CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES
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CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES
COMPREHENSIVE
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY
June 2026
COMMENTS and ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank our partners who also assisted with the development of this
comprehensive economic development strategy. Project partners (Steering Committee
members) include James Bible (S&K Business Services and Sovereign Leasing and Financing,
Inc.); Ruth Swaney (CSKT Finance Office); Erin Krantz (Job Service Polson); Marie Hirsch (Arlee
Community Development Corporation); Eva Oruste; Michael Munson (Salish Kootenai
College); Michelle Mitchell (Tribal Education Department); Erma Haynes (Enrollment
Department); Melinda Charlo (Tribal Personnel Indian Preference Office); Jody Perez (Salish
and Kootenai Housing Authority); Zachary Camel (Mission Valley Power); and Bryon Miller
(S&K Gaming). We would also like to thank Velda Shelby, who has either assisted with editing
this document or has provided assistance to the committee.
Most importantly, we would like to thank the Tribal Elders and the Tribal Council for their
thoughtful guidance and perspective. Tribal Council members include Michael Dolson
(Chairman), Jami Pluff (Vice-Chair), Danielle Matt (Secretary), Carole Lankford (Treasurer),
Tom McDonald (At Large District), Martin Charlo (Pablo District), James Steele Jr. (St. Ignatius
District), Greg Dumontier (Arlee District), Len Twoteeth (Elmo District), and James “Bing”
Matt (At Large District).
-- Janet Camel, CSKT Planning Director and Principal Author
-- James Bible, EDA Planner and Author
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Resolution No. 26-174
RESOLUTION
OF THE TRIBAL COUNCIL OF
THE CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES
OF THE FLATHEAD RESERVATION, MT
RESOLUTION APPROVING THE SUBMISSION OF A GRANT APPLICATION TO THE U.S.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION (EDA) FOR A THREE-YEAR PLANNING GRANT
AND FOR APPROVAL OF THE UPDATED CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES'
COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE TRIBAL COUNCIL OF THE CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI
TRIBES THAT
WHEREAS, the Tribal Council of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes is the duly recognized governing
body of the Flathead Reservation; and
WHEREAS, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) are committed to the sound planning and
management of Flathead Reservation resources; and
WHEREAS, the CSKT have directed the Economic Development Office (EDO) to fill the important need of
diversification of revenues and protection of resources as the CSKT strive for self-sufficiency and planned economic
development opportunities; and
WHEREAS, the CSKT have entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with S&K Business Services/Sovereign
Leasing and Financing (SKBS) to provide business planning support to CSKT and Tribal member-owned businesses
as part of the Statement of Work detailed in the EDA Planning Grant application and in CSKT's Comprehensive
Economic Development Strategy (CEDS); and
WHEREAS, S&K Business Services (SKBS) leads Flathead Reservation Workforce and Economic Development
Coalition meetings to identify regional or Reservation-based industry trends, employment opportunities, Tribal
member workforce gaps, and related employment enhancement strategies to guide sustainable Tribal economic
development on the Flathead Reservation; and
WHEREAS, SKBS has worked with CSKT's EDO to update the five-year Comprehensive Economic Development
Strategy by garnering input through surveys and meetings with Coalition partners, businesses, and organizations,
and by conducting in-depth research to collect accurate and current statistical data for the Flathead Reservation; and
WHEREAS, CSKT Tribal staff and community leaders have submitted comments and contributed updated data for
the CEDS; and
WHEREAS, with Tribal Council approval of the draft CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, a
30-day public comment period will be initiated.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Tribal Council of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai
Tribes of the Flathead Reservation approves the application for a three-year EDA Planning Grant to be administered
during the three (3) year period of October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2029; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Tribes shall enter into a new Memorandum of Agreement and Subaward
Agreement with S&K Business Services/Sovereign Leasing and Financing, to remit the EDA award to SKBS, less
IDC retained by CSKT; and
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................................. 1
FLATHEAD RESERVATION ECONOMIC SETTING ............................................................................................................ 3
CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES’ HISTORY ..................................................................................... 3
DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC DATA ......................................................................................................... 8
POPULATION DATA ................................................................................................................................................................ 9
SOCIOECONOMIC DATA ....................................................................................................................................................... 11
PHYSICAL SETTING ................................................................................................................................................. 15
CLIMATE ............................................................................................................................................................................... 17
SOILS .................................................................................................................................................................................... 18
MINERALS............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY .................................................................................................................................................. 19
LAND-BASED CULTURAL RESOURCES ................................................................................................................................... 19
LAND USE ............................................................................................................................................................................. 20
LAND OWNERSHIP ............................................................................................................................................................... 21
INFRASTRUCTURE AND HOUSING .......................................................................................................................... 24
WATER/WASTEWATER ......................................................................................................................................................... 24
IRRIGATION WATER.............................................................................................................................................................. 25
SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL ....................................................................................................................................................... 25
ELECTRICITY AND ENERGY .................................................................................................................................................... 26
COMMUNICATION ............................................................................................................................................................... 27
EMERGENCY SERVICES/SAFETY ............................................................................................................................................ 27
HEALTH SERVICES ................................................................................................................................................................. 32
TRANSPORTATION................................................................................................................................................................ 32
EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES..................................................................................................................................................... 37
HOUSING .............................................................................................................................................................................. 38
EXISTING TRIBAL BUSINESSES AND REVENUE-PRODUCING PROGRAMS............................................................... 39
TRIBAL ENTERPRISES ............................................................................................................................................................ 39
TRIBAL AFFILIATES ................................................................................................................................................................ 42
TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE-PRODUCING PROGRAMS ................................................................................................ 43
EXISTING TRIBAL JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS ......................................................................................................... 44
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (DHRD) ........................................................................................... 44
PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT INDIAN PREFERENCE OFFICE .................................................................................................... 44
SALISH KOOTENAI COLLEGE ................................................................................................................................................. 44
RESOURCES THAT CAN PROVIDE SUPPORT TO TRIBAL MEMBER BUSINESS OWNERS .......................................... 45
S&K BUSINESS SERVICES ...................................................................................................................................................... 45
CSKT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE............................................................................................................................. 46
CSKT INDIAN PREFERENCE OFFICE ....................................................................................................................................... 46
SALISH KOOTENAI COLLEGE (SKC) ........................................................................................................................................ 46
TRIBAL CREDIT PROGRAM .................................................................................................................................................... 46
ECONOMIC TRENDS, RELATIONSHIP TO THE OUTSIDE ECONOMY, AND OTHER ECONOMIC PERF. FACTORS ...... 47
EMERGING OR DECLINING INDUSTRY SECTORS ................................................................................................................... 47
RELATIONSHIP TO LARGER REGIONAL AND GLOBAL ECONOMIES—ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES ........................ 50
OTHER FACTORS AFFECTING THE ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE OF THE RESERVATION ........................................................ 50
ECONOMIC STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND THREATS (SWOT) ............................................... 62
STRENGTHS .......................................................................................................................................................................... 62
PEOPLE, CULTURE, ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ............................................................................................................. 62
PARTNERSHIPS................................................................................................................................................................ 62
OTHER STRENGTHS:........................................................................................................................................................ 64
WEAKNESSES OR CHALLENGES ............................................................................................................................................ 64
BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT .......................................................................................................................................... 64
OTHER WEAKNESSES OR CHALLENGES ........................................................................................................................... 65
OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS............................................................................................................................................ 65
CSKT SWOT ANALYSIS TABLE............................................................................................................................................... 76.
STRATEGIC DIRECTION, ACTION PLAN & EVALUATION............................................................................................... 83
STRATEGIC DIRECTION ........................................................................................................................................... 83
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TRIBAL VISION ...................................................................................................................................................................... 83
TRIBAL MISSION ................................................................................................................................................................... 83
VALUES ................................................................................................................................................................................. 83
TRIBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GOALS .......................................................................................................................... 84
CSKT GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND TASKS IDENTIFIED AS PART OF THE MAIN STREET MONTANA (PLANNING) PROJECT ....... 86
GOALS IDENTIFIED IN THE EDO PLAN OF OPERATIONS........................................................................................................ 87
PRIORITIES IDENTIFIED BY THE MEMBERSHIP IN THE JOB AND TRAINING NEEDS SURVEY: ................................................ 88
2019 TRIBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PRIORITIES (NW AREA FOUNDATION VIBRANT TRIBAL ECONOMIES PROJECT 89)
ECONOMIC RESILIENCE GOALS ............................................................................................................................................ 91
ACTION PLAN ......................................................................................................................................................... 92
CURRENT PRIORITIES............................................................................................................................................................ 92
EVALUATION AND PERFORMANCE MEASURES ................................................................................................... 114
ECONOMIC RESILIENCE ........................................................................................................................................ 116
STEADY-STATE OR LONG-TERM INITIATIVES ...................................................................................................................... 116
CSKT CEDS, COMPREHENSIVE RESOURCES PLAN, AND PRE-DISASTER MITIGATION PLAN ................................................ 116
DIVERSIFICATION AND STABILITY ....................................................................................................................................... 116
WORKER RESILIENCY .......................................................................................................................................................... 117
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND EARLY WARNING TOOLS.............................................................................. 117
TELECOMMUNICATION AND BROADBAND NETWORK REDUNDANCY .............................................................................. 117
PROMOTION ...................................................................................................................................................................... 118
RESPONSIVE INITIATIVES and INFORMATION NETWORKS................................................................................................. 118
Post-Disaster Planning, Implementation, and Recovery .................................................................................................... 119
APPENDIX 1: FLATHEAD RESERVATION POPULATION BY GEOGRAPHIC AREA ......................................................... 122
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1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ (CSKT) Comprehensive Economic Development
Strategy (CEDS) or Strategic Economic Development Plan includes goals, objectives, and action
steps for the next five years and beyond to improve the Flathead Reservation economy. It
includes input from Tribal members, Tribal government programs, the nonprofit sector, and the
private sector, including Tribal corporations and small businesses. The plan also incorporates
issues identified over the past several years in the state of Montana’s Main Street Montana
strategic planning process and in multiple tribal cultural and natural resource plans and policies.
CSKT’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy was developed with input from an
interdisciplinary, interagency steering committee. The partners who comprise that committee
include:
o Salish Kootenai College
o Job Service Polson
o Montana Department of Commerce
o Lake County and Arlee Community Development Corporations (non-profits)
o Mission Valley Power – local electric utility
o S&K Business Services
o S&K Gaming
o Multiple tribal government departments, including Personnel,
Education, Finance, Economic Development, and Human Resources
Development
Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tribal Council, Salish/Q� lispé Culture Committee
and Elders, and Kootenai Culture Committee and Elders also played a role in reviewing the list of
proposed economic development activities outlined in this document.
CSKT receives annual funding from the U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development
Administration (EDA) to conduct economic planning activities. An outcome of these activities is a
rewrite of CSKT’s Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) every five years. CSKT
also receives funding from the Montana Department of Commerce to provide technical
assistance to entrepreneurs and to conduct feasibility studies for Tribal projects.
The following strategic plan meets CSKT’s goals and objectives for economic development and
incorporates the information gained in CSKT’s 2014 Sustainable Economic Development Study as
well as new information obtained since.
According to EDA, a Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, or CEDS, “is designed to
bring together the public and private sectors in the creation of an economic road map to diversify
and strengthen regional economies” (EPA CEDS Summary of Requirements).
This strategy describes the background setting of the Flathead Reservation economy, including
information about Tribal history, demographics, the physical environment, existing Tribal
businesses, job training programs, and entrepreneurial resources, as well as economic trends,
the relationship to the outside economy, and other economic performance factors.
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The plan identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the reservation economy, as well as
opportunities and threats, which is called a SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis, in concert with
CSKT’s values and goals for reservation development, guides CSKT’s economic development
strategy and action plan.
Evaluation and performance measures are incorporated into the action plan, as well as a strategy
for addressing economic resilience.
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2 FLATHEAD RESERVATION ECONOMIC SETTING
The Flathead Indian Reservation is home to three tribes—the Bitterroot Salish, the Pend d’Oreille,
and one band of Kootenai people. The reservation is situated between the two largest cities in
Western Montana—Missoula and Kalispell. U.S. Highway 93 is the main transportation artery in
Western Montana, spanning the length of the reservation and connecting it to Missoula, Kalispell,
and beyond.
The reservation encompasses more than 1.3 million acres and intersects with four counties—
Lake, Missoula, Sanders, and Flathead. There are four incorporated cities or towns on the
reservation—Polson, Ronan, St. Ignatius, and Hot Springs—and several other non-incorporated
communities. These include the Flathead Lake-side communities of Dayton, Elmo, Big Arm, Finley
Point, and Blue Bay in addition to Pablo (where the Tribal headquarters is located), Charlo, Ravalli,
Arlee, Evaro, Sčilíp (Dixon), Camas Prairie, Lonepine, and Niarada. Because the Reservation was
illegally opened to non-Tribal settlement in 1910, some of these communities have greater
numbers of Tribal residents than others.
The Flathead Reservation is unique in that it is the last, remaining homeland of three distinct
Native American tribes. It is essential that the reader of CSKT’s economic strategy understand the
history of the Tribes and the make-up of the reservation before studying the Tribes’ strategies
for future development.
