OPA

Interior Assistant Secretary Ken Smith said today that a notice proclaiming the establishment of a reservation for the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe of Washington is being published in the Federal Register.

According to the notice, the new reservation would be comprised of five tracts of trust land totaling 99 acres in Skagit County. Four of the five parcels are located approximately seven miles north of the present tribal offices in Burlington, Washington. The other parcel is located two miles northeast of the town, Sedro Wolley.

The reservation is under the administrative jurisdiction of the Bureau of Indian Affairs area director in Portland, Oregon.

Interior Secretary James Watt, and Ken Smith, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, flew into Navajo land for a brief visit September 17. En route from Phoenix to Denver, the Navajo stopover marked another leg of Watt's three-week tour of western states.

Watt was given a blessing by a Navajo medicine man, high on a chilly ridge facing a steep canyon wall. He and Smith visited the hogan of a traditional Navajo couple -- a home without electricity or running water and then were taken to the council chamber for a special evening session of the Navajo Tribal Council.

In visiting the Navajo Nation, though briefly, Watt was fulfilling promise he had made to Tribal Chairman Peter MacDonald.

"As far as Indian affairs are concerned, we don't know what kind of job you will do," MacDonald commented in introducing Watt to the 87-member Navajo Tribal Council.

"We will not judge you," the Chairman continued. "We will give you every opportunity to write a new and great chapter in the nation's history."

He then went on to talk about the Former Joint Use Area, from which several thousand Navajos are facing forced relocation by act of Congress, and he called for a "blue-ribbon commission" to investigate the situation.

Watt made no promises, saying he would have to comply with the law, but said he would instruct Smith and the BIA "to move with understanding and compassion."

MacDonald, in his introductory remarks, also alluded to Federal budget cuts which have already had an impact on the reservation. He noted that the reservation has no private sector to take up the slack for withdrawn federal funds.

MacDonald called for continued support of the Navajo Indian Irrigation Project in northwest New Mexico for which funding has been severely reduced. Watt replied he would support this project with available funds.

With Ken Smith at his side, the Interior Secretary praised him as a good advocate for Indians and called him "a good advisor" and "a good counselor" on Indian affairs.

Smith, who carne to his position after a successful career as general manager of the Warm Springs Confederated Tribes, said the Bureau could look for further budget cuts as "President Reagan seeks to turn the economy around" and he called for good leadership and good fiscal management among tribes and reduced dependency on the federal government.

Smith, a Wasco Indian, said he knew he was on an Indian reservation as soon as he got off the plane -- "sagebrush, poor roads, no running water and no electricity."

Watt was dressed more appropriately for Phoenix, from which he had come, than for the high altitude of Window Rock. Coatless and in shirtsleeves, he was given an outdoor blessing ceremony by Navajo medicine man Robert Shirley. He stood beside a small juniper tree while Shirley intoned the Navajo "prayer of protection." Later, he was given an eagle feather and an arrowhead to protect him.

The visit with MacDonald rounded out Watt and Smith's meetings with all tribal chairmen in Arizona, having lunched with the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona earlier in the day at Phoenix.

The entourage from the Window Rock airport to the site consisted of a car carrying MacDonald's wife Wanda, the hostess, Watt, his wife, Smith and greeter Caleb Roanhorse, followed by about a dozen other cars. It rambled along a rutted, dirt road, past goats and horses and a few homesteads the high ridge where the ceremony was held.

On the way back the trailing car was stopped by a Navajo resident.

"What in the world is going on here?" the man asked.

Told that the "big land boss" and the "big Indian boss" had been taken on a tour of the countryside the man seemed pacified, then commented: "I hope you told him about this road!"

Others traveling in the Secretary's party were Steve Shipley, executive assistant to the Secretary; Doug Baldwin, Assistant to the Secretary and Director of Public Affairs; Ralph Smith, Assistant to the Secretary; and Carl Shaw, Assistant to Smith.

