A Case Study for the Inland Northwest Economic Adjustment Strategy
12 bands comprising 8,700 persons
Reservation resides on 1.4 million acres
Unemployment on Reservation: 45%
Local strategy: The Tribe maximizes timber resources, with operations covering forest health, harvest, transport, sales, lumber production, treatment and manufacturing
The Confederated Tribal Services Corporation - a general contracting / construction firm - has been awarded projects throughout Washington, earning revenues of $1.6 million in 2000.
Background
Approximately 8,700 persons of the Wenatchee, Nespelem, Moses-Columbia, Methow, Colville, Okanogan, Palus, San Poil, Entiat, Chelan, Nez Perce, and Lake tribes comprise the 12 bands that make up the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation, a federally recognized American Indian Tribe.
The ancestors of the Confederated Tribes were nomads - they moved with the seasons to locations where salmon were running or the berries were ripe.
In the mid-19th century, conflict between Native Americans and white settlers focused on restricting Indians to reservations. A series of treaties opened northern Washington to white settlement until the Colville Reservation was established by Executive Order in 1872. Later the same year, the reservation was shifted to the west bank of the Columbia River.
The original reservation contained substantially more land and rich mineral deposits. These were excluded from the area ultimately assigned - further reduced in size over the years by Congressional action. The reservation now occupies approximately 1.4 million acres.
Today, the Colville reservation consists of land held in trust for the Confederation, for individual tribal members, and land owned by others - some used for farming. The policy of the Tribe's Colville Business Council is to purchase lands that are for sale within the reservation's boundary.
An elected and salaried board of tribal members - the Colville Business Council - governs the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. For purposes of governance, the reservation is divided into four districts. From west to east, these are the Omak, Nespelem, Keller, and Inchelium Districts.
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Colville Reservation Counties(2000)
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Ferry
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Okanogan
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Total Population
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7,260
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39,564
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American Indian /Alaska Native
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1,327
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4,537
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% of County
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18.3%
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11.5%
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Geography
The Colville reservation is located in eastern Washington's Okanogan Highlands and occupies the southeastern portion of Okanogan County and the southern half of Ferry County. Both counties form part of the U.S. boundary with Canada.
The reservation has an average elevation of more than 3,000 feet, with the land sloping up from south to north. This is Washington State's dry side, with cold winters (commonly -10ƒ to -20ƒ) and hot summers (sometimes 100ƒ). Snow is common at higher elevations.
Portions of the reservation are covered with stands of ponderosa pine, Douglas fir, lodge pole pine, and western larch. Berries and roots can be found in grassland areas and are historically important to the way of life of the Colville Confederated tribes. Deer, elk, bird hunting and fishing still play a part in tribal life, with tribal members managing elk, fish and game and predatory bird populations.
In 1999 - for the second year in a row - the tribe covered most of the operating costs of the Colville Fish Hatchery operated by Washington's Fish and Wildlife Department. About 735,000 rainbow and cutthroat trout are raised at the hatchery every year. Funds came from the tribes' gaming operations.
Human Conditions
According to the 2000 Census, persons of American Indian (or Alaska Native) background make up 18.3% of Ferry County's population and 11.5% of Okanogan County, and are the most predominant non-white ethnic group. According to the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), fully 50% of Colville Agency service population is under 16. Just 14% is over age 65.
Unemployment is substantially higher in both Ferry and Okanogan Counties than unemployment in Washington and the nation. As of October 2000, the seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate in Ferry County was 9.4% - more than twice as high as the 4.4% state rate and more than two and a half times higher than the U.S. rate. Unemployment in Okanogan County was at 7.0% - one and a half times the state rate and almost twice the national rate. In both counties, persons living below the poverty level total approximately 19% - about twice the national level.
BIA information indicates 8,442 persons enrolled in the Confederated Tribes of the Colville. Approximately 3,420 persons are employed - only 55% of those available for work, making for a reservation unemployment rate of 45%. Of this number, 4% are employed, but still fall below poverty guidelines.
Between 1990-97, per capita income declined by 0.3% in Ferry County, but increased by nearly 1% in Okanogan County. For Washington as a whole, income increased 1.4% for the same period.
In Ferry County, wages accounted for 42.5% of income - a 5.9% decline, while transfer payments accounted for 29.2% of income, an 8.6% increase. In Okanogan County, wages and salaries accounted for 44.5% of income (a 1.0% decline) and transfer payments rose 2.9%, to 25.3% of income.
Leading causes of death among the Native Americans on the reservation include heart disease, cancer, motor vehicle accidents, stroke, and liver disease.
| 1997 Employment by Selected Selectors | ||
| Ferry | Okanogan | |
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Agriculture
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7.3% | 18.4% |
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Forest Products
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10.5% | 5.9% |
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Mining
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9.7% | 0.3% |
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Selected Natural Resources
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27.5% | 24.6% |
"Because of strong cultural ties to the land and people, Indians will not move from the reservation simply due to downturns in the local economy." Colville Tribes Overall Economic Development Program
"There's no limit to what we can do given the Tribe's backing." Pat Toulou, chairman, Confederated Tribal Services Corp. and Colville Tribe Member
Economic Development
Natural Resources
Issues surrounding natural resources management for the Colville Confederated Tribes include what forms production might take; sustenance of the resource base for the future; maintaining and building a quality of life based on tribal traditions, culture, environment and economy; and creating an environment where members of the tribes can work together to develop an innovative resources management approach.
Timber
The tribes' timber operation takes wood all the way from the forest to finished lumber. Colville Tribal Logging is responsible for maintaining the health of tribal forests, selecting timber for cutting and transporting wood harvests. The Colville Timber Resource Company harvests and sells the cut timber. Colville Indian Precision Pine turns ponderosa pine and Douglas fir logs into high-quality lumber. The tribe also maintains a wood treatment plant that manufactures posts and poles.
Recreation & Tourism
While timber may be traditional, the Colville Tribal Enterprise Corporation provides oversight for entrepreneurial enterprises run on tribal lands.
These include Roosevelt Recreational Enterprises based at Roosevelt Lake on the Columbia River. At Keller Ferry and Seven Bays Marinas, visitors can rent houseboats to cruise 630 miles of river shoreline. The Tribe also operates Rainbow Beach Resort with vacation cabin, RV space and boat rentals.
Three casinos run by Colville Tribal Enterprises at Mill Bay, Coulee Dam and Okanogan offer gaming, food, and entertainment.
Additional Tribal Resources
Colville Tribal Enterprise Corporation runs Colville Tribal Credit, which provides financial services to tribal members and offers assistance to small businesses and housing support. The Colville Tribe also operates a number of health programs. These include walk-in clinics in three tribal districts, a convalescent center, and a senior center.
Future Priorities
In the Tribe's current Overall Economic Development Program, affordable housing, education and training are top priorities for all four tribal districts. Other economic development priorities include small business, wood products, and light industrial development along with development of an industrial park.
New Approaches
The Confederated Tribal Services Corporation's general contracting operation constructs buildings and roads as far away as Bremerton on Washington's Puget Sound. This tribal corporation, certified by the Small Business Administration, had revenues of $1.6 million in 2000 and received the Army Corps of Engineers "Contractor of the Year" award for work on Columbia River fishing accesses.
There is also a tribally sponsored and IBEW-sanctioned training program for those interested in becoming journeymen electricians. The training program got started because trained journeymen did not exist on the reservation.
Tribal leaders believe that money spent in reservation communities not only provides jobs but also improves the community by adding facilities and infrastructure.