CONFEDERATED SALISH AND KOOTENAI TRIBES’ HISTORY
The history presented here is an excerpt of the History and Culture Chapter of CSKT’s Flathead
Reservation Comprehensive Resources Plan (1996). It is a “compilation of Tribal elders’ oral
histories, European American historical interpretations, and professional research on treaties
and other documents. Because language barriers and cultural differences have, at times, led
Western historians to misunderstand events that involve the Tribes, it is useful to draw upon the
oral histories of the Salish and Kootenai peoples as well as the historical record.
SALISH CULTURE (Sqélixw—The People)
“On the Flathead Reservation, the designation ‘Confederated Salish’ encompasses not only the
Bitterroot Salish and the Pend d'Oreilles but also Kalispel and Spokane Indians who settled on the
reservation. Elders say that these and other tribes were once one Salish speaking tribe.
Thousands of years ago this ancestral tribal group divided into a number of different bands that
later became tribes and occupied much of the Northwest, from British Columbia to Montana and
beyond…. ²
“Before the time of the reservation, the Salish tribes gained subsistence from a tribal system of
hunting, fishing, and harvesting. The quest for food began in the early spring with the bitterroot
harvest…. Along with bitterroot, the people harvested other plants… [for food and medicine] ….
The people fished year-round. In summer and fall, the Salish hunted and picked berries…. All
these activities were communal; the people worked together and helped each other.”
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“In the fall, the men concentrated more on hunting, while the women dried the meat and
prepared hides for robes and buckskins. The Salish hunted many different animals, but mainstays
were deer and bison. Every year, the people traveled east of the mountains, where game animals
were plentiful….”
“After a group hunt, the hunters divided the meat among all the people in the camp. They piled
cut meat in one place, and people from each lodge took what they needed. The successful
hunters shared with those who were unsuccessful. The Tribe used everything and wasted
nothing.”
“The Salish spent the winter months trapping and fishing. Women repaired clothing and sewed
new garments from deer and elk skins. They decorated their work with porcupine quills colored
with natural dyes.”
A Portion of the Aboriginal Territories of the Salish & Q� lispé People—Map courtesy of CSKT Salish/Pend
d’Oreilles Cultural Committee and Natural Resources Department GIS Program (CSKT Climate Change Plan, 2013)
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“The earth was good to the tribes. It provided not only food but also material for making lodges,
tools, clothing, and games. The Salish made lodge coverings from elk and buffalo hides and
fashioned tools such as needles, mauls, and grinding stones from wood, bone, and rock. The
Salish traveled long distances to collect raw materials that were not available locally. The Salish
had a strong trade relationship with the Nez Perce and traded bitterroot and high-quality
buckskin for Nez Perce cornhusk bags filled with camas….”
“Before the introduction of the horse, the Salish used travois to haul possessions between camps.
The people-built travois by tying a hide between two poles. The load rested in the hide….”
KOOTENAI CULTURE (ʾaqⱡsmaknik�—The People)
“Before contact with non-Indians, the Kootenai Nation (also spelled Kootenay or Kutenai)
numbered over ten thousand. Kootenai Indians inhabited what is now eastern British Columbia,
the southern half of Alberta, northern Idaho, eastern Washington, and Montana. The Kootenai
band that lived in the Dayton area called itself A•kicqanik, which translates as “Fish Trap People.”
The name comes from the Kootenai practice of setting traps in the creeks during the large fish
runs.
“The Kootenai [also] moved seasonally over a large territory. The seasonal round began in the
early spring when the people traveled to fishing grounds. There, the Kootenai caught bull and
cutthroat trout, salmon, sturgeon, and whitefish using a simple bone device and line or harpoons
with a detachable, barbless point. The people also set traps and weirs in streams.”
“In early May, as the fishing season came to a close, the root harvest began. The people dug
bitterroot, camas, and other roots. In mid-June the band traveled east of the divide to hunt
buffalo. Weeks later the people returned with heavy loads of meat. From mid- to late summer
the Kootenai harvested serviceberries, chokecherries, huckleberries, and other fruits. When fall
approached, some of the Kootenai organized communal deer drives; others returned to the
Plains to hunt buffalo. The tribe caught surplus food for winter.”
“Deer were the most accessible and abundant of the game animals, and deer meat was one of
the most essential foods, but the Kootenai also hunted elk, moose, caribou, buffalo, mountain
sheep and bear, and birds such as grouse, geese, and ducks….”
“The Kootenai lived in skin and mat-covered tepees (the latter woven from tulle and dogbane).
The people used canoes to transport family and gear and to fish for salmon and manufactured a
unique covered canoe with a long projection at both bow and stern.”
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A Portion of the Aboriginal Territory of the Ksanka Band of Kootenai Indians—Map courtesy of the CSKT Natural
Resources Department and Kootenai Culture Committee (CSKT Climate Change Strategic Plan, 2013).
“During times of peace the Kootenai traded with other tribes, such as the Shoshone, Nez Perce,
and Blackfeet. Other tribes coveted the native tobacco cultivated by the Kootenai. The Kootenai
traded it and famous tanned buckskin hides for stones used to make pipes, various tools, and
material goods.”
HISTORICAL IMPACTS ON SALISH AND KOOTENAI RESOURCES
For many thousands of years, since time immemorial, the people gained subsistence from a
system of hunting, fishing, plant harvest, and trade, moving seasonally over a large territory that
reached throughout and beyond the vast Columbia River Basin. Yet in less than 1/3 of the time
of the tribes' existence in the Northwest, the Tribal economy changed dramatically.
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The late 1600s and early 1700s introduced horses and firearms to the region, making inter-tribal
warfare more frequent and deadly. Smallpox and other epidemics struck in the late 1700s. The
early 1800s brought the fur trade that wiped out vast populations of bison and small mammals
that provided food, materials for tools, and hides for shelter and clothing.
With the signing of the Hellgate Treaty in 1855, the Bitterroot Salish, Pend d’Oreilles, and one
band of Kootenai people were linked together as residents of what they believed to be the
Bitterroot and Flathead Valleys in Canada. The chiefs ceded millions of acres of aboriginal
territory to retain the Bitterroot and Flathead Valleys for the Tribes’ exclusive use and benefit,
along with the right to hunt, fish, and harvest within uninhabited areas of Tribal aboriginal lands.
The treaty negotiated between the sovereign nations of the United States of America, the
Bitterroot Salish, the Pend d'Oreilles, and the Kootenai brought the federal government’s
promise of peace, health care, education, tools, and resources that would assist Tribal leaders in
providing for the people.
But promises were not kept, and the three tribes were eventually forced to live within the
boundaries of the 1.3 million acres of the Jocko Reserve, known today as the Flathead
Reservation. Aside from a few small parcels, the Bitterroot Valley was taken from the Salish. Some
natives were killed when they hunted on uninhabited aboriginal land outside of the reservation.
Then more land was taken, this time from within the reservation for
• government agents and the Catholic Church for agriculture and schools
• the railroad
• individual Indian allotments, despite Tribal delegations sent to Washington, D.C., to protest
privatization of reservation lands
• over 18,000 acres for the National Bison Range
• nearly 46,000 acres for reservoir or power development
• over 61,000 acres for state school purposes
• over 400,000 acres for homesteaders.
By 1912, the Salish, Kootenai, and Pend d’Oreilles Tribes, as three nations, had less than 400,000
acres remaining, much of which was mountainous or inaccessible. While individual Tribal
members received private land allotments, some in 1908 and some in 1922, many eventually lost
their land tracts to tax sales or fraud. Today, less than 3% of the reservation is individually owned
trust land.
Non-tribal business development began affecting the economies of the CSKT as far back as the
late 1700s, when the fur trade brought the market system to the northwest. A foreign trade
system, foreign currency, language, education, legal, and land ownership systems took their toll
on traditional native economies over the decades—an impact from which it is taking centuries to
recover.
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And homesteading, land subdivision, and land sales to non-tribal people shifted the
population and natural resource balance of the reservation. In the 1900s, the number of
Tribal members living on the reservation grew by about 2,000, while the non-member
population grew by more than 21,000, placing more than 10 times the pressure on the
natural resource base as Tribal growth.
After the Tribes were forced to stay within the boundaries of the Flathead Indian
Reservation, pro bono attorneys and others helped the Tribes work within the foreign, nonIndian legal and land ownership structure to buy back Tribal lands and take control of Tribal
lands and resources.
In 1935, as a result of the Indian Reorganization Act, the Salish, Q� lispé, and Kootenai people
adopted a constitution and bylaws and became officially known as the Confederated Salish
and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation. The Tribes ratified a corporate charter on
April 25, 1936, becoming the first tribes in the United States to adopt both a tribal constitution
and a corporate charter.
As one of the first 10 self-governance tribes in the nation, the CSKT used the Indian SelfDetermination Act of 1976 (Public Law 93-638) to contract with the federal government to
assume management responsibility for 65 federal programs on the Flathead Reservation,
including management of Mission Valley Power, the reservation's electric utility. CSKT also
manages 69 Tribal programs and an additional 194 federal, state, and other grant programs,
with a $200 million overall budget in 2025.
Today the CSKT population has grown to over 8,000 members, the majority of whom reside
on the Reservation. The total Flathead Reservation population is 31,394; there are 12,381
households and 198 industries on the Reservation, with 14,880 employed individuals
(IMPLAN 2019).
The CSKT now own and manage more than 64% of the 1.3-million-acre Reservation and are
governed by a ten-member, elected Tribal Council that represents Tribal members from
eight geographical districts on the Reservation—Arlee, Sčilíp (Dixon), St. Ignatius, Ronan,
Pablo, Polson, Elmo, and Hot Springs—and two at-large reps. CSKT employs 1400 people
(including 200 seasonal employees), 80% of whom are CSKT members.
DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC DATA
This section has been updated with public web-sourced data. Census figures below use ACS
2024 five-year estimates for the Flathead Reservation. Mission West figures use ESRI
estimates/projections dated September 29, 2025. Because ACS and ESRI use different methods
and reference dates, the values should be read with their source notes rather than treated as
interchangeable.
Primary website citations for this section: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 five-year estimates via Census Reporter,
https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25000US1110-flathead-reservation/; Mission West Community Development Partners, Flathead Indian
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Reservation data page, ESRI data dated 2025-09-29, https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/our-communities/p/v/data/item/1501/flatheadindian-reservation; Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Economic Overview of Flathead County 2024,
https://lmi.mt.gov/_docs/Publications/LMI-Pubs/LocalAreaProfiles/Flathead_COP_2024.pdf.
POPULATION DATA
The 2024 ACS five-year estimate places the Flathead Reservation population at 32,167 residents,
with 12,341 households and 15,518 housing units. The ACS profile reports a median age of 43
and a land area of 1,935.7 square miles. Mission West/ESRI estimates the 2025 population at
32,610 and projects 34,434 residents by 2030.
Indicator
Current estimate
Population
32,167 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Households
12,341 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Median age
43 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Housing units
15,518 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Land area
1,935.7 square miles
Comparison / projection
32,610 (ESRI 2025); 34,434
projected for 2030
12,804 (ESRI 2025); 13,411
projected for 2030
44 (ESRI 2025)
15,590 (ESRI 2025); 16,203
projected for 2030
16.6 people per square mile
Website citation
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024
Sources: Census Reporter, Flathead Reservation profile (ACS 2024 five-year estimates), https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25000US1110-flatheadreservation/; Mission West Community Development Partners, Flathead Indian Reservation data page (ESRI data dated 2025-09-29),
https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/our-communities/p/v/data/item/1501/flathead-indian-reservation.
Figure 1. Flathead Reservation population by age group, 2025 estimate. Source: Mission West Community Development Partners / ESRI, data dated 202509-29.
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Figure 2. Flathead Reservation population by race/ethnicity, 2025 estimate. Source: Mission West Community Development Partners / ESRI, data dated
2025-09-29.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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SOCIOECONOMIC DATA
Reservation-level income, poverty, housing, education, and labor market indicators have been
refreshed below. The public sources cited here describe the whole Reservation population; they
do not isolate CSKT-enrolled members from nonmembers. Current tribal-member-specific
statistics should be verified using CSKT enrollment, Personnel, DHRD, Tribal Health, and other
internal program records or a new member survey.
PER CAPITA INCOME AND COST OF LIVING
The 2024 ACS five-year estimate reports Flathead Reservation per capita income of $33,327 and
median household income of $60,144, compared with $44,673 and $80,734 for the United
States. Mission West/ESRI estimates 2025 per capita income at $31,332 and 2025 median
household income at $58,628, with 2030 projections of $33,639 and $63,558, respectively.
Because ACS does not publish a local cost-of-living index in the profile used for this update,
housing value is included as a cost pressure indicator: the ACS median value of owner-occupied
housing units is $380,000, while Mission West/ESRI estimates a 2025 median home value of
$461,450.
Indicator
Flathead Reservation
Per capita income
$33,327 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Median household income
$60,144 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Median owner-occupied home
value
$380,000 (ACS 2024 5-year)
Persons below poverty line
18.6% / 5,896 people (ACS
2024 5-year)
Comparison / projection
$44,673 United States; $31,332
ESRI 2025; $33,639 ESRI 2030
$80,734 United States; $58,628
ESRI 2025; $63,558 ESRI 2030
$461,450 ESRI 2025; $489,561
ESRI 2030
Website citation
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
Census Reporter ACS 2024;
Mission West ESRI 2025
12.5% United States
Census Reporter ACS 2024
Sources: Census Reporter, Flathead Reservation profile (ACS 2024 five-year estimates), https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25000US1110-flatheadreservation/; Mission West Community Development Partners, Flathead Indian Reservation data page (ESRI data dated 2025-09-29),
https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/our-communities/p/v/data/item/1501/flathead-indian-reservation.
