On Dec 5th, in another of her editorials in the Northwest Treaty Tribes Magazine, Being Frank: Accord Fosters Cooperation, Chair Loomis writes how the Centennial Accord is enhancing cooperation between our communities and how the Governor is involved in the North of Falcon process! Below is an excerpt from the recent article; “A 28-year-old investment in cooperation and government-to-government relations between Indian tribes and the state of Washington is still paying off today. Through the 1989 Centennial Accord the tribes and state committed to work together for the common good of everyone who lives in Washington. It has advanced understanding between Indians and non-Indians through joint efforts to achieve our goals. At the annual Centennial Accord meeting in October, representatives of the state’s federally recognized tribes met with Gov. Jay Inslee, his cabinet and the heads of state agencies to discuss shared concerns including the opioid epidemic, social services, broadband, education and natural resources. Natural resources occupied a big part of the agenda for the annual meeting. Treaty tribes in western Washington are mostly pleased with the direction that the tribal/state relationship is proceeding. However, much more needs to be done for our natural resources. Salmon co-management has become increasingly difficult as Indian and non-Indian fishermen must share a steadily shrinking resource. But increased involvement by the governor’s office has helped resolve differences, especially in the annual North of Falcon salmon season setting process…” (END) This article brings to light two troubling points; First, nowhere in the Centennial Accord is there any language that says meetings between the Tribes and State, although labeled as “Government-to-Government” will remain closed to the public. We thought we would reach out to some Government agencies that oversee Tribal Affairs for their opinion. We spoke to the Bureau of Indian Affairs Regional Office in Portland, the Department of Interior in Washington D.C. and to the Division of Tribal Governments - Indian Affairs, also in Washington D.C. We asked if there were any mandates or precedence for prohibiting the public from attending meetings held between Tribal governments and other agencies? We were told by all those contacted that there is NO precedence for barring the public from these meetings, unless they are discussing purely tribal issues. In fact, the spokesperson for the Division of Tribal Governments added “To the contrary, WE ENCOURAGE THE PUBLIC TO ATTEND THESE MEETINGS AS IT FOSTERS TRUST AND COOPERATION.” So, again, it begs the question. If there is no legal reason why the public should be barred from the North of Falcon Meetings, and the precedence in other government agencies ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION, why are our Tribal Co-managers so opposed to having everything out in the open? And why has our State Representatives not been more active in pursuing public oversight? We can agree, the Tribes do a lot of good work in our state. But to hold up the Centennial Accord as a hallmark for increased cooperation, all the while objecting to open meetings and full disclosure is hypocritical. We can only conclude that, although they speak the words of “cooperation” they are not truly interested in fostering it, unless it’s on their terms! That is not cooperation. The other troubling statement, and perhaps the most revealing is the articles mention of the Governor’s involvement in North of Falcon. It reads: “But increased involvement by the governor’s office has helped resolve differences, especially in the annual North of Falcon salmon season setting process.” Exactly WHAT has the Governor’s INVOLVEMENT been? We think the job of resolving issues within the North of Falcon process is with the Commission, unless of course, the Governor is moving to reduce or remove the authority of the Commission, in which case, we have a much, much bigger problem! We agree the Governor SHOULD be instrumental in insuring the North of Falcon process is OPEN, FAIR and EQUITABLE, but should not be involved in the season setting process. That is the Commission’s responsibility! We need to know what the motives of the Governor are and what involvement he is taking in the North of Falcon process. What agreement is the Governor making IN HIS SECRET MEETINGS that impact our sport, our fish and OUR COMMISSION?