by Jarvis Bear Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    10. MSS Education Advisory Committee – Open seat. Discussion ensues about the Education Committee. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to accept Robin Kapayou’s letter of resignation from the Education Advisory Committee. Seconded by Harvey Davenport. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    11. Jarvis Bear make a motion to table filling the seats of the education board until work session is held regarding the school policies and board.
    12. Human Resources
      1. Christmas Bonus. Azadeh Tavakoli, Human Resources Director, presents three options for employee Christmas bonuses for 2018. This will include the school and the proposal could be done in November or December. Motion by Jarvis Bear to approve Option Two (2) for employee Christmas bonuses. Seconded by Troy Wanatee. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
      2. Benefit Committee Changes. Azadeh Tavakoli and Bill Thurman, Comptroller, present the benefits schedule for this year. A provision added to this one is the Opioid Abuse Mitigation Program, Regenexx option and One Touch Diabetic Care. Rates will remain same for Tribal Operations and increase 3% for casino. The variation is due to number of employees at casino versus number of employees at Tribal Operations. Different sized entities have different rates. Motion by Jarvis Bear to approve these changes for the benefits plans. Seconded by Delonda Pushetonequa. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
      3. Tribal Retirement Plan Changes. Bill Thurman presents a suggestion to move from the 457b plan back to the 401k plan. Motion by Jarvis Bear to approve Resolution 21-2018, Freezing the Tribe’s 457(B) Plan and Resolution 22-2018, Approving a New Governmental 401K plan January 1, 2019 and Authorizing Participation of Housing Authority in the 401K plan. Seconded by Delonda Pushetonequa. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    13. Meskwaki Nation Police Department – Approval of Sign On Bonus. Jeff Schrock, Chief of Police, presents a request to approve a sign on bonus of $5,000 for new officers. There will be a flux of new officers due to staff down by two and also the upcoming possible repeal of 1948 which will result in greater need for MNPD coverage. The other surrounding departments have this sign-on bonus. This could be covered by the current absence of 3 officers so it will not be an additional expense on the budget at this time. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to approve a $5,000 sign-on bonus for new MNPD officers, using the option listed in Column 1, titled “Current”; effective until a goal of 3 positions are filled. Seconded by Troy Wanatee. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    15. Attorney General Matters
      1. Resolution 23 – Wandering Creek Property Management. There is a resolution to approve the Realty Officer to be the property manager of Wandering Creek for leasing, management of maintenance, day to day operations. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to approve Resolution 23-2018 Authorizing Realty Officer to Take Actions Necessary to Manage Wandering Creek Property. Seconded by Harvey Davenport. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
      2. Executive Session. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to exit Executive Session at 8:32pm. Seconded by Jarvis Bear. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
      3. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to authorize tribal chairman to sign the operating agreement manager-managed. Seconded by Adrian Pushetonequa. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
      4. Motion by Delonda Pushetonequa to go into Executive Session at 8:19pm. Seconded by Jarvis Bear. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried.
    16. Indigenous Iowa social media request. Yolanda Pushetonequa, Tribal Secretary, presents a request from Indigenous Iowa, a nonprofit organization who would like to interview young Meskwaki voters on Election Day, Nov. 6. They would like to take photos and/or interview volunteers from the community to educate and raise awareness about voting. Jarvis and Delonda state they are okay with this as long as permission is granted by each individual who is interviewed and as long as it sheds positive light on the community. Jay suggests that Bessie meet with her and express her concerns. There shouldn’t be any recordings of anyone without permission, and to stay neutral. Bessie will discuss the concerns with Indigenous Iowa.
    17. Media – Social Media Requests. Shannon Mitchell requests authorization to go live with the members-only section of the website an to add Instagram and Twitter accounts. Tribal members will be given access with password protection. Membership will be determined by the enrollment department. They’ll have access to minutes, election information, and other info. Motion by Apollo Davenport to go live with the members only section of our website and to add Twitter and Instagram accounts. Seconded by Delonda Pushetonequa. Vote: 5 yes, 1 no. Motion carried.
    18. There is a desire by council to provide travel arrangements for tribal members who cannot drive to the polls. Bessie will visit with Nicole about possibly using the Seniors van and options for this idea.
  1. Adjourn

Motion made by Delonda Pushetonequa to adjourn. Apollo Davenport seconded. Vote: 6 yes, 0 no. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 9:02 p.m.