Figure 3. Income comparison using ACS 2024 five-year estimates. Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 via Census Reporter.
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POVERTY
The ACS 2024 five-year profile estimates that 18.6% of Flathead Reservation residents, or about 5,896 people, are below
the poverty line. This is about 1.5 times the national rate shown in the same profile. Earlier CSKT survey findings remain
useful as historical context, but the current Reservation-level poverty statistic should be cited from the ACS 2024 profile
unless a newer approved Tribal member survey is available.
Figure 4. Poverty and educational attainment comparison using ACS 2024 five-year estimates. Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 via Census Reporter.
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EDUCATION ATTAINMENT
The ACS 2024 five-year profile reports that 91.9% of Flathead Reservation residents age 25 and over have completed high
school or higher, and 28.3% have a bachelor’s degree or higher. Mission West/ESRI’s 2025 education counts provide
additional detail for residents age 25 and over, including 5,303 high school graduates, 4,770 residents with some college
and no degree, 3,542 residents with an associate's degree, 4,222 residents with a bachelor’s degree, and 2,150 residents
with a graduate degree.
Figure 5. Educational attainment for population age 25 and over, 2025 estimate. Source: Mission West Community Development Partners / ESRI, data
dated 2025-09-29.
Sources: Census Reporter, Flathead Reservation profile (ACS 2024 five-year estimates), https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25000US1110-flatheadreservation/; Mission West Community Development Partners, Flathead Indian Reservation data page (ESRI data dated 2025-09-29),
https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/our-communities/p/v/data/item/1501/flathead-indian-reservation.
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UNEMPLOYMENT RATE
The Montana Department of Labor & Industry 2024 Economic Overview of Flathead County includes a Flathead Reservation
labor force summary showing a labor force of 14,101, employment of 13,566, and an unemployment rate of 3.8%. This
figure is a current public labor-market measure for the reservation area and should replace the older ACS 2015-2019
unemployment figure in the general reservation-level narrative.
Figure 6. Flathead Reservation labor force status, 2024. Source: Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Economic Overview of Flathead County 2024.
LABOR FORCE CHARACTERISTICS
Mission West/ESRI estimates 1,494 total businesses and 12,536 total employed workers on the Flathead Indian Reservation
in 2025. The largest employment categories reported on the public data page are Public Administration, HealthCare/Social
Assistance, Retail Trade, Educational Services, Accommodation/Food Services, and Food Service/Drinking Places. These
figures are not directly comparable to ACS worker-class tables because they are employer/industry estimates from a
different source.
Indicator
Estimate
Year/source
Labor force
14,101
2024, Montana DLI profile
Employed
13,566
2024, Montana DLI profile
Unemployment rate
3.8%
2024, Montana DLI profile
Total businesses
Total employed
Workers 16+
1,494
12,536
12,307
2025, Mission West/ESRI
2025, Mission West/ESRI
2025, Mission West/ESRI
Website citation
MTDLI Economic Overview of
Flathead County 2024
MTDLI Economic Overview of
Flathead County 2024
MTDLI Economic Overview of
Flathead County 2024
Mission West ESRI 2025
Mission West ESRI 2025
Mission West ESRI 2025
Sources: Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Economic Overview of Flathead County 2024, https://lmi.mt.gov/_docs/Publications/LMIPubs/LocalAreaProfiles/Flathead_COP_2024.pdf; Mission West Community Development Partners, Flathead Indian Reservation data page (ESRI data
dated 2025-09-29), https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/our-communities/p/v/data/item/1501/flathead-indian-reservation.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Figure 7. Largest employment sectors on the Flathead Indian Reservation, 2025 estimate. Source: Mission West Community Development Partners / ESRI,
data dated 2025-09-29.
TRIBAL MEMBER-SPECIFIC DATA NOTE
The public websites cited above report reservation-wide estimates. They include Tribal members, members of other tribes,
nonmembers, and non-Indian residents living or working within the geographic area. Current CSKT member-specific
employment, income, training, and business-ownership statistics should be updated through CSKT administrative records
and/or a new Tribal member survey before final adoption if member-specific performance measures are needed.
Website source
https://censusreporter.org/profiles/25000US1110-flatheadreservation/
https://www.missionwestcdp.org/site-map/ourcommunities/p/v/data/item/1501/flathead-indian-reservation
https://lmi.mt.gov/_docs/Publications/LMIPubs/LocalAreaProfiles/Flathead_COP_2024.pdf
https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/data.html
PHYSICAL SETTING¹²
Use in this section
ACS 2024 five-year population, households, income, poverty,
housing, education, and U.S. comparisons.
ESRI 2025/2030 population, housing, income, age, race,
education, business, commute, and NAICS employment
estimates.
Montana Department of Labor & Industry 2024 Reservation labor
force, employed workers, and unemployment rate.
General ACS data source description and access tools.
Most of the Flathead Reservation is rural in character. However, because it is located in the
far western portion of Montana between the urban communities of Kalispell and Missoula,
the reservation has several small towns that are mostly located along U.S. Highway 93—the
principal travel artery that connects the reservation to Kalispell and Missoula.
Nestled within the Rocky Mountain Plateau, the reservation is roughly 60 miles long and 40
miles wide, and approximately 1,318,558 acres¹³ in size. The reservation comprises the lower
quarter of the Flathead River Basin and encompasses the south half of Flathead Lake and
the Lower Flathead River. The abundant waters in the Flathead Basin provide outstanding
recreation and hydropower opportunities.
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1
The majority of this section includes excerpts from the Flathead Reservation Comprehensive Resources Plan.
Tribal Geographical Information System database, April 2015.
3
Some Tribal Elders refer to the Lower Flathead River as the Q� lispé River. Its Salish name is Ntxwe.
2
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The spectacular Mission Mountains form the eastern boundary of the reservation and vary in
elevation from six thousand feet at their north end to ten thousand feet at McDonald Peak,
northeast of St. Ignatius. The Rattlesnake Mountains form the southeast boundary, and the
Reservation Divide (or Nine-Mile Range) defines the southwest boundary. The east edge of the
Cabinet Mountains forms the reservation's west boundary, and the north boundary extends west
from these mountains, across the middle of Flathead Lake, to the Mission Mountains.
The low-lying Salish Mountains stretch south from the north boundary to the central part of the
reservation. This range separates two north-south valleys. On the east side there is the Mission
Valley, and on the west, the more arid and sparsely populated Little Bitterroot River Valley. Other
principal valleys and basins include Camas Prairie, the Big Draw, and the Jocko Valley. The Lower
Flathead River and its tributaries drain them all.
Forests cover much of the mountains in the region. Wetlands and riparian areas are abundant in
many areas. The Mission Valley has hundreds of kettle lakes, or potholes, and an extensive
irrigation system to sustain agricultural productivity throughout the dry months. The Little
Bitterroot Valley is known for its geothermal groundwater.
CLIMATE
Because the western half of the reservation lies in the rain shadow of the Cabinet Mountains, it
receives less precipitation than the east half. (Camas Prairie is one of the driest areas in
Montana.) Mean annual precipitation in the valleys range from twelve inches on the west side to
sixteen inches or more in the east. About half of this falls as rain.
The mountains are considerably wetter. Annual precipitation in the Mission Mountains, for
example, reaches as much as one hundred inches, mostly in the form of snow. Typically, the lower
elevation mountains receive twenty to thirty inches.
A moist, maritime influence from the Pacific Ocean dominates the reservation area, especially
during winter months when low-lying clouds blanket the region. Precipitation falls on a fairly
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regular basis throughout the year, although May and June are about twice as wet as other
months.
The mean annual temperature in the valleys is approximately 45° F. Winter temperatures are
moderate. They average 27° F due to the sheltering effect of the Mission Mountains and the
Continental Divide. Warm, southern Chinook winds occasionally moderate these systems, as do
cold Arctic air masses that can drop temperatures to below -20° F for several days.
In July and August, when temperatures fluctuate from the high 70s to the low 100s in the valleys
(although 100° days are infrequent), a drier, continental climate dominates. The growing season
lasts approximately one hundred days and runs from May to September.
SOILS
Reservation soils were formed from residual materials or from materials deposited by glaciers,
streams, and wind. Wind deposits include volcanic ash from Washington and Oregon.
The soils of the southern Mission Valley are influenced by fine textures that inhibit the downward
movement, or percolation, of air and water. This makes development challenging in some areas.
The Pablo, Jocko, and Moiese areas, on the other hand, have sandy-gravelly soils that allow water
and air to move much more easily.
Soils in the Round Butte, Valley View, and Lonepine areas are dominated by silts and clays that
were deposited in standing water from the days of Glacial Lake Missoula, which covered a major
portion of the reservation after the last major ice age. They are formed in materials with layers,
or varves, that enable water to move horizontally more easily than vertically, until it reaches a
less restrictive soil zone. In many areas’ soils formed in glacial till and are generally loamy with
moderate to high quantities of boulders, cobbles, and gravel. Some areas have groundwater
levels near the land surface. Some soils have a high sodium and/or salt content, and others have
high iron content. These qualities can lead to higher development and water treatment costs,
which must be factored in when considering new development.
In most of the valleys, the soil is deep and the gradient often gently sloping, which makes these
areas more suitable for agriculture.
Mountain and foothill soils are steep and mostly well drained, with large amounts of broken rock.
Rock outcrops are a common occurrence.
MINERALS
Given the diversity of land formations and soil types on the reservation, topsoil, clay, sand, gravel,
and landscape rock are the materials that are currently mined on the reservation. Tribal Elders
are opposed to mining these materials in sensitive cultural areas, and the Tribes require that
cultural clearance be obtained prior to any ground-disturbing activities on the reservation.
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Historically, Tribal people used small amounts of stone and clay for building, hunting, fishing,
warfare, and domestic and religious purposes. Commercial development of mineral resources
started in the early 1900s. Since 1917, when construction of the irrigation reservoirs started, work
crews have mined sand and gravel for multiple projects, including road building. Builders have
removed small quantities of building stone and clay.
Pockets of precious metals have been located on the Reservation and following the opening of
the Reservation to non-Indian settlement in 1910, miners staked many claims and established a
few mining operations between 1910 and 1949 (Crowley 1963). These small-scale mines
produced modest quantities of gold, silver, and copper and are no longer active.
In the mid-1980s, several oil companies leased large tracts of land and explored gas and oil. This
activity subsided shortly thereafter, and oil companies now show little interest in further
exploration.
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
The Reservation enjoys a Class I Airshed rating, as well as outstanding water quality, both of
which are managed by the Tribes’ Environmental Protection programs with assistance from the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
A diverse variety of wildlife inhabits the Reservation. Over 300 species of birds occur either as
breeding birds or as seasonal or wintering migrants. In addition, the reservation provides habitat
for nearly 70 species of mammals and several species of amphibians and reptiles.
The variety of wildlife is largely a function of the diversity of habitats encompassed within the
reservation, which include semi-arid sagebrush/grasslands, lush wetlands, aquatic areas, riparian
zones, agricultural lands, forested mountains, and high-elevation tundra. Each provides habitable
niches that are occupied by several wildlife species.
The same is true for fisheries. More than 70 high mountain reservation lakes are ideal for trout
because of their clear, cold, and relatively pristine waters. The south half of Flathead Lake
supports trout, bass, whitefish, and perch. Many of the Reservations’ irrigation reservoirs support
bass and pike, as well as perch and trout. The reservation's 500-plus miles of rivers and streams
also support many fisheries and provide critical spawning sites for the Lower Flathead River’s
trout species.
LAND-BASED CULTURAL RESOURCES
Cultural resources are precious Tribal resources. They encompass the Tribes’ elders, languages,
cultural traditions, and cultural sites. They include fish, wildlife, and plants native to the region
and landforms and landmarks. Tribal elders and languages are perhaps the most vital of these
resources because they teach and communicate the histories and traditional lifestyles of the
Tribes. Traditions depend on land-based cultural resources, which include native fish and wildlife
and their habitats, edible and medicinal plants and the areas where they grow, and prehistoric
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and historical sites, and other land areas where Tribal members currently carry on cultural
traditions.
Hunting, fishing, plant harvesting, hide-tanning, food and medicine preparation, singing, dancing,
praying, feasting, storytelling, and ceremonies are examples of age-old traditions that rely on the
land and the community of life it supports.
Although each of the Tribes on the reservation possesses distinctive beliefs and practices, the
people share one important similarity: Tribal people value the Earth—its air, water, and land—as
the foundation of Indian culture.
In the words of the Salish/Q� lispé Culture Committee:
The Earth is our historian. It is made of our ancestors’ bones. It provides us with nourishment, medicine,
and comfort. It is the source of our independence; it is our Mother. We do not dominate Her but
harmonize with Her.
The Tribes believe everything in nature is embodied with a spirit. The spirits are woven tightly
together to form a sacred whole (the Earth). Changes, even subtle changes that affect one part
of this web, affect other parts.
Protecting land-based cultural resources is essential if the Tribes are to sustain Tribal cultures.
This is one of the most important goals of Tribal land and natural resource management on the
Reservation. It is also a goal that the Tribes have for Tribal aboriginal territories managed by other
entities.
