Navajo Nation Council special session started and debate heating up over list of capital improvement projects for the Navajo Reservation’s 110 chapters. It’s now 1:20 pm and the Council chamber is filling up with chapter officials to show their support for their CIPs so the Council will finally approve a Five Year CIP Plan, which prior Council’s since the mid-1980s have failed to do because each Delegate wants his or her chapters’ CIPs on the list.

DELEGATE WALTER PHELPS
Amendment: change out some projects.

DELEGATE JOSH BUTLER
Add Tuba City project.

DELEGATE LEONARD TSOSIE
Why are we arguing over projects when there is no funding? And we also start arguing over whose projects will be on the list. Delegate Phelps wants to replace Exhibit A and now everybody is begging to be on his list. And then we will approve list that never went through CIP process. And we cud vote this down, won’t be the end of it, but nice thing is CIP has listing. Now that we have all the projects from 110 chapters and they’re in system and so we can properly review as a capital improvement project list and agree on certain things. We cud also once again say that we need to do major projects for people, such as waterlines, powerlines and something for young people.