Public Notice: Committees/Commissions

March 12, 2024 This notification formally announces that applications are now being accepted from tribal members who wish to serve on the Commission(s)/Committee(s) listed below. Appointed members will receive a $125.00 stipend per meeting, effective January 1, 2022, once the minutes have been approved and processed on CTUIR paydays.     Will advertise for the following vacancies: 3 Positions for…

Which of Oregon’s free tax filing options fits you best?

SALEM – Filing electronically is the fastest way for taxpayers to get their refund. On average, taxpayers who e-file their returns and request their refund via direct deposit receive their refund two weeks sooner than those who file paper returns and request paper refund checks. With Oregon returning a $5.61 billion kicker to taxpayers in 2024 everyone wants to get…

Reva Hoover, manager of Bashas’ supermarket, demonstrates the time clock for employees that will change for with daylight saving time, Monday, March 4, 2024, in Tuba City, Ariz. MATT YORK | ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO

The US is springing forward to daylight saving. For Navajo and Hopi tribes, it’s a time of confusion

For the next several months, business meetings always come down to “Hopi time” or “Navajo time.” By TERRY TANG, Associated Press TUBA CITY, Ariz. (AP) — Melissa Blackhair is not eager to spring forward Sunday. “I’m dreading it. I just don’t want to see how much we have to adjust,” Blackhair said while sitting in her home office in Tuba…

Master weaver Celeste Whitewolf, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, taught participants how to weave cattail baskets. She credits her Karuk grandmother for her knowledge of weaving the cattails into baskets. JARRETTE WERK | UNDERSCORE NEWS PHOTO

Inaugural gathering of Native Weavers of Oregon keeps tradition alive

By NIKA BARTOO-SMITH and JARRETTE WERK Underscore News + Report for America At a conference on the Oregon Coast hosted by the Portland All Nations Canoe Family, traditional weavers of all ages and skill levels shared stories and knowledge, stitch by stitch. During the first week in March, snowflakes the size of dollar coins melted into the ocean waves and…

Weaskus named CTUIR’s new Legislative Affairs Manager

MISSION – The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) has found its new Legislative Affairs manager in tribal member Brandie Weaskus. Weaskus, who has served as the CTUIR Higher Education program manager for more than 10 years, will take over the Legislative Affairs role March 18 when she starts tracking and analyzing legislation that may affect the CTUIR.…

Water flowing out of a tunnel at the base of Iron Gate dam on Jan. 11, 2024. PHOTO COURTESY REN BROWNELL | KLAMATH RIVER RENEWAL CORPORATION

Hundreds of thousands of juvenile Chinook salmon die in Klamath River while moving through dam

By ERIK NEWMANN, Jefferson Public Radio Hundreds of thousands of juvenile salmon (salmon fry) are believed to have died over the past week after being released into the Klamath River from the Fall Creek Fish Hatchery on Feb. 26, according to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Fall Creek is a tributary of the Klamath River. The fish were…

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Bureau of Reclamation and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation initiated an experimental study in July 2023 by removing the left-hand side of the weir to test the possibility of salmon returning. ODFW PHOTO

CTUIR celebrates return of salmon to McKay Creek

By LISA SNELL, CUJ PENDLETON– The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) announced evidence heralding the return of salmon to McKay Creek in their #FishPassageFriday social media post Feb. 22. Recent Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) surveys counted 72 salmon-cleared egg pits, or redds, along the six miles below the McKay Reservoir Dam – the result…

Renewable energy infographic of a hydro power station.

Tribes gain new authority to stop unwanted hydropower projects

By MICHAEL PHILLIS, Associated Press Federal regulators have granted Native American tribes more power to block hydropower projects on their land after a flurry of applications were filed to expand renewable energy in the water-scarce U.S. Southwest. Previously, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission granted developers approval to move ahead with planning even if tribes objected. That practice came to an…

Corinne Sams, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Member at Large and chair of Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, speaks during a ceremony on Feb. 23 in Washington, D.C., to honor an agreement between the Biden-Harris administration and the CTUIR, Nez Perce Tribe, Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation, Yakama Nation and states of Oregon and Washington. The agreement lays the groundwork for the federal government and the Six Sovereigns to protect and restore salmon, steelhead and native fish to the Columbia River Basin. TRAVIS SNELL | CTUIR PHOTO

Ceremonial signing celebrates historic Columbia River Basin Agreement

WASHINGTON – Delegates representing the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) visited the White House on Feb. 23 for a ceremonial signing of the Columbia River Basin Agreement between the U.S. government and the Six Sovereigns. This historic accord, which was announced Dec. 14, lays the groundwork for the federal government to work with the CTUIR, Nez Perce…

Nez Perce fishers pull in nets on the Columbia River. NEZ PERCE TRIBE | COURTESY PHOTO

Initial Columbia River spring Chinook season dates set

CLACKAMAS – Fishery managers from Oregon and Washington adopted initial recreational spring Chinook seasons on the Columbia River during a joint state hearing Feb. 21. Effective March 1 (downstream of Bonneville Dam) and April 1 (upstream of Bonneville Dam), the following regulations will take the place of permanent rules for the mainstem Columbia River between Buoy 10 and the Oregon/Washington border…