Navajo officials to attend Phoenix Legislative Day

By John Christian Hopkins
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — Members of the Judiciary Committee are making plans to attend Arizona ’s 13th annual Indian Nations and Tribes Legislative Day, scheduled for Jan. 22 in Phoenix .

At the daylong event, the Navajo Nation committee will continue to push for money to construct judicial and public safety facilities, according to Judiciary Chairman Kee Allen Begay.

But, with the state forecasting a potential shortfall in revenues, the Nation will face an uphill battle, Begay acknowledged.

Begay said he would likely focus on trying to get funds for a multipurpose building in Pinon, which would act primarily as a court facility.

“We need to go in with a plan,” committee member Harold Wauneka said. “What is it we’re trying to do?”

The Nation needs to put together a brief report on what it is seeking, Wauneka said. Prior to Jan. 22 representatives from the three branches should sit down and make sure everyone is on the same page, Wauneka added.

A page or two of talking points would help keep people on message, committee member Nelson Gorman said.

The Nation may not succeed in garnering funding this time around, but it is important to get the issue out on the table, Begay said.

Money priorities
Rather than talk about just one judicial district, the Division of Public Safety is targeting priorities needed for all seven judicial districts, said prison director Delores Greyeyes.

The No. 1 item on the list is the need for facilities in Tuba City, she said. The Nation has 17.6 acres available. One hitch is that the existing building needs to be demolished, Greyeyes said.

The building cannot be torn down without getting Council approval, Public Safety Director Samson Cowboy said. Legislation seeing approval will be coming before council, possibly during the Winter Session, which begins later this month, Cowboy said.

Among the other top priorities are facilities in Chinle, Crownpoint and Dilkon, Greyeyes said.

Most of the projects are just about ready to go — once funding is secured, Greyeyes said.

In Crownpoint, for example, money has already been found to extend power lines; and Dilkon will need infrastructure improvements and work done on the sewage lagoon, she continued.

Chinle needs
Chinle is also a major need, Greyeyes said. The plan there is to transform a juvenile facility into a 48-bed adult facility, she said.

The Chinle facility would also have a drunk tank capable of holding 19 people, she added.

Chinle leads in arrests, Greyeyes said. Since the Chinle jail closed in April, inmates have had to be sent to the Window Rock facility, she said.

Now, about 60 percent of the inmates held in Window Rock are from Chinle, Greyeyes said.

The facilities in Crownpoint and Shiprock are small — 14 beds each — and the aging structures are having problems with heating, cooling and sewage, Greyeyes added.

A good thing about Shiprock is that there is also a substance abuse facility nearby. About 90 percent of the arrests in Shiprock tied in with alcohol or substance abuse in some way, Greyeyes said.

“I know where the needs are, I work closely with law enforcement,” Greyeyes said.

There is one problem with the location for a new facility in Kayenta, Cowboy noted. There is no hospital within a limited radius of the planned site, he said.

“This committee is moving forward,” Begay said.

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