Greetings Relatives/Frens?Humans, the Navajo Nation Council Budget & Finance Committee is scheduled to hear Updates on CARES Act fund Expenditures; any projects not showing progress in expending funds by December 30, 2020 to be reallocated to Hardship Assistance Expenditure Plan pursuant to CJY-67-20 – presented by Pearline Kirk, Controller, Office of the Controller and Dominic Beyal, Director, Office of Management & Budget.
The Navajo Nation Council created the Navajo Nation Hardship Assistance Program as part of the Navajo Nation COVID-19 Expenditure Plan. The Council creates Expenditure Plans for additional funds that the Navajo Nation receives after it approves and adopts an annual operating budget for the Navajo Nation government. The Navajo government’s budget year begins Oct. 1 and ends Sept. 31. CARES Act dollars were additional funds but unlike other supplemental funds, which are usually generated from the Nation’s natural resources, such as coal, oil, gas, taxes, fees, etc. A majority of revenues/money generated by the Nation’s natural resources came from coal, which has financially bottomed out. The Navajo Nation government’s blind reliance on Coal to financially support the Nation forever is a anther topic. This is about the process the Navajo government, by Navajo laws, had to follow when receiving/accepting CARES dollars in March.
The Nation has received an estimated total of $714 million. The Council approved several pieces of legislation to appropriate the $714M. But president Nez, with the support of Trump supporter VICE president Lizer have repeatedly ABUSED the bude Line-Item VETO approved by the Navajo people as a check and balance on the Council’s spending to ensure that the People’s money was being properly spent. Then President Joe Shirley rallied his Navajo government workers and supporters to go out and gather thousands of signatures of Navajo registered voters on an Initiative for a Referendum vote to not only give the president budget line-item power, but to also reduce the Council from 88 members to 24.
As I was remembering how then Prez Shirley and his Vice President used their Navajo government employees to get signatures on Initiative petitions for referendum vote on Reducing the Council and approving a presidential budget line-item veto, I thought about how nez & lizer also use Navajo government workers to deliver donated COVID-19 relief aid, such as food and supplies, which were ALL donated for the Navajo people and not to nez & lizer, who are using the People’s donations to Campaign so they can remain in the People’s Office of the President and Vice President for four more years…
Anyway, back to Nez repeatedly budget line-item veting CARES funds repeatedly appropriated by the Council so CARES dollar can get spent by the federal CARES Act deadline of Dec. 31. I know because I attend a majority of the meetings of the Navajo Council and standing committees as they debated how to appropriate the CARES funds to projects, programs that could spend millions of dollars by Dec. 31. I listened as they called on Navajo Nation Controller Pearline Kirk to quickly review each appropriation for compliance with US Treasury guidelines on what CARES money could be spent on. Kirk has Repeatedly advised the Council that if the CARES money is not spent according to Treasury rules then the Nation must pay back the CARES dollars to the federal government.
And CARES dollars provided to the Navajo Nation that are not spent ENTIRELY by Dec. 31 will revert to the federal government.
The Navajo Nation Hardship Assistance Program is the Council’s Hail Mary to spend any CARES money that is not spent by the nez & lizer Division of Social Services, Division of Health, Division of Natural Resources, Division of Public Safety, Department of Dine’ Education, Division of General Services, Division of Community Development, Division of Human Resources, etc., by Oct. 31 by Re-channelling nez & lizer UNSPENS CARES DOLLARS into the Hardship Assistance Program, which means the current balance of $49.4M in HAP will get BIGGER!
AND nez & lizer have NEVER provided a WRITTEN report on ALL the DONATIONS, they and their staff received on behalf of the Navajo People.
PROPOSED AGENDA
OF THE BUDGET AND FINANCE COMMITTEE
OF THE NAVAJO NATION COUNCIL
October 6, 2020, Regular Meeting, 10 a.m.
Via teleconference: 928 223-3955
Presiding: Jamie Henio, Chairperson
Raymond Smith, Jr., Vice Chairperson
Place: via Teleconference, Window Rock, Navajo Nation
Members Present:
_ Elmer P. Begay _ Jamie Henio
Nathaniel Brown _ Raymond Smith, Jr.
Amber K. Crotty _ _ Jimmy Yellowhair
- Call the Meeting to Order; the Roll Call; the Invocation;
- Recognize Guests and Visiting Officials
- Review and Adopt the Agenda
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays - Review and Adopt the Journal: none
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays - Receive Reports:
a. Updates on CARES Act fund Expenditures; any projects not showing progress in expending funds by December 30, 2020 to be reallocated to Hardship Assistance Expenditure Plan pursuant to CJY-67-20 – presented by Pearline
Kirk, Controller, Office of the Controller and Dominic Beyal, Director, Office of Management & Budget
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays
b. Plan to complete the FY21 Budget Process – presented by Dominic Beyal, Director, Office of Management and Budget and others
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays:
c. Status of Insurance Premiums for Insurance Services Department presented by Shawnevan Dale, Director, Risk Management and others
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays: - Old Business:
a. Legislation 0209-20: An Action Relating to Law and Order, Resources and Development, Health, Education and Human Services, Budget and Finance, and Naabikiyati Committees, and the Navajo Nation Council; Approving and adopting Navajo Nation Cares Fund Expenditure Plans Encompassing College
Student Relief, Grammar School Student Relief, Education, Elders Assistance, Head Start, Solar Projects, Solid Waste, Hardship Assistance, Housing Projects, Office of the Controller, Office management and Budget, Telecommunications
and Information Technology, Economic Development, Winter Propane Services, and Public Health Sponsored by Kee Allen Begay, Jr., Herman M. Daniels, Jr., Rick Nez, Vince James, Council Delegates M: Nathaniel Brown S: Amber K. Crotty Vote: Yeas: Nays
[September 17, 2020 Agenda item; loss of quorum during debate] - New Business:
a. Legislation No. 0225-20: An Action Relating to Budget and Finance and Health, Education and Human Services; Amending the Plan of Operation for the Navajo Nation Veterans Administration Sponsored by Pernell Halona,
Council Delegate
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays
b. Legislation No. 0188-20: An Action Relating to Law and Order, Budget and Finance, Naabikiyati Committee, and the Navajo Nation Council; Amending Navajo Nation Code 12 N.N.C. § 820(N) Appropriations Lapse Sponsored by Otto Tso, Council Delegate
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays
c. Legislation No. 0228-20: An Action Relating to Health, Education and Human services, Budget and Finance and Naabikiyati Committees; Approving the Reauthorization of the 2005 Tribal Designation for The Navajo Health Foundation – Sage Memorial Hospital, Inc., As a Tribal Organization for
Purposes of Contracting Under Public Law 93-683 for a Period of Twenty Years, Beginning October 1, 2020 and Ending September 30, 2040 Sponsored by Pernell Halona, Council Delegate
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays
d. Rescheduling October 20, 2020 regular meeting:
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays: - Close of the Session; Written Announcements; Adjournment
M: S: Vote: Yeas: Nays
Next Regular Meeting: October 20, 2020
THIS AGENDA IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE. The public is advised that the Navajo Nation Council Agenda and the Agendas of the Standing Committees are not final until adopted by a majority
vote of the Navajo Nation Council or the Standing Committee at a Navajo Nation Council or a Standing Committee meeting pursuant to 2 N.N.C. §§163 and 183, Navajo Nation Council Rule of 2 N.N.C. §§163 and 183, Navajo Nation Council Rule of Order