Secretary of the Interior Cecil D. Andrus announced today the appointment of Sidney L. Mills as the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, effective January 19, 1980, when Assistant Secretary Forrest J. Gerard leaves the Department.

Gerard announced his resignation December 11 to return to private business.

Andrus said the Mills appointment was made to insure that programs, such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs management improvement project, continue without interruption for the remainder of this Administration. Andrus said his primary concern was that on-going programs to Indians are not interrupted. "We are committed to assuring continuity in policy making for Indian Affairs," he said.

Mills, an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, has been serving as the Acting Deputy Commissioner of Indian Affairs since July 30, 1979. He has also served as the Albuquerque Area Director and as the Executive Assistant to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. "

Resigning Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs Forrest. J. Gerard said that Mills "brings a rich and diverse background to the Indian field. He has both the government and the private sector experience which can only benefit his constituents...the Indian people."

A Navy veteran, Mills, 54, entered 'Federal service in 1973 in the Aberdeen, South Dakota, Area Office. He was supply and contract officer and: for almost a year, the Acting Deputy Area Director before transferring to Washington, D. C., in August of 1975. He had previously been Purchasing Manager for the Great Western Sugar Company; Merchandise Control Manager, creative Merchandising, Inc.; and Purchasing Manager for Sundstrand Aviation, all in Denver, Colorado.

Mills is married with two sons. His wife, Corrine, is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe.

Dr. S. Gabe Paxton, Jr., a Choctaw Indian, has been appointed to serve as Deputy Director, Office of Indian Education Programs, Kenneth L. Smith, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, announced today.

Most recently, Paxton held positions of Area Vocational Development Officer and Area Indian Self Determination Officer at the Bureau of Indian Affairs Muskogee Area Office in Muskogee, Oklahoma. In 1977 he was the Associate Deputy Commissioner for Indian Education in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

Since joining the Bureau in 1953, Paxton has served in positions of increasing responsibility at the Colorado River Agency, Hopi Agency, and Pima Agency in Arizona, at Sherman Indian High School in California, and at the Sequoyah Indian School in Oklahoma. From 1970 to 1974 he was the Assistant Area Director for Education at the Bureau's Anadarko Area Office in Anadarko, Oklahoma.

Paxton received a B.S. degree from Oklahoma Baptist University in 1951, a M.A. degree from Northern Arizona University in 1964, and a Doctor of Education Degree from Pennsylvania State University in 1974.

He was born January 18, 1925, in Talihina, Oklahoma.

Cuts in federal funding for Indian education programs cannot be allowed to affect the quality of education being provided to young people, Kenneth L. Smith, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, said today.

Addressing the National Indian Education Association conference in Portland, Oregon, Smith said budget reductions are coming and Indian education would have to shoulder its share.

"But it is my hope and belief that diminished federal funding does not mean the quality of the education we provide our children must also suffer," he said. "Good education primarily depends on people. Honey helps, but people who care make the difference."

Smith told the educators that forthcoming budget cuts would be "deep and substantial" and added that some programs must be sacrificed in order to save others more central to the mission of the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

"Expensive post-secondary specialty schools, such as the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute in Albuquerque, may have to be closed," Smith said. "Boarding schools may be consolidated as those with small student populations are shut down."

However, Smith said he felt confident that Indian education could meet the challenge of the 1980s by continuing the progress established in the past decade.

"The progress of the American Indian community in education in the 1970s was fantastic," he said. "The most obvious evidence of this can be found on college and university campuses where more than 40,000 Indians are now enrolled. It is up to us to continue the work that has begun so well. "

Smith said specific objectives in BIA education programs would include the reduction of overhead and administrative costs, the reduction of the ratio of administrative personnel to teachers, and a paring back of bureaucratic layers even further than already accomplished.

"Above all, I want to work to build up tribal governments so they can more effectively and ably direct the education programs their people," he said.

