Trust Fund raid fails
IGR says 'no' to public safety cash

By John Christian Hopkins
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — A request for a special referendum on whether or not funds from the Permanent Trust Fund could be used for public safety purposes was soundly rejected by the InterGovernmental Relations Committee Monday.

Though voted down by IGR, the legislation next moves to the Budget & Finance Committee for consideration.

Co-sponsored by Delegates Kee Allen begay and Orlanda Smith-Hodge, the legislation sought $244,000 from the Unreserved, Undesignated Fund to pay for a special referendum that would ask Navajo voters whether to use $153 million from the Permanent Fund to build new judicial and public safety facilities in each of the five agencies.

The Permanent Fund holds more than $800 million, Begay said. While some argue that they want the fund to reach a $1 billion, Begay did not see the wisdom in that line of thought.

"Why reach $1 billion? What's the purpose of saving $1 billion when we have all these issues going on?" Begay said. "Is this money more valuable to us, or are the people more valuable?"

Delegate Ervin Keeswood Sr. questioned the wisdom of taking money from the Permanent Fund without any input from B & F's subcommittee on the fund.

He would also oppose using the fund's principle, instead of just using the interest generated by the fund, Keeswood said.

Delegates had better think twice about touching the Permanent Funbd, he added.

"We don't want to go out there and rile people up," Keeswood said. "But that's what will happen. Some (delegates) will want to use (trust) money for other things."

After the facilities were built, where would the money come from to maintain them, Keeswood added.

Begay pointed to the revenue generated from a 1-cent sales tax increase approved for the judicial branch of government. The penny sales tax will bring in about $4 million a year, he said.

That tax increase was passed for a specific purpose, and it can't be used for another reason without being approved by the council and Navajo voters, said Delegate George Arthur.

"I don't want to go into the sales tax, let's keep it the way it is for now," Begay said. He did agree that using the money generated from the tax for maintenance purposes would need voter approval.

The sales tax increase was granted specifically for the construction of new public safety facilities, Arthur said.

The Nation can't rely on the sales tax money alone for building judicial complexes, Begay said.

"To rely on the 1-cent would take years," he said.

The 1-cent will bring in about $4 million a year but the cost for each of five planned facilities is $32 million apiece, Begay said. It would take six years to build each facility at current costs, he said.

IGR member Roscoe Smith wanted to know what position President Joe Shirley Jr. was taking on using Permanent Fund money.

Shirley has indicated that he would support it, if it passed referendum, Begay said.

The referendum would need two-thirds of the votes cast to pass.

The committee voted 3-6 against the proposed legislation.

The IGR returned to the topic later in the meeting, when one member, Public Safety Chairwoman Hope MacDonald-Lonetree, sought approval to present an official report to federal Indian Affairs Committee oversight hearing into "Law Enforcement in Indian Country."

Begay's bill said each new facility would cost $32 million, but MacDonald-Lonetree's report gives the costs at $8 million to $10 million apiece, Arthur said.

"I want to know the true costs," Arthur said.

"My colleague here wants to be Uncle Sam and, at the same time, Delegate Begay," Keeswood said. The Nation never gets all the funds it requests, so why not ask for more than the $52 million called for in MacDonald-Lonetree's report.

Begay's figures are for a larger facility a "one stop shopping" complex to accommodate judicial and public safety needs, MacDonald-Lonetree said. But the report she is giving to Congress deals strictly with detention facilities, she explained.

IGR should not confuse the two figures, MacDonald-Lonetree said.

"They are apples and oranges," she said.

(John Christian Hopkins can be reached at hopkins1960@hotmail.com.)