CSKT has established a Tribal Preservation Office that records the locations of precious cultural
resource sites and maintains a repository of information related to cultural resources. The office,
in concert with the Salish/Q� lispé Culture Committee and the Kootenai Culture Committee, also
reviews all new development proposals on the reservation prior to and sometimes during ground
disturbance and development. The office also works with federal and other agencies in Tribal
aboriginal territory to identify and protect cultural resources.
LAND USE
The Tribes value many reservation areas as watersheds, fish and wildlife habitats, and cultural
sites. The CSKT has set aside nearly 92,000 acres of prime forest in the Mission Mountains as the
first tribally designated wilderness in the nation. Over 94,000 additional acres of “primitive areas”
have been set aside for use only by Tribal members and their spouses and children. Additional
roadless areas and wildlife management areas have also been designated. Land use is also limited
along the Flathead and Jocko Rivers, Post Creek and Crow Creek, and the Ninepipe Reservoir area
and in a buffer zone created to protect the Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness.
Thousands of acres remain for timber harvest, however, which must be conducted in an
environmentally safe manner in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act and
Tribal forest management plans. The Tribal Forestry Department generated approximately $1.2
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million in revenue from harvesting 9.4 million board feet of timber in 2020. The department
employs as many as 300 people, including 150-175 seasonal employees.
The Tribes recently purchased a major hydropower generation facility on the Lower Flathead
River. Officially known since 2015 as the Seli’š Ksanka Qlispe’ Dam, the project is the first major
hydropower facility owned by a Tribal Nation in the United States. CSKT also operates one smallscale facility in the foothills of the Mission Mountains.
The largest land use on the Reservation is agriculture. Vast rangelands provide grazing
opportunities for cattle growers, and the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project provides water for
crops and livestock across much of the reservation. 16 Other land uses include residential,
commercial, industrial, utility, and government/institutional development. The Tribal Lands
Department (TLD) manages nearly 2,000 home sites, business, agricultural, utility, and
transportation land leases and permits across the Reservation. The Department generated
$931,719 of revenue in Tribal Fiscal Year 2019.
Recreational areas that attract visitors to the reservation include the Mission Mountains Tribal
Wilderness (the first Tribally designated wilderness in the United States), Flathead Lake, the
National Bison Range, the Ninepipe and Pablo Wildlife Refuges, the Flathead River, and the Jocko
River. These and many other areas provide the setting for a variety of recreational activities,
particularly during the summer. Although recreational use is most frequent during the summer
months, winter activities such as cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, and ice fishing are also
popular.
Rivers, lakes, streams, and roadless areas, such as the Mission Mountains Tribal Wilderness,
receive the majority of recreation use on the reservation. Most of these resources are on Tribal
land. Recreation permits are required for people to recreate on Tribal lands if they are not
enrolled members of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. The Tribal Natural Resources
Department sells those permits and works with a few non-Tribal businesses to assist with permit
sales.
LAND OWNERSHIP
Tribal land ownership is fragmented, in part because of the Flathead Allotment Act that opened
the reservation to non-tribal homesteading in 1910. The Tribes have spent millions of dollars
since that time to purchase back hundreds of thousands of acres that were taken and now own
the majority of the land on the Reservation. Other land ownership includes the individually
owned trust parcels or allotments¹⁷ that are owned in whole or in part by the Tribes and/or
individual Native Americans. The federal government holds title to tribally owned trust lands.
4
5
CSKT owns roughly 400,000 acres of rangelands on the reservation.
The irrigation project serves nearly 180,000 acres on the Reservation (Littleboy, FIIP, 2010).
17 For purposes of this document, an allotment is a tract of Tribal land that, pursuant to the Flathead Allotment Act (33 Stat. 304), was removed
by the Secretary of the Interior from communal ownership and conveyed by trust deed to individual members of the tribes. Most, but not all,
allotments were created in 1908 and 1922. All allotments were assigned by the secretary with a unique number, which is of record with the
Bureau of Indian Affairs.
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and allotments on behalf of the owners. The remainder of reservation lands is held in federal,
state, or fee-simple ownership as depicted in the Land Status map on the following page. The
percentage of landownership is shown in the following table. With the transfer of the National
Bison Range back to Tribal ownership in 2021, federal land ownership will decrease significantly.
The range is the large purple area shown on the following map.
FLATHEAD RESERVATION LAND OWNERSHIP 2020
Tribally Owned
62.2%
Individually-Owned Trust
2.3%
Fee
31.0%
State
2.8%
Federal
1.7%
The Tribes have also purchased other lands in western Montana for the protection of cultural
sites and wildlife habitat.
For purposes of this document, fee land is land that is not in trust status, nor is it federally or state-owned or owned by the Tribes’ entire
membership. Some of the fee status land on the reservation, included in the table and on the following map, is owned by individual Tribal
members.
18
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INFRASTRUCTURE AND HOUSING
As noted in the Western Rural Development Region’s Comprehensive Economic Development
Strategy (CEDS) 2012-2017, "The rapid and sustained growth of the region has put a serious strain
on infrastructure, including transportation and public facilities, most notably as the growth
relates to public safety. Upgrades [are occurring to] … accommodate an increased volume of
traffic and make travel safe for pedestrians and non-motorized transport. In most cases,
upgrades to water and wastewater systems are needed to ensure a safe and ample water
supply…. [Finding the] funding to pay for the necessary upgrades and new facilities is a constant
struggle.”
Kicking Horse Water and Wastewater Lines Replacement Project – 2020
WATER/WASTEWATER
Water resources on the Flathead Reservation are extensive. They include both surface water and
ground water. Municipalities and developments depend on ground water for domestic use. Most
surface water is used to provide habitat for fisheries as well as irrigation.
CSKT, the State of Montana, and the United States have been working for decades to develop a
water rights settlement that quantifies the water rights of the Confederated Salish & Kootenai
Tribes on and off the Flathead Reservation and provides for the administration of water rights on
the Reservation. In 2015 the Montana Legislature passed the compact, and in December of 2020
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It was passed by the United States Congress and signed into law as the Montana Water Rights
Protection Act by the President. CSKT ratified the compact in January 2021.
Groundwater is the primary source for drinking water on the Reservation. While some residences
use creeks or Flathead Lake for their water supply, use of this water for drinking or bathing is not
encouraged, because surface waters can be contaminated by animals and other factors.
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes have collected water quality data for many
reservation surface waters and have established surface water quality standards that are more
stringent than state standards. Regarding groundwater, the reservation has seen elevated nitrate
levels in some areas, and all new drinking water wells are tested before use to ensure that they
meet safe drinking water standards. Community water systems are tested monthly for fecal
coliform contaminants, and on a regular basis for other potential contaminants, according to a
testing schedule required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The Flathead Reservation has multiple community water systems, and 27 systems are managed
by CSKT’s Salish Kootenai Housing Authority. Other systems are managed by private water user
organizations, the CSKT Maintenance Department, or the nine public sewer and/or water districts
incorporated under Lake or Sanders County.
Some of these systems, as well as most rural residences on the Reservation, use individual septic
tanks and drain fields for sewage disposal. CSKT and CSKT’s Housing Authority manage 12
community wastewater treatment systems, and there are 10 additional treatment systems on
the reservation. One is operated by the Tribal Maintenance Department, and the other nine are
operated by public sewer districts, including those operated by the reservation's four
incorporated towns of Polson, Ronan, St. Ignatius, and Hot Springs.
IRRIGATION WATER
The Bureau of Indian Affairs operates the Flathead Indian Irrigation Project (FIIP), the primary
surface water delivery system for agriculture on the Reservation. Originally designed to promote
economic development for the Tribes and individual Tribal members, it now serves many nonIndian farms as well as Tribal farms. Other surface water sources for agriculture are delivered
through small ditches and canals, many of which were developed for Tribal lands and allotments
before construction of the FIIP.
SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL
Lake County operates the only licensed county landfills on the reservation. One landfill is located
southwest of Polson and only takes compost (grass trimmings and leaves) and most construction
demolition materials. The other landfill is located between Polson and Pablo, next to the County
Transfer Station. It accepts tree trimmings and untreated wood waste only. The Transfer Station
next door is the central hub for the collection of other types of waste, such as municipal waste,
appliances, and recyclables.
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Reservation residents who live in the Lake County portion of the reservation either haul waste
directly to the Transfer Station, have their waste collected by Republic Services (a private waste
collection and disposal company), or use roll-off waste containers located near Charlo, Ravalli,
and Rollins. Residents of Sanders County who do not pay an annual solid waste fee to the county
can use a roll-off site near Hot Springs for a fee. Residents of the Sčilíp district of Sanders County
may dump their waste at the Charlo or Ravalli roll-off sites due to semi-annual fees paid to Lake
County. Missoula and Flathead Counties have no solid waste disposal facilities on the
Reservation; however, Republic Services serves the Missoula County portion of the Reservation.
All of the municipal waste generated on the Reservation is eventually hauled to the company’s
private landfill in Missoula.
The Lake County Transfer Station also accepts recyclables, including:
• newspaper
• cardboard
• Aluminium cans
• office paper • phonebooks
• assorted plastic scrap metal
• magazines & catalogs
• tin/steel cans
The county also has bins for some recyclables in Polson, at SKC in Pablo, and at Harvest Foods in
Ronan. The county hosts an annual “electronic” waste recycling weekend.
ELECTRICITY AND ENERGY
The Flathead Reservation is served by Mission Valley Power (MVP), a federally owned nonprofit
electric utility that is maintained by the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes pursuant to a
Public Law 93-638 contract. According to a 2011 article from the Char-Koosta News, Mission
Valley Power purchases 78% of its electricity from the Bonneville Power Administration. The …
[Selis Ksanka Qlispe (SKQ)] 19 Dam provides 21%, and one small hydroelectric-producing dam on
the Flathead Reservation and other small alternative energy producers account for the remaining
one percent.” MVP offers several energy conservation incentives. Electricity costs on the
reservation are some of the lowest in the United States due to the availability of hydropower
resources in the Northwest region of the United States and the subsidized block of power
provided by CSKT’s Energy Keepers, Inc., as authorized by the Tribal Council.
There are no natural gas companies on the reservation; however, propane and fuel oil are
available.
Small solar energy systems have been installed at a few residences and businesses.
19
Purchased by CSKT in September 2015.
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COMMUNICATION
Flathead Reservation communications services include internet, telephone, television, and radio.
BROADBAND INTERNET AND TELEPHONE
Several different telephone and wireless communications companies provide services on the
reservation. In recent years, telephone companies have been upgrading telephone lines to fiber
optics or microwave transmission. Ronan and Polson have access to relatively fast internet
speeds, but most of the remaining communities on the reservation have access to only moderate
speeds at higher costs. As reported in CSKT’s 2014 Job and Training Needs Survey, one-third of
Tribal members ages 18-60 lived in households where there was no working internet access. CSKT
has installed four new wireless communication towers and is in the process of installing micropops. Contact Chuck for an update on TCBP in various reservation communities to eventually
serve Tribal Law and Order mobile communication and Tribal member internet needs. This effort
will increase resiliency and improve the ability of Tribal employees, entrepreneurs, and students
to work and study from home during the pandemic and into the future.
TELEVISION
Some western Montana television stations cover the reservation. These stations are located in
Kalispell and Missoula. The Public Broadcasting System has two towers on the reservation (Jette
and Moiese Hill) and broadcasts from Bozeman, Montana.
RADIO
AM and FM radio stations in Missoula, Kalispell, Whitefish, and Polson cover the Reservation.
EMERGENCY SERVICES/SAFETY
FIRE PROTECTION
According to the Mission West Community Development Partners’ Comprehensive
Economic Development Strategy 2018–2022, “Lake County supports one fire department
per 1,844 people, with one fire department per 93 square miles," whereas Sanders
County oversees “one fire department per 713 people and one fire department per 172
square miles." Furthermore, “[w]ithin Lake County, there are [18] volunteer fire
protection districts (VFDs), supported primarily through taxes to provide fire protection
throughout the county. The CSKT Division of Fire also provides protection in wildland
areas” (2022, pg. 57). Meanwhile, Sanders County contains 16 fire departments, spread
from Sčilíp to Thompson Falls, Montana (pg. 59). “Most of the designated fire districts
have 12 to 15 volunteers; however, districts located in Polson and Ronan have
approximately 30 to 40 volunteers” (2022, pg. 58).
Moreover, “Additional support for volunteer fire organizations comes through grants
administered by the State Forester, mill levies, loans administered by USDA Rural Development,
and local fundraising efforts, including donations from the Confederated Salish and Kootenai
Tribes." All of the fire districts and the wildland fire protection agencies belong to the Lake County
Fire Association, which purchases joint insurance for the VFDs and reinvests the savings into the
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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local departments.” The county also has a “Fire Action Plan” that identifies fire-fighting resources
and lists contacts in the case of a fire. Most units are dispatched through the Lake County 911
office, although Arlee does receive some calls dispatched through Missoula, and Hot Springs [and
Sčilíp] are dispatched through Lake and Sanders Counties” (Mission West Community
Development, 2022, pg. 58). As funding permits, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes
have been assisting landowners to create “defensible space” around homes in the wildland-urban
interface to create safety against wildfires. “Firewise” design has saved thousands of homes from
destruction through recognizing “simple, effective steps to help communities reduce the risk of
destruction from wildfire” (National Fire Protection Association, n.d.).