The Assistant Secretary said that since taking office he has stressed the point that the federal government's role is auxiliary and that tribal governments have the primary responsibility for the social and economic well being of Indians on reservations.

"I think it is very important that the Indian community accepts and recognizes this primary responsibility for the education of Indian children," he said. "The federal government has an important helping role, and the states also have a clear responsibility, but the Indian community must make the decisions, provide the leadership, and shape the education your children receive."

Smith did point out, however, that the federal government would not abdicate its responsibility for providing education to Indian young people.

"There is a long history of federal law that specifically sets out the responsibility of the U.S. government for Indian education, he said.” I do not intend to abridge those laws or diminish that responsibility."

Smith said in spite of the fact that he was not a professional educator he had a strong commitment to Indian education.

"I am not a professional educator, but I am a professional manager and good management is needed in schools as well as in factories and offices," Smith said. "I am convinced we can improve the use of our educational resources through improved management.

"Even with reductions in federal funding, we can -- and we will - have improved schools and education programs for Indian students," he added.

The American Indian Art and Culture Review panel will hold its first meeting on Saturday, January 26, 1980, at the Institute of American Indian Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. at the Administration Building conference room. The review panel has been established to discuss the role of the federal government in the preservation of Indian culture and art. I f the panel determines there is a role for the federal government, it will then discuss options for federal involvement.

The review panel will also analyze the education programs of IAIA and its future location. The possibility of relocation must be substantiated or justification for the maintenance of the present site be presented

Members of the panel are the National Tribal Chairmen's Association president Wendall Chino; All Indian Pueblo Council chairman Delfin Lovato; National Congress of American Indians Secretary-Treasurer Ella Mae Horse; National Endowment for the Humanities chairman Joseph Duffey; National Endowment for the Arts chairman Livingston Biddle; University of New Mexico anthropology professor Alfonso Ortiz; Native American Council of Regents coordinator Richard West, Junior; and Museum of the American Indian director Roland W. Force.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs is publishing in the Federal Register October 14, a proposed rule to establish procedures for the preparation of a roll of Mohave Indian descendants enrolled as members of the Colorado River Indian Tribes. The Mohave Indians placed on this roll would share with the members of the Fort Mohave Indian Tribe an award of $468,358 from the Indian Claims Commission.

According to the proposed rule, the BIA's Colorado River Agency Superintendent will publish a list of persons determined as meeting the qualifications for enrollment. Persons who believe they are qualified but are not on the list could then appeal the omission within thirty days and submit information supporting their claim.

Comments on the proposed rule should be sent to the Division of Tribal Government Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, 1951 Constitution Avenue, Washington, D. C. 20245

Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Kenneth L. Smith today pledged involvement of tribal leaders through a more effective consultation process and warned that budget cuts will require sound management of all Indian programs.

Addressing the 38th annual convention of the National Congress of American Indians in Anchorage, Alaska, Smith said he had made consultation with tribes a priority item and stressed the need for recommendations and suggestions from tribal leaders.

“We are going to do things openly," Smith said, "so you can see and know and comment.”

He said one way of achieving the goal of keeping tribes better informed would be to establish better communication with Bureau of Indian Affairs area and agency staffs.

“We are going to involve our line officers at the area and agency levels much more in the consultation process," he said. "Unfortunately, in the past they have sometimes been the last ones to know about plans or actions of the central office. We intend to change that."

The top Indian official said that while he would actively seek the views and suggestions of tribal leaders, consultation did not mean asking for permission to make a decision.

“We cannot abdicate our management responsibility,” Smith said.

Smith said his office would have to apply principles of sound management to all programs to minimize the difficulty involved with spending reductions being sought by the Reagan administration.

“We are going to have to get our house in order very quickly,” he said, 'Because we must anticipate further reductions for the entire federal government in 1983 and 1984. We simply cannot afford wasteful management practices.”

He said that while the Bureau of Indian Affairs fared better than most agencies in the administration's first round of budget cutting, an additional 12 percent cut would have to be taken in the 1982 budget.

