As I looked out across the North Dakota prairie, a flare burned near an oil storage tank like hundreds of other well sites on or near the Fort Berthold Reservation. Lately, when I come home, oil-producing, well sites constantly remind me our reservation will never be the same.
I have a busy schedule as a full-time graduate student, majoring in environmental studies, law and creative non-fiction writing. Even so, I felt it was important to participate in the election for tribal chairman of the Three Affiliated Tribes. I boarded a train Saturday to make a 22-hour roundtrip to Fort Berthold where I plan to vote in Tuesday’s tribal election.
This particular election is one of the most important in the history the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation for several reasons, many which have been pointed out by chairman-candidate Whitney Bell, now senior accountant of the Three Affiliated Tribes. To begin: Unprecedented oil production on tribal lands requires smart leadership to maximize financial gains while also ensuring protection of the tribe’s natural resources. The oil revenue can — and should — be used to lift the tribe out of poverty and raise it into prosperity.
Our tribe needs smart, sound and trustworthy leadership to make this shift. The last two tribal administrations have failed in all these leadership categories. A 2009 financial statement audit shows the Three Affiliated Tribes is carrying nearly a $100 million debt. Bell, formerly the chief financial officer of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation, notes $76 million of the current debt is a carry-over from the Tex Hall administration.
The tribe’s debt load increased during the Marcus Levings’ administration and could have been paid down, considering the tribe has netted $70 million in oil taxes and revenues acquired in the last three years. The tribe is also earning at least $1.5 million in oil revenues monthly. Additionally, the tribe receives money through the Four Bears Casino. Finally, the tribe clears interest revenue from a multimillion-dollar Joint Tribal Advisory Committee, JTAC, trust fund that allows the tribe to fund essential tribal programs.
We are at a critical juncture in the history of our tribe. Tribal revenue from oil production has yet to reach a peak. Every tribal citizen of Fort Berthold deserves financial accountability from their tribal leaders. It’s not happening with the current administration, and it didn’t happen with the last.
Whitney Bell recently gave a radio speech on KMHA 91.3 FM. He shared his vision for the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation in which he sees our tribe rising to become a financial powerhouse in Indian Country. (Go here to listen to a radio interview with Bell on KBGA Missoula, Tribal Scene Radio). He believes we can rise to the level of the energy monarchs of the Utes to the South or become angel investors like the Shakopee to the East.
It was the Shakopee Tribe that recently stepped forward to lend the Three Affiliated Tribes $30 million to refinance $24 million of existing debt and build a new elementary school.
I plan on voting for a new leader of the Mandan, Hidatsa and Arikara Nation. My vote will go to Whitney Bell, someone I trust, respect and know well. Whitney is my younger brother. He’s smart, a quality that shined even when he was a little boy.
It’s no wonder Whitney, 39, has earned four bachelor’s degrees, including finance, psychology, accounting and elective studies in management. He didn’t spend his entire in life in school, but he was smart and worked hard, sometimes loading up on as much as six classes in one semester. Some years he attended school year round, summer, fall and spring. He also earned a master’s degree in communication. Whitney used federal student loans to pay for his education. As he worked on his education, Whitney also earned a living for his family. He has worked for the Three Affiliated Tribes for 15 years, taking a lead role on the gaming commission, general manager of the tribal communication enterprises and served as chief financial officer.
Our tribe needs honest, trustworthy and respectful leadership.
Whitney Bell can do the job.
Jodi Rave