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AMBULANCE
The Polson and Ronan Ambulance Services are privately-owned companies,
primarily serving Polson, Ronan, and Pablo, “offering 911 emergency responses, inter-facility
transfers, and arranged care." Their services “specialize in critical care, advanced life support, and
basic life support […] servicing hospitals, convalescents, physicians, fire departments, and
private/public events” transport (Polson & Ronan Ambulance, n.d.). The Mission Valley
Ambulance Service covers the St. Ignatius area, the Arlee Ambulance Service serves Arlee, and
the Hot Springs Ambulance covers Hot Springs and Camas Prairie. Missoula and Kalispell hospitals
offer life-flight air ambulance helicopter service for the reservation.
POLICE PROTECTION AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
The Tribal Police Department and jail, located in Pablo, maintain jurisdiction over
misdemeanor, juvenile, and felony offenses involving Tribal members. Summarized within the Mission
West Community Development Partners’ Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS)
2022–2027, “The CSKT Tribal Police respond to calls for service, investigate crimes, enforce traffic
laws, execute arrest warrants, serve process, provide court security, and conduct search and rescue
operations” (2022, pg. 56). The department has two investigators: one criminal investigator and two
narcotics investigators. The department has 20 full-time officers and 20 patrol cars, and it maintains a
separate dispatch center from the county. The Tribal jail has a capacity for 49 inmates, but Polson,
Ronan, and St. Ignatius also have contracts for additional jail space with Lake County. According to the
Tribal Police Department, as of December 2025, there are eight detention officers. The Tribal Juvenile
Probation Department has three juvenile probation officers and two adult probation officers. Juvenile
offenders are housed at facilities in Kalispell or Missoula. The counties, however, are included in
criminal jurisdiction alongside CSKT law enforcement due to Public Law 280, which gives the state of
Montana more direct authority than federal authorities. According to the CEDS report, “CSKT is the
only tribe in Montana that has authorized Public Law 280” (2022, pg. 56).
The Tribal Fish and Game Conservation Program enforces regulations governing fish,
wildlife, and recreation on the Reservation. The program employs ten full-time game wardens, who
are largely stationed at the Bison Range but regularly monitor all corners of the reservation. The game
wardens also have a cross-deputization agreement with Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks (Dan
McClure e-mail correspondence, 12-07-25).
The Lake County Sheriff’s Department is made up of the sheriff, undersheriff, detention
captain, patrol lieutenant, detention sergeants, patrol sergeants, and support staff. As of December
2025, the department employs a total of 46 staff members, including three school resource officers,
one domestic violence investigator, 24 officers, 20 detention and jail personnel, and two civilian staff
in administration. Funding for the department comes from various sources, such as mill levies and
grants.
Additionally, the Sheriff’s Office operates a boat patrol funded through a mill levy, along
with two volunteer search and rescue groups: one in Lake County (40 members) and one offCSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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reservation in Swan Valley (14 – 16 members). The current ratio of paid officers to the population is
about 1:1,200, which is below the national average of 1:1000. Calls for Polson, Ronan, and St. Ignatius
are routed through the Lake County 911 center.
The county or state has jurisdiction in the unincorporated areas for felony crimes and
non-tribal misdemeanors. Patrol units are dispatched via the Lake County 911 center, overseen by the
county’s Office of Emergency Management, and calls for Polson, Ronan, and St. Ignatius are also
routed through the same call center. According to the CED, law enforcement and detention facilities
are the costliest items in the Lake County budget, and they "are funded by the county’s general fund,
along with mill levy funds that have increased the budget by 5% and account for approximately 30% of
that fund." The Lake County jail was built in 1975 and underwent an upgrade and expansion in 2000 to
accommodate up to 42 adult inmates and two juveniles” (2022, pg. 56). Juveniles are detained for no
more than 24 hours.
The Polson Police Department employs 15 full-time officers, one reserve police chaplain,
and one civilian police clerk/crime scene technician (Chief George Simpson e-mail correspondence, 1210-25). Ronan has a Chief of Police, five officers, a K9, a special service officer, and a reserve officer
(City of Ronan, n.d.). St. Ignatius has two full-time officers, one part-time officer, two reserve officers,
and four active patrol units (Chief Jason Acheson e-mail correspondence, 12-10-25).
The Montana State Highway Patrol enforces regulations on state highways and has
an office in Polson, staffed by seven officers between Polson and Ronan and a total of 25 officers
in the Region 6 district. Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks and the U.S. Forest Service provide
wardens and law enforcement officers who enforce regulations on non-Tribal/public lands.
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DISASTER SERVICES
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes’ Disaster and Emergency Services (DES)
Program collaborates with county, state, and federal authorities to support Reservation
residents during natural or man-made disasters. CSKT’s 2017 Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan
states that “historically, CSKT residents have dealt with floods, wildfire, harsh winter
storms with extreme cold and blizzards, severe summer storms with damaging
thunderstorms, drought, and hazardous material incidents [spills]." " While most hazards
cannot be eliminated, their effects can be mitigated” (CSKT-Disaster Services, 2016, p. 11). The plan profiles significant hazards to the community, identifying mitigation projects
that can reduce those impacts and minimize potential damage. In 2022 to 2023, CSKT
built off of the 2016 and 2017 Hazard Mitigation Plans and authored Annex D of the
Western MT Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan, which was facilitated by Montana Disaster
and Emergency Services (“MT DES”) and approved by FEMA in 2025 as the recognized
Hazard Mitigation Plan in effect until 2029. The updated plan strengthens collaboration
across jurisdictions while taking greater consideration of climate changes in regional
natural hazards and how to better prepare resilient communities to adapt to the “new
normal" (CSKT-Disaster Services, 2024).
CSKT also has a 2010 Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) that designates “disaster responsibilities
to Tribal personnel in the mitigation of, preparation for, response to, and recovery from natural
and/or man-made disasters. The EOP applies to all Tribal government departments and agencies
tasked with assisting in disasters or emergencies. It outlines the fundamental policies, strategies,
and general procedures to control the emergency from its onset through the post-disaster
phase.” The EOP typically differentiates from hazard-specific emergencies, like wildfire, to
functional emergencies, such as setting up an evacuation shelter, and each individualized plan
identifies in advance, where possible, the respective authorities who can best fulfill officer roles
and duties within an Incident Command System (ICS) structure. The EOP further “defines disasterspecific procedures and describes the range of Tribal response, recovery, and mitigation
resources available to save lives, reduce human suffering, and protect public health, safety,
property, wildlife, natural resources, the environment, and the local economy from the harmful
effects of natural and man-made disaster emergencies.” Ultimately, “The CSKT EOP addresses
the full scope of complex and ever-changing requirements needed in anticipation of or response
to threats or acts of terrorism, major disasters, and other emergencies” while recognizing the key
players, critical timelines, and crucial resources (i.e., mutual aid) significant to response and
recovery efforts (CSKT-Disaster Services, 2010, p. 1). The 2026 EOP is under review for updates
and is projected to be approved by Tribal Council before being republished in early summer 2026
online via the Natural Resources Department’s website, under the Division of Environmental
Protection.
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HEALTH SERVICES
Two major hospitals, St. Luke Community Hospital in Ronan and St. Joseph Hospital in Polson,
offer emergency, outpatient, and inpatient services on the Reservation. Private clinics are also
found in these two towns, as well as in Hot Springs and St. Ignatius. Dental clinics are located in
Polson, Ronan, and St. Ignatius. The Tribal Health Department (THD) operates medical clinics for
Native American patients in St. Ignatius, Ronan, Polson, and Elmo and recently opened a new
clinic in Pablo at Salish Kootenai College to serve college students and staff. The THD provides
dental and optical services at the clinics in St. Ignatius and Polson. Over the past decade, the
Tribal Health Department has created 70 jobs, and expenditures for Indian healthcare exceed
$10 million annually, excluding Medicaid or private insurance payments. THD’s annual payroll is
$9 million (Johnathan Owens interview, 1-6-21). The Tribal Health Department employs 248
individuals, including 158 CSKT members, 18 members of other tribes, 7 CSKT 1st descendants,
and 65 nonmembers.
TRANSPORTATION
ROADS
Nearly 4,197 miles (6,754 km) of Tribal, BIA, other Federal, state, city, and county roads exist on the Flathead
Reservation, including 1,870 miles of roadway open to public use:
• Tribal Forest Roads—2,580 miles (4,152 km), of which approximately 33,340 miles (53 km) are on the Indian
Reservation Road System [IRR] (2017 National Tribal Transportation Facilities Inventory [NTTFI])
• Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Roads 21 – 372.5 328 miles (600 km) – all of which are on the IRR NTTFI
• National Highway System (U.S. Highway 93) -- 89 miles (143 km)
20
Indian Reservation Roads (IRR) are defined as "public roads, including roads on the Federal-Aid System, that are located within, or provide
access to, an Indian reservation or Indian trust land..." (23 U.S.C. 101[a]). There are approximately 1,650 miles (2,655 km) of Flathead Reservation
roads on the IRR; most of the remaining road mileage consists of private roads.
21 The BIA Road System “includes all public roads within the official BIA inventory database for which approval has been obtained by the assistant
Secretary or his designee. These roads must have public right-of-way before expenditure of Highway Trust Funds (HTF) on construction projects.”
(57 BIAM 1.3B [1]). The BIA system serves both residential areas and forested areas. Forest roads provide access for timber sales, recreation, fire
control, and cultural activities. The BIA system cannot include single-purpose roads, such as a road that solely serves a utility facility or agricultural
land, i.e., administrative roads.
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• State Road System—165 miles (266 km) of State roads are in two categories: 99 miles (159 km) of state primary
highways (Highways 35 and 200) and 66 miles (106 km) of state secondary highways.
• City Streets—70.5 miles (113 km) of city streets are in the incorporated towns of Polson, Ronan, St. Ignatius, and
Hot Springs.
• County Road System—Approximately 920 miles (1,481 km) are county roads:
• 685 miles (1,102 km) in Lake County
• 202 miles (325 km) in Sanders County
• 17 miles (27 km) in Flathead County
• 16 miles (26 km) in Missoula County
BICYCLE/PEDESTRIAN PATHS
In addition to pedestrian sidewalks that have been built in many reservation communities, the
Tribes, cities, counties, the Montana Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway
Administration have built several bicycle/pedestrian pathways on the reservation. These
pathways occur in the following locations:
• Along Highway 35, south of Flathead Lake
• In Polson, Pablo, Ronan, and St. Ignatius
• Along U.S. Highway 93 from Big Arm to Big Arm State Park, from Polson to Ronan, and
from Arlee south to Coldwater Lane
• Along a portion of Round Butte Road west of Ronan
Several new projects are scheduled for the next five years. These are listed in the Action Plan
section of this document.
AIRPORTS
Four public airports exist on the reservation near Polson, Ronan, St. Ignatius, and Hot Springs.
The following data is from the 2020 Montana Airport Directory:
Hot Springs. This Sanders County-owned airport is located east of Hot Springs, at an
elevation of 2,763 feet. Its asphalt runway is 3,880 feet by fifty feet. It has a lighted
beacon, and there are no fuel or repair services available.
Polson. Located across the Lower Flathead River from downtown Polson, this city/Lake
County-owned airport occurs at an elevation of 2,936 feet. Its asphalt runway is forty-two
hundred feet by seventy-five feet, and part of the runway exists on tribally owned land. It
has a lighted beacon, and 100LL and Jet A fuels are available, as are major repair services.
Ronan. Located north of Ronan, this town-of-Ronan/Lake County-owned airport lies at an
elevation of 3,089 feet. Its asphalt runway is forty-eight hundred feet by seventy-five feet.
It has a lighted beacon and 100LL and Jet A fuel available. Tribal Fire Control is located
next to this airport and utilizes it for fire suppression aircraft. Agricultural aerial spraying
services also utilize this airport.
St. Ignatius. This Lake County-owned airport is also owned by the Town of St. Ignatius. At
an elevation of 3,006 feet, its asphalt runway is 2,610 feet by sixty feet. It also has a
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lighted beacon. 100LL of fuel and repair services are available.
There are no major commercial airlines or air freight services on the reservation.
Air ambulance helicopters provide life-flight services to Missoula and Kalispell.
hospitals in Polson and Ronan and make emergency landings nearly everywhere.
They serve
The Tribes also use helicopters to monitor and manage natural resources and to conduct fire
reconnaissance and suppression and maintain a heliport at Ronan for these purposes.
RAIL
In 1883 the Northern Pacific Company built a railroad across the south end of the reservation.
They completed a spur line from Sčilíp to Polson in the early 1900s.
Today, Montana Rail Link owns both lines. They use the main line approximately three days a
week for hauling inter- and intrastate freight. They have not used the spur line to Polson since
2012. The spur line from south of Polson to Polson has been converted to a bicycle/pedestrian
path.
Source: www.mdt.mt.gov/travelinfo/docs/railmap.pdf
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TAXI CABS
There are three taxicab services on the reservation. These are Annie’s Taxi, a tribal-memberowned company in Polson; Polson Taxi Service; and South Lake Taxi, also located in Polson.
TRIBAL TRANSIT
The CSKT Transit Program provides low-cost bus transportation for Reservation residents and
employees throughout the Reservation and to Missoula, Montana. CSKT Transit has several
regularly scheduled routes and drop-off/pick-up points. The Transit Program also provides
individualized transportation if requested at least 24 hours in advance for on-reservation
transport and 48 hours in advance for off-reservation transportation.
PHOTO BY CORKY SIAS, DHRD TRANSPORTATION MANAGER
EDUCATIONAL FACILITIES
Education is a key factor for the economic well-being of Tribal members, and for creating a strong
workforce.