“We were also told that it had to be 12 percent from each of our major appropriation items," he said. “As a consequence, we couldn't take the easy way of making the cuts by taking most of them in construction,” He said the 12 percent cut required hard decisions that had to be made very quickly.

“We tried to protect those activities which we consider basic to our mission,” Smith said; “These would include our elementary and secondary schools, law enforcement, general assistance for needy people, payments for dependent and abused children, trust and natural resource programs, and the basic maintenance and operation of facilities and roads.”

The Assistant Secretary said he would be asking for volunteer tribes to experiment in 1982 with a consolidated block funding project.

“When this concept was introduced in our budget request earlier this year, it was tied in with the funding reduction . . . and encountered opposition,” he said. “We think its flexibility makes it a useful instrument for tribes and we are going to ask a few tribes to try the idea this year.”

Smith said he would request additional funding in 1983 to help small Indian tribes and to use as "seed" money to assist Indian enterprises.

“In fiscal 1983 we plan to request $5 million to provide a previously unavailable baseline of government support for small tribes which do not have the financial resources to maintain an adequate government,” he said.

“We also intend to seek $10 million for 'seed' money grants to assist Indian enterprises to realize opportunities for development of Indian resources," Smith said. “We anticipate requiring that at least 75% of the project funding be non-federal.”

Smith added that these grants would not be “giveaway money” and said an investment criteria similar to those used by banks would be adopted.

The Assistant Secretary said in anticipation of future reductions in the budget, his office was considering closing or consolidating several area offices by the end of fiscal year 1982. He also said additional savings would result from the closure of some off-reservation boarding schools operated by the BIA.

Smith said he would push for legislation to establish "enterprise zones" on reservations to provide tax credits and other tax incentives to investors.

“And we will support a bill to permit tribes to issue tax-free bonds as municipal and other local governments now do as a means of raising capital,” he said.

Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Forrest J. Gerard announced today Department approval of a coal mining and reclamation plan in the Navajo Nation Reservation in New Mexico.

The Restructured Mining and Reclamation Plan submitted by the Consolidation Coal Company and approved by the Navajo Nation calls for the mining of over 9,000 acres near the reservation's Burnham Chapter in New Mexico. The lease provides a royalty of 12~ percent of the value of each ton of coal. The company paid a bonus to the Navajo Nation of $5.6 million when the lease was approved in August 1977.

Assistant Secretary Gerard, in approving the plan, said it was an affirmation of the Department's commitment to the concept of trust responsibility. "Our approval of this lease and mining plan was contingent on the passing of tough tests-- tests designed to insure the balance of benefits to the Navajo people," he said.

Environmental considerations-- such as post-mining use of the land-- are included in the lease and stipulations. Stringent testing is required as part of this process. The land is expected under the plan to return to much of the same use as now, primarily grazing.

This is the first mine plan approved on Indian lands since the enactment of the Surface Mining Reclamation and Control Act of 1977. A renegotiated lease was approved between Consolidation and the Navajo Nation-- the same month that the Act became law-- making it necessary for the company to return with a plan in compliance with that law. The plan was approved with additional stipulations, agreed to by the mining company to insure compliance with the Act.

Mining under the plan will be over a 38 year period. During the first seven years about 900 acres will be mined. The production rate is anticipated to be at the rate of 300,000 tons the first year; 750,000 tons the second year; 1 million tons the third year; 4. 4 million tons the fourth year; and 6.4 million tons the fifth through thirty-eighth year.

The mining operation is expected to employ 363 people during the initial phases of operation and 245 to 335 people when in full operation. Consolidation Coal has committed to allocating at least 70 percent of the positions at the mine to Navajo tribal members.

A meeting of the American Indian Art and Culture Review Panel, scheduled to be held in Santa Fe, New Mexico, January 26, has been transferred to Washington, D. C.

The group will meet January 26 in the Interior Department building.

The future location of the Institute of American Indian Art will be one of the agenda items.