CSKT operates multiple educational programs and schools to promote knowledge about Tribal
culture, incentives for education, and opportunities for employment. These programs include:
• Early Childhood Services (Early Head Start and Head Start)
• Nk ʷusm (a Salish language immersion school)
• Two Eagle River High School (which also includes 8th grade)
• Salish Kootenai College
In addition, the Tribal Education Program provides college scholarships and works with Tribal
and non-Tribal Reservation schools and Indian Parent Committees to encourage high school
graduation and post-secondary education. Monetary incentives are provided to Tribal middle
school and high school students for good attendance and grades.
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Public schools are in 10 Reservation Communities, including
• Arlee – Elementary, Middle, and High School
• Charlo – Elementary, Middle, and High School
• Dayton – Elementary School
• Sčilíp – Elementary School
• Hot Springs – Elementary, Middle, and High Schools
• Pablo—Elementary School, Two Eagle River School
• Polson – Elementary, Middle, and High Schools
• Ronan – Elementary, Middle, and High School
• St. Ignatius – Elementary, Middle, and High School
• Valley View – Elementary School
Private schools include the following:
• Glacier View School – located between Ronan and Pablo, off of Highway 93
• Mission Valley Christian Academy – east of Polson, on Highway 35
• Mountain Heights Mennonite School in Ronan
HOUSING
According to the Western Rural Development Region CEDS (2020), “more than 75% of all housing
units in Lake County [much of which lies within the Reservation] are single-family, detached
[homes], and the majority of homes (63.9 percent) have been constructed since 1970. Just over
74% of the housing stock is occupied, and of the occupied housing, one-third is renter-occupied,
and two-thirds are owner-occupied. However, these numbers do not reflect occupancy of
seasonal homes, the majority of which are located in the Swan Valley [off reservation] and
Flathead Lake areas. When the seasonal homes were not counted as vacant, Lake County had a
5.4% vacancy rate in 2010.
With a recent influx of out-of-state residents buying up homes and property on the reservation
due to the pandemic and forest fires in California and Colorado, this vacancy rate has closed, and
many renters have been displaced as the homes they were renting have been sold. Housing
values have escalated while wages only slightly increased. The average Reservation family
struggles to find affordable housing.
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes established the Salish and Kootenai Housing
Authority in 1963. According to the Housing Authority’s website (1-2021), “The Housing Authority
is managed by a seven-member Board of Commissioners that meets twice a month. Each
commissioner is appointed by the Tribal Council and serves a staggered four-year term. The
commissioners employ an executive director, who has oversight of six different departments….”
“Nearly 700 units are under management, which include rental, homeownership, 50 units of
tenant-based assistance, and an 80-lot trailer park.”
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Fortunately, most of these units have rent based on the individual’s or family’s income.
However, estimates from several Tribal programs indicate that there could be as many as 200
Tribal individuals and families who have housing insecurities.
In 2020, CSKT created a Homelessness Task Force, which created 14 permanent, supportive
housing units and purchased 7 manufactured 3- and 4-bedroom homes, 9 homes east of Pablo,
and several duplexes in various locations to begin to address the homelessness problem.
Temporary housing in Polson and new supportive housing in Ronan for families and those leaving foster
care and the tiny homes project. The task force is developing a long-range homelessness response
plan.
Additional information can be found in section 2.8.3.3.
EXISTING TRIBAL BUSINESSES AND REVENUE-PRODUCING PROGRAMS
TRIBAL ENTERPRISES
The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes own the following six parent corporations. Each is
governed by a Board of Directors who report to the Shareholder (the Tribal membership), who
are represented by the Tribal Council.
S & K ELECTRONICS, INC.
S & K Electronics (SKE) is a high-tech manufacturing company located in Pablo. SKE is CSKT’s oldest Tribally
chartered corporation; it has been in business since the mid-1980s. SKE is a state-of-the-art contract
manufacturer producing printed circuit board assemblies, custom cables and wirelesses, and electromechanical
systems assemblies. SKE's customer base is major defense contractors, and items for land, sea, and air are
produced. SKE is deemed essential to the warfighter and always strives for 100% quality and 100% on-time
delivery. The SKE charter is for long-term sustained employment for the Flathead Reservation. Continued
capital investment in equipment and facilities along with ongoing employee investment and education has led
to the doubling of shipments in the past three years and continued growth into the future.
S & K BUSINESS SERVICES, INC. (FORMERLY S & K HOLDING COMPANY, INC.)
S & K Business Services, Inc. (formerly named S & K Holding Company, Inc.) was Tribally chartered in 1992 and
recently reorganized under the name of S & K Business Services. The company manages Boulder Hydro, a smallscale hydroelectric facility located on Tribal property northeast of Polson, as well as S & K Self-Storage in Pablo,
which earns revenue to support the corporation. S&K Business Services has one subsidiary company, Sovereign
Leasing and Financing, Inc., which manages equipment and vehicle leases for Tribal programs and private, Tribal
member-owned businesses. The company offices are located north of Pablo, where entrepreneurs can receive
assistance with business planning, marketing, and financial management. In addition to business support
services, S & K Business Services manages one Economic Development Administration (EDA) grant for CSKT. The
company employs 1 CSKT Tribal member, 1 CSKT first-generation descendant, and one member of the OtoeMissouria Tribe.
S & K TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
S & K Technologies, Inc. (SKT), is a federally chartered Section 17 corporation. Headquartered in St. Ignatius,
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Montana, SKT oversees and manages nine wholly owned limited liability companies (LLCs) for the benefit of its
single shareholder, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. These award-winning LLCs employ over 1,000
people at several offices across the United States.
States and locations abroad. SKT provides a broad range of services in the fields of aerospace, information
technology, engineering, security, construction, and other professional support services to both federal and
commercial clients.
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EAGLE BANK/S&K BANCORP
Eagle Bank was state-chartered in 2006 and is truly a “community-owned bank,” as it is owned by the CSKT
membership. It is one of only 18 banks nationwide that are owned by Native American tribes. Its holding
company, S & K Bancorp, is organized under Section 17 of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. The bank is
regulated by the State of Montana Division of Financial Institutions and the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation. S & K Bancorp is regulated by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. Eagle Bank
continues to grow conservatively, with assets totaling over $194 million. As of January 2025, the bank services
1,705 deposit accounts totaling $174.2 million and 668 loan accounts totaling $90.1 million. The bank has 18
full-time employees and 1 part-time employee, including 2 CSKT Tribal members, 3 CSKT descendants, and 3
members of other Native American Tribes. Eagle Bank is located in Polson and has a total of 7 ATMs in the
Mission Valley, located in Evaro (Grey Wolf Peak Casino), St. Ignatius, Pablo (Tribal Complex & SKC), and
KwaTaqNuk Resort in Polson.
S & K GAMING, LLC
S & K Gaming, LLC, operates three properties—the KwaTaqNuk Resort and Casino in Polson, Gray Wolf Peak
Casino north of Evaro, and the Big Arm Resort Casino in Big Arm, Montana. Gaming employs up to 185 people
during the peak summer season. KwaTaqNuk is a 108-room hotel located on the southern tip of Flathead Lake.
It has a restaurant, lounge, patio bar, 12 suites, an indoor swimming pool, a marina, and meeting and banquet
facilities that can accommodate more than 250 people. The gaming operation consists of 219 Class II gaming
machines. KwaTaqNuk also manages a second marina in Polson, which includes several RV slips and a dump
station. Big Arm Resort operates 37 Class II gaming machines, a marina, 30 full-service RV hook-ups, 20 cabin
spaces, a restaurant, and a boating fuel station. Gray Wolf Peak Casino has 345 Class II machines, a gas station,
golf simulators, and a sports bar and grill.
ENERGY KEEPERS, INC.
Energy Keepers, Inc. (EKI), a section 17 federally chartered, diversified energy company, is a
fundamental component of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes' (CSKT) Tribal Economic
Development Strategy. Serving as co-licensee and operator of the 208-megawatt Selis Ksanka
Qlispe Hydroelectric Project, EKI engages in the marketing and trading of electricity and natural
gas across U.S. markets. Over its inaugural decade, EKI has remitted in excess of $250 million to
CSKT. Going forward, the strategy for fortifying returns involves sustained reinvestment aimed at
modernizing and expanding core assets, expanding market access, and strengthening financial
capacity. This reinvestment is anticipated to drive company growth, resulting in a broadened
asset base and expanded marketing and trading presence throughout the North American energy
markets.
2.5.1.7 SQK Quality Meats Inc.
SQK Quality Meats, Inc., is a new Tribal meat processing and composting facility for processing beef,
pork, bison, and other wild game products. The company is a federally chartered Section 17
corporation with six employees. This corporation is working with the Tribal Food Sovereignty Program
and other programs to promote food security on the Reservation. It will assist Tribal livestock
producers with revenue generation by offering certified USDA products.
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2.5.1.8 Fish Keepers
Fish Keepers is a Tribal nonprofit company.
TRIBAL AFFILIATES
Tribal affiliates work in conjunction with the Tribal corporations and other Tribal government
programs to provide education, workforce training, and infrastructure to support the Tribal
membership. These affiliates include Salish Kootenai College, the Salish and Kootenai Housing
Authority (previously described under section 2.4.10), and Mission Valley Power (see section
2.4.4).
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TRIBAL GOVERNMENT REVENUE-PRODUCING PROGRAMS
TRIBAL CREDIT PROGRAM
The Tribal Credit Program was established in 1936. Its mission is to “improve the social and
economic condition of [the] CSKT membership by providing sound, equitable, and accessible
loans through a sustainable revolving loan program.” The program provides mortgage loans for
housing as well as business and agricultural loans for up to $400,000, education loans,
Short-term loans and loans to CSKT enterprises are also available. As of December 2020, Tribal
Credit has over $7.4 million in short-term loans, $1.75 million in education loans, and nearly
$37.8 million in long-term loans in its portfolio. (Pete White, Tribal Credit Manager, 2-4-21).
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE—The Bison on Flathead Lake
In addition to managing several grant programs and completing feasibility studies for CSKT, the
Tribal Economic Development Office manages a rental property on Flathead Lake that generates
a profit for the Tribes.
TRIBAL LANDS DEPARTMENT
As mentioned previously, the Tribal Lands Department (TLD) manages nearly 2,000 home sites,
business, agricultural, utility, and transportation land leases and permits across the Reservation.
TLD also provides probate, title plant, appraisal, agricultural, and other real estate services for
CSKT and individually owned Indian trust property owners. The Department generated $931,719
of lease and permit revenue in Tribal fiscal year 2019.
TRIBAL FORESTRY DEPARTMENT
The Tribal Forestry Department generated approximately $1.2 million in revenue from harvesting
9.4 million board feet of timber in 2020. Tribal Forestry also manages greenhouses in Ronan and
Pablo, providing trees, shrubs, sedges, and grasses for Tribal as well as non-tribal land restoration
projects. The department employs as many as 300 people, including 150-175 seasonal
employees.
NATURAL RESOURCES DEPARTMENT
The Natural Resources Department (NRD) manages the Tribal Bison Range in Moiese, Blue Bay
Campground on Flathead Lake, several wilderness trails and campsites, and two urban parks. The
department also collects revenue from Tribal recreation permits.
TRIBAL PRESERVATION DEPARTMENT
The Tribal Preservation Department functions as a historic preservation office and reviews
proposed development projects for potential impacts to cultural resources on the reservation
and in aboriginal territories. The department charges fees for this review and negotiates.
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contracts with the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies to conduct cultural resource surveys on
federal and other lands.
TRIBAL EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
The Tribal Education Department manages CSKT’s Three Chiefs Culture Center and Gift Shop
north of Pablo. The Center is one of two Tribally owned repositories for Tribal artifacts.
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
In addition to managing human resource development programs, the Department of Human
Resource Development (DHRD) manages the Tribal Transit Program. DHRD also manages the
Quick Silver Express II gas station and convenience store in Pablo, which provides customer
service and other training opportunities for Tribal members in entry-level jobs. When the
business makes a profit, the funds are used as matching funds for transit program grants. Since
opening in 2007, Quick Silver Express II has provided multiple full-time jobs, training cashiers and
gas attendants in retail service.
EXISTING TRIBAL JOB TRAINING PROGRAMS
The following programs provide workforce training opportunities on the Flathead Reservation.
Each of these programs is described in greater detail in the attached Workforce Training Directory
(see Appendices).
DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (DHRD)
The Tribal Department of Human Resource Development operates several programs that provide
training and work experience.
PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT INDIAN PREFERENCE OFFICE
The Personnel Department’s Indian Preference Office provides CPR and 1st Aid training and Road
Construction Flagger Training, usually every spring, before construction season begins.
SALISH KOOTENAI COLLEGE
Salish Kootenai College (SKC) offers programs that can meet the training needs of many Tribal
members to qualify them for some of the professions that show the most potential for growth in
the region. A partial list of degree and certification programs follows, and a brief description of
each of the certificates and degrees offered is included on the SKC website. Contact SKC regarding
these and any new training opportunities.
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Salish Kootenai College Educational Programs
WORKFORCE CERTIFICATIONS and SHORT-TERM TRAINING
Bookkeeping and Payroll
Computer Applications
Digital Fabrication
Emergency Medical Technician
Geospatial Science (GIS)
Grant Projects Operations
Flagging
Phlebotomy
Unmanned Aircraft Systems (Drones)
Construction Trades
Bookkeeping and Payroll
General Studies
Highway Construction Training
Medical Billing and Coding
Business Management
Early Childhood Education
Fine Arts
Grant Projects Management
Information Technology
Mathematical Science
Tribal Historic Preservation
Business Administration
Elementary Education
Information Technology
Psychology
Social Work
Wildlife and Fisheries
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION: 1-YEAR PROGRAMS
Dental Assisting Technology
Emergency Services
Grant Projects Management
Health Science Studies
Hospitality Operations
Medical Assisting Technology
Medical Office Assistant
Office Assistant
ASSOCIATE DEGREES: 2-YEAR PROGRAMS
Digital Design Technology
Chemical Dependency Counseling
Early Childhood Education P:3
Elementary Education
Forestry
General Science
Health Promotion Practices
Hydrology
Liberal Arts
Native Language Teacher Education
Psychology
Tribal Governance and Administration
Wildlife and Fisheries
BACHELOR’S DEGREES: 4-YEAR
PROGRAMS
Early Childhood Education
Forestry
Life Sciences
Nursing
Tribal Historic Preservation
Early Childhood Education P:3
Hydrology
Secondary Education – Mathematics
Secondary Education - Science
Tribal Governance and Administration
GRADUATE DEGREES: MASTER’S
Natural Resources Management
RESOURCES THAT CAN PROVIDE SUPPORT TO TRIBAL MEMBER BUSINESS
OWNERS
Several resources for Tribal member business owners and prospective entrepreneurs are
available, including grant and loan opportunities and technical assistance opportunities. A few of
the Tribal programs that provide services are described here.
S&K BUSINESS SERVICES
S&K Business Services (formerly known as S&K Holding) provides business support services to
Tribal entrepreneurs, including technical assistance with business plan development and grant
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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applications; access to a computer, copy machine, fax machine, and conference room; office,
warehouse, and storage unit space for rent; and referrals to vendors and appropriate
government or other regulatory agencies. Their affiliate corporation, Sovereign Leasing and
Financing, Inc. (SLF), offers leasing options for business equipment and vehicles.
CSKT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OFFICE
CSKT’s Economic Development Office (EDO) has managed a small business grant program since
2010, assisting 63 Tribal member-owned businesses with capital for business start-up or
expansion, equipment, supplies, insurance, rent, and other operating costs. The Office also
provides some technical assistance for business owners and served on the review committee for
Montana’s Indian Equity Fund program, which provides three or more additional grants per year
for CSKT members living on and owning businesses on the Flathead Reservation. In 2020, utilizing
CARES Act funding, the Office worked with S&K Business Services to award 110 grants to Tribal
businesses that were struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The EDO has created a mailing list of Tribal member business owners for notification of upcoming
meetings, grants, and training opportunities. EDO works with SKBS to provide multiple free
training workshops for Tribal entrepreneurs and prospective entrepreneurs to discuss Tribal
procurement, Indian preference, and other policies and issues, as well as to provide information
about grants and loans for small businesses and business basics, bookkeeping basics, personal
finance, QuickBooks, and social media marketing workshops. In 2021, the EDO hosted tourism
and Native American Made in Montana workshops. EDO’s Economic Development Director is a
member of the Montana Economic Developers Association.
CSKT INDIAN PREFERENCE OFFICE.
The Tribes’ Indian Preference Office is part of the Personnel Department, and it maintains a list
of Tribal member-owned businesses that are certified as Indian Preference businesses. This
“Business Listing” is published on CSKT’s website, www.cskt.org , at the Employment tab. All
Tribal entities are required to use this listing when procuring services. Tribal member business
owners are encouraged to register with the Indian Preference Office.
SALISH KOOTENAI COLLEGE (SKC)
SKC offers two-degree programs in business management:
• Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration
• Associate of arts degree in business management
The programs are designed to provide students with essential business skills and the knowledge
needed to start and operate a successful business, including the development of business and
marketing plans, management techniques, and accounting practices.
TRIBAL CREDIT PROGRAM
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Tribal Credit offers loans to members under two categories for business operation: farm/ranch
loans and business loans. (Under their policy, farm/ranch loans do not technically qualify as
business loans.)
Farm/ranch loans may be approved at up to 5% interest for:
•
•
•
Purchase of cattle or other livestock
Farm operation
Purchase of equipment
Business loans may be approved at up to 5% interest for:
•
•
•
•
Purchase or construction of a business facility
Purchase of a business
Business operating capital
Purchase of equipment
ECONOMIC TRENDS, RELATIONSHIP TO THE OUTSIDE ECONOMY, AND
OTHER ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE FACTORS
EMERGING OR DECLINING INDUSTRY SECTORS
The Flathead Indian Reservation has a fair mix of industries. Exiting the recent downturn in the
economy, the reservation is seeing strong growth in a variety of industries such as construction.
During the period ranging from January 1, 2020, to January 1, 2021, the Job Service Polson
database showed that 1,399 jobs were available in the county, which includes a significant
portion of the Flathead Reservation. There were other jobs available that were not posted in this
database and were not quantifiable here. Health care careers and positions for drivers continue
to lead the job opportunities. (Please note that while it is extremely difficult to provide complete
quantitative data about the number of jobs in each field, the following shows a breakdown by
keywords. This is not a scientific survey; however, the former Director of Job Service Polson,
Project Partner Debra Krantz, believes this is representative of the types of jobs they are seeing
locally.
Keyword
# of postings
driver
49
nurse
RN
Keyword
# of postings
CDL
6
43
C.N.A.
11
24
health
97
home health
53
caregiver
43
retail
42
clerk
5
cashier
14
clerical
5
receptionist
10
administrative assistant.
22
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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sales
cook
32
12
food
server
20
1
food service
17
housekeeping
14
day care
0
teacher
10
teller
2
finance
11
accountant
62
bookkeeper
2
HVAC
3
production
58
laborer
15
construction
12
farm
8
automotive
6
mechanic
10
machinist
0
manager
96
supervisor
25
computer
42
information technology
38
When looking at all of western Montana, the following table shows 32 occupations where there
have been over 30 annual job openings and at least 1% annual growth. This table also lists the
average annual wage for those occupations and highlights those occupations that most
interested unemployed Tribal members, according to CSKT’s 2014 Job and Training Needs Survey.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Western Montana Labor Market:
30+ Annual Openings and Growth of At Least 1% Per Year
Occupation
1. Personal Care, Child Care, Fitness Instructor, Recreation
2. Computer and Mathematical Occupations (Computer and Info Sci)
3. Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
4. Health Technologists and Technicians
5. Food and Beverage Serving Workers
6. Supervisors of Food Preparation and Serving Workers
7. Woodworkers (cabinet makers or finish carpenters)
8. Financial Specialists
9. Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing
10. Information and Record Clerks
11. Health-Treating Practitioners (Registered Nurse)
12. Restaurant Hosts and Hostesses, Dishwashers
13. Counselors, Social Workers, and Other
14. Grounds Maintenance Workers
15. Medical Assistant, Dental Assistant, Medical Equipment Preparer,
Veterinary Assistant, etc.
16. Construction Trades Workers
17. Financial Clerks
18. Building Cleaning and Pest Control Workers
19. Motor Vehicle Operators
20. Cooks and Food Preparation Workers (Culinary Arts)
21. Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
22. Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers
23. HVAC Mechanic, Machinery Mechanic, Medical Equipment Repair
24. Business Operations Specialists
25. Sales Representatives, Services
26. Security Guards, Ski Patrol, Transportation Screeners, etc.
27. Material Moving Workers
28. Retail Sales Workers
30. Vehicle and Mobile Equipment Mechanics, Installers, and Repair
31. Metal Workers and Plastic Workers
32. Law Enforcement Workers
Annual
Total
Average
Growth
Annual
Wage
Rate (%) Openings (Year)
2.4%
2.2%
2.0%
1.9%
1.8%
1.8%
1.7%
1.6%
1.6%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
1.5%
168
75
93
138
457
43
40
76
47
212
189
90
87
55
$21,460
$64,770
$22,180
$30,010
$18,100
$28,110
$28,710
$54,440
$46,640
$24,310
$58,840
$18,150
$38,000
$30,000
1.5%
43
$30,700
1.4%
1.4%
1.4%
1.4%
1.4%
1.4%
1.4%
1.3%
1.3%
1.3%
1.3%
1.2%
1.1%
1.1%
1.0%
1.0%
197
167
152
133
127
109
42
93
81
53
52
89
515
90
33
30
$37,090
$31,120
$22,610
$39,430
$28,000
$27,710
$43,300
$50,180
$45,420
$46,640
$22,690
$40,000
$21,820
$38,520
$30,500
$47,380
Occupations highlighted in yellow are those that unemployed Tribal members said interested them most.
Occupations highlighted in green are those in which unemployed Tribal members are most interested in training.
Sources: Bureau of Business and Economic Research, University of Montana; Montana Department of Labor and Industry, Region 1, 2012-2022
Projected Employment. Region 1 includes Flathead, Lake, Lincoln, Mineral, Missoula, and Sanders Counties.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Timber production and jobs are bouncing back somewhat after the initial effects of the COVID19 pandemic. The pandemic and other factors caused local mills to reduce the amount of "load"
they would take from local timber sales. This in turn affected the demand and prices followed
downward. [In early 2021,] prices and demand are now trending upward in the region, and local
mills are slowly following suit.” (Tribal Forestry Department Head Tony Incashola, Jr., Jim Durglo,
telephone communication, 2-22-21).
RELATIONSHIP TO LARGER REGIONAL AND GLOBAL ECONOMIES—ADVANTAGES
AND DISADVANTAGES
Unlike more remote Indian reservations, the Flathead Reservation is located in the center of
western Montana’s growing economy. The reservation is bordered on the south by Montana’s
second largest urban trade center, Missoula County, and on the north by one of Montana’s
fastest-growing counties, Flathead County—home to world-class skiing in Whitefish and located
next to Glacier National Park. And because the reservation is located on the major transportation
arterial that links these areas—U.S. Highway 93—there is some spillover effect from passing
tourists and economic leakage as reservation residents travel to the cities to buy goods and
services.
Recreationists and new residents come to the Reservation from these cities and beyond because
the Reservation is blessed with spectacular natural resources, including Flathead Lake, the
Ninepipe and Pablo National Wildlife Refuges, the National Bison Range, the Mission Mountains,
and the Jocko and Flathead Rivers. However, overuse of some areas and uncontrolled growth in
others are affecting tribal members' cultural practices, including fish, plant, and berry harvesting.
CSKT currently offers lake trout fishing derbies on Flathead Lake and is considering commercial
fish sales due to increased populations of lake trout—a non-native species introduced into the
lake by recreational fishermen years ago. Lake trout has outcompeted native fisheries in the lake,
and the Tribes and State Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks are working to restore the native
fisheries.
To lessen the impact of tourism, CSKT are considering the development of itinerary planning for
tourists and encouraging Tribal member trained guides to provide cultural education-based
tours. Tours that were available at the Peoples Center Museum in Pablo are on hold due to a fire
at the center. Staff have relocated their offices and gift shop to St. Ignatius and renamed the
center the Three Chiefs Culture Center.
OTHER FACTORS AFFECTING THE ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE OF THE RESERVATION
WORKFORCE ISSUES
According to the 2014 CSKT Sustainable Economic Development Study and Tribal Job and Training
Needs Survey, nearly 3 out of every 5 Tribal members who are employed work for CSKT.
Approximately 23% work for a private or non-profit company, and less than 7% are selfCSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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employed. If a federal shutdown should occur again, or if severe cutbacks are made to the Tribes’
self-governance compact and Public Law 638 contracts, Tribal funds could not sustain Tribal
employee wages.
Also, according to the study, the unemployment rate for Tribal members living on the reservation,
ages 18-60, is 13.9%, which is considerably higher than the 10.8% rate for 2012 reported by the
Montana Department of Labor and Industry for all people ages 16 and older in the reservation's
labor force. While overall reservation unemployment had dropped to 4.9% in 2020, we were not
able to capture
While Tribal government and its corporations have made great strides toward employing Tribal
members, there remains a gap in employment and wages for many. The poverty rate for
American Indian families in Lake County (the largest county within the Reservation) continues to
be triple that of white families. CSKT’s Department of Human Resource Development manages
several income assistance and workforce development programs and provides services to 60
percent of the tribal members residing on the Flathead Reservation with Workforce Investment
Act (WIA), Child Care, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Low Income Energy
Assistance Program (LIEAP), and General Assistance funds—another indicator of the
unemployment/underemployment rate of the Tribal population. 22
As mentioned previously, according to the ACS Community Survey 5-year estimate (2015-2020),
the unemployment rate overall in Lake County among those 16 and older was 4.0%. The
unemployment rate within the boundaries of the reservation was 7.4% according to the ACS
Community Survey (2015-2019). These numbers are most likely increasing due to the 2020-2021
COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2014 Survey also showed that, on average, Tribal members expressed a willingness to
commute 30 miles one-way to work. A majority of Tribal members (54.5%) were willing to
commute off the Reservation to work if they could return home each night, while 45.5% were
unwilling to do so. The ACS Survey reported that of the employed 11,990 Tribal and non-Tribal
workers above the age of 16, 880 worked from home, and 11,110 were willing to commute an
average time of 19.1 minutes to their place of employment.
GAPS IN THE TRIBAL WORKFORCE
The Job and Training Needs Survey and resulting Sustainable Economic Development The study
focused closely on four groups of Tribal members:
1.
2.
3.
4.
22
Unemployed or not in the workforce
Near or below the poverty threshold
Young adults
Women
DHRD, Annual 477 Report to the Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development, Division of Workforce Development, 2008.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Among unemployed Tribal members or those who were not in the labor force, most previously
worked in low-skill and low-wage jobs. The jobs included:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Janitors and Cleaners
Home Health Aides
Wildland Firefighters
Security Guards
Dishwashers
Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
Gaming Cage Workers
Farmworkers and Laborers
In addition, the unemployed no longer in the labor force were much more likely to have low levels
of education attainment than were other Tribal members. Almost 2 in 10 unemployed Tribal
members (17.3%) and those not in the labor force (17.6%) completed less than a high school
diploma or GED, compared with only 1 in 10 Tribal members overall (9.7%).
Most Tribal members who lived in a household below the poverty threshold also worked in entrylevel or lower-skill occupations, including
•
•
•
•
•
•
Janitors
Home Health Aides
Landscaping Workers
Cashiers
Dishwashers
Maids
Tribal members living below the poverty threshold were significantly more likely to have a high
school diploma or G.E.D. (16.9%) when compared to all Tribal members (9.7%).
In contrast, many Tribal members living in near-poverty households already had significant levels
of job training. The higher-skill occupations reported by those who lived in near-poverty included:
•
•
•
•
Accountants and Auditors
Teachers
Rehabilitation Counselors
Community and Social Service Specialists
The lower-skill occupations reported by near-poverty Tribal members also required significant
training and included home health aides, woodworking machine operators, and truck and tractor
operators.
Evaluating the survey data for workforce achievement gaps is not always appropriate for young
adults, since they are just beginning their labor force experiences. However, one gap that appears
in the data is particularly significant. Proportionately more Tribal members ages 18-34 (15.2%)
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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had not completed high school or a G.E.D. than had all Montanans ages 18-34 (11.0%). Similarly,
fewer young adult Tribal members had completed bachelor's degrees (13.7%) than had all of
Montana’s young adults (20.2%).
Finally, clerical, or administrative, jobs dominate the list of the top 10 occupations of female Tribal
members ages 18-60. The top ten occupations include:
1. Secretaries and Administrative Assistants
2. Accountants and Auditors
3. Home Health Aides
4. Janitors and Cleaners
5. Cashiers
6. Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners
7. Bookkeeping, Accounting, and Auditing Clerks
8. Office and Administrative Support Workers, All Other
9. Other Management Occupations
10. Nursing Assistants
HOUSING CONCERNS
In addition to livable wage employment, home ownership can also improve economic stability.
Significantly fewer American Indians own their homes than the rest of the Reservation
population (U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 2007-2011).
Housing
Owner Occupied
Renter Occupied
Owner and Renter Occupied Housing Units
American Indian
Total Population
59.4%
67.6%
40.7%
32.4%
The Tribes are fortunate to have the Salish and Kootenai Housing Authority (SKHA), a critical
component toward helping Tribal members become self-sufficient. It maintains approximately
500 low-rent properties, 30 Tribal membership participant properties, 19 transitional living
units for homeless families and individuals, 60 trailer park lots, and 50 rental assistance slots
(SKHA, January 2021). SKHA provides housing rehabilitation, emergency home repair, and
weatherization assistance for eligible Tribal members.
In addition to housing, SKHA provides valuable infrastructure and educational programs for
membership managing 26 community sewer and/or water systems throughout the reservation
and providing homebuyer education classes. SKHA also provides down payment assistance for
qualifying Tribal members seeking to purchase a home.
While SKHA assists a significant number of low-income families, there are many who are not
served due to eviction or SKHA’s limited funding to serve those on their waiting lists. The
number of units SKHA has to offer has recently been limited due to contamination by
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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methamphetamine use or manufacture; over 40 units were closed in recent years until cleanup
funds and certified workers became available to make the homes safe for habitation.
In 2020, CSKT purchased the Starlite Motel and renovated it to become the Morning Star
Apartments, which will provide housing and supportive services for 14 individual homeless
Tribal members and will be operated by the Tribal Defenders Office, with provided TBA rental
vouchers from SKHA. In 2021 SKHA is scheduled to construct 6 additional low-rent units in
Pablo.
In addition, CSKT purchased six manufactured homes and one modular home in 2020 for
families with housing insecurities related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Five are located at Maggie
Ashley Trailer Park in Pablo, and two at the Tribes’ Kicking Horse property.
Some Tribal members are trying to obtain residential lease lots from the Tribes on which to
place a mobile or modular home or to construct a home; however, some of the existing
community sewer and water systems managed by SKHA are at capacity and cannot
accommodate additional homes. Funding from the Indian Health Service to assist with sewer
and water facilities for dispersed Tribal residential lots (those not within the areas served by
community systems) has declined significantly in recent years. This factor makes it more
difficult for Tribal members to own their homes, as many do not have the means to pay for a
well and sewage treatment system for their homes.
INADEQUATE CULTURAL AND RECREATION FACILITIES
While the City of Polson and the Town of Ronan each have a bowling alley and a movie theater,
none of the other Reservation communities have these amenities. Tribal community centers have
been built in Arlee, St. Ignatius, Sčilíp Agency, Elmo, and Hot Springs, but they need considerable
maintenance. A bowling alley was built in Hot Springs, but it is not being used due to high
operating costs and a leak in the roof. A longhouse was built in St. Ignatius for cultural activities
and wakes, and Arlee’s and Elmo’s community centers are also used for cultural activities and
wakes, but there is no large facility for wakes in the Ronan, Pablo, or Polson areas—communities
with the highest numbers of Tribal members as compared to other communities.
The Flathead Reservation Boys and Girls Club recently purchased and renovated a new facility
in the Town of Ronan and built a new facility in Polson. The Tribal Health Department operates
fitness centers in Arlee, St. Ignatius, Ronan, and Elmo and has relocated the Ronan facility to
the Kicking Horse property southeast of Ronan.
Elmo’s Koostahtah Hall is also in major disrepair and has been boarded up. Tribal youth and
families in the Elmo community have no indoor recreational facilities for basketball or other
activities.
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND LAND USE
To protect the Class I airshed, water quality, fisheries, wildlife, wetlands, floodplains, prime
farmlands, scenic areas, and other culturally important resources of the Reservation, the Tribes
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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completed a Flathead Reservation Comprehensive Resources Plan and a Land Use and Growth
Projection Study in 1996. The comprehensive plan describes the following:
• the condition of 15 natural resource and land use categories (shown in the following
diagram)
• resource management policies, laws, and programs
• the publics and managers’ concerns about the resources
• management goals, alternatives, and objectives for all 15 categories
The following illustration depicts the interconnection between these resources. The Tribes
adopted a policy of integrated resource management, where potential impacts on all land uses
and natural resources must be considered before developing one resource, and the protection
of cultural resources, air and water quality, and fish and wildlife are the first priority.
The U.S. Highway 93 Land Use and Growth Projection Study was completed when the Tribes were
facing high levels of non-Tribal growth on the reservation, and the proposed expansion of U.S.
Highway 93 through the reservation was threatening Tribal resources and cultural values. The
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes created a team of Tribal and county planners and
included a consultant who worked for the Montana Department of Transportation to conduct a
public opinion poll about growth and resource protection on the reservation.
Poll results showed that the majority of Reservation residents wanted to protect water quality,
wetlands, other wildlife habitats, farmlands, scenic areas, and more. The Tribes’ planning director,
hydrologist, wildlife managers, and computer mapping staff mapped the reservation's wetlands.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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prime farms, floodplains, vulnerable aquifers, steep slopes, sensitive wildlife habitats, and scenic
areas along Highway 93. The team established sensitivity values for these resources, and the
planning director created a land suitability model that included the reservation's community
sewage treatment districts and towns. The model resulted in a Land Suitability Map that shows
those lands that have maximum opportunities for development, those that are undevelopable,
and those with varying degrees of opportunity (depending on the types and sensitivity of the
natural resources occurring in those areas).
This map, and site-specific environmental assessments that comply with the National
Environmental Policy Act and Tribal natural resource protection and historic preservation
policies, have guided new Tribal development on the Reservation since 1996.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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The “undevelopable” areas depicted here are slopes that are steeper than 35% and are not
suitable for building construction due to high erosion potential, inaccessibility for emergency
vehicles, and other factors. The dark orange color includes sensitive aquifer areas, areas that
frequently flood, areas of wildlife concern, etc. (Please refer to the 1996 Land Use and Growth
Project Study for additional information about this map.)
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Tribal policy encourages high-intensity land uses to occur near existing infrastructure that has the
capacity to accommodate new development. Sensitive wildlife habitat, agricultural lands, surface
and ground water, and cultural resource areas are protected by management plans and
regulations, including plans for grizzly bears and other sensitive species, the Mission Mountains
Tribal Wilderness and Buffer Zone, the Lower Flathead River Corridor, forest management,
noxious weed management, and fisheries. In addition, these resources are protected by the
mitigation requirements of programmatic environmental assessments and policies for residential
and commercial lease development, the Aquatic Lands Protection Ordinance, the Shoreline
Protection Ordinance for Flathead Lake, Cultural Resource Protection and Historic Preservation
ordinances; and a septic system permitting ordinance—to name only a few.
Brownfield sites have also been mapped and targeted for cleanup. One such site is located at
Sčilíp Agency, where a former municipal dump and post and pole yard await final clean-up. This
location has a rail spur and may be used again for commercial or industrial purposes in the future.
2.8.3.5.1
LAND USE PATTERNS AND LACK OF INFRASTRUCTURE
Tribal commercial lots are generally located in towns where they have access to paved streets
and utilities. Vacant commercial lots are currently available on Tribal land just outside of Hot
Springs and in Elmo, Pablo, St. Ignatius, and Arlee. The Tribal Economic Development Office has
completed environmental review and mapped 5 additional lots in Arlee, 3 in Elmo, and 3 in Pablo.
Pending environmental review, Highway 93 frontage may also be available for commercial
development in St. Ignatius. Some of these lots are temporarily permitted for Christmas tree
sales, firework stands, and other uses. Not all of them have the physical infrastructure needed to
be "turnkey" lots for permanent development, and many entrepreneurs do not have the revenue
to finish developing the infrastructure or even develop the building needed to house a business.
Funding is limited, and growth has slowed in many of these communities with the recent recession.
The Tribes will continue to seek funding to fully develop some of these lots when feasible.
The development of a Tribal business park north of Pablo, which could attract new business to
the reservation and provide commercial lots for Tribal member-owned businesses, has been
challenging partly due to a lack of maintenance on the railroad line adjacent to the park site.
Development of a frontage road parallel to U.S. Highway 93 that would serve the park is also
needed.
Salish Kootenai College cannot expand its facilities, and other new businesses cannot develop in
Pablo because the Pablo community water system does not have adequate water storage for
fighting fires at new non-residential facilities.
2.8.3.5.2
CLIMATE CHANGE
In September 2013, the CSKT adopted a Climate Change Strategic Plan “to improve the Tribal
community's and its lands’ resiliency to climate change by effectively informing planning decisions
made by the Tribes….” The Climate Change Plan states that “all models predict warmer
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 57
temperatures, lower snowpack, more frequent and severe droughts and floods…. Fire severity
can be expected to increase given warmer and drier conditions….”
The plan predicts impacts on air quality and states that, as climate change accelerates, it is
increasingly expected to outpace the ability of wildlife to respond and adapt. Approximately 30%
of all species could be lost by 2100…. In the Rocky Mountains, warming is projected to cause a
loss of up to 42% of current trout habitat by the end of the century. Invasive species, including
noxious weeds, pine and spruce beetles, and others, are expected to continue to spread, partly
due to declining or weakening native species and warmer temperatures. Warmer waters are also
expected to benefit invasive aquatic species and aquatic pathogens.”
As stated earlier in this document, Tribal traditions depend on land-based cultural resources,
which include native fish and wildlife and their habitats; food and medicinal plants and the areas
where they grow; prehistoric and historical use sites; and other land areas where Tribal members
currently carry-on cultural traditions.
Hunting, fishing, plant harvesting, hide-tanning, food and medicine preparation, singing, dancing,
praying, feasting, storytelling, and ceremonies are examples of age-old traditions that rely on the
land and the community of life it supports.
The Climate Change Plan states that the CSKT Historic Preservation Office “recognizes that it is
unknown if it is possible to reverse climate change, but that the Tribes need to protect cultural
resources as much as possible while looking for solutions—that this work must be done now.”
Cultural resources are being lost, altered, or destroyed as lands are logged, tilled, mined, or
developed for housing, businesses, roads, and more. Before any Tribal development occurs, or
any development occurs on federal lands, with federal funds, or through a federal action, the
developer must obtain a Tribal cultural clearance.
The plan's strategy is to continue to assess reservation impacts from climate change, with
considerations “provided for the built, natural, and social environments, with specific focuses on
nine sectors, which include forestry, land, fish, wildlife, water, air, infrastructure, people, and
culture.” Goals, action steps, partners, and potential funding sources for each sector are
described on pages 52-64 of the plan, and plan implementation is being coordinated by a Climate
Change Oversight Committee. The goals and action steps are also listed in the action plan portion
of this plan. For more information, the Climate Change Plan is located at
http://nrd.csktribes.org/component/rsfiles/download?path=EP%252FCSKTClimatePlan.pdf. The
CSKT Climate Change Committee is currently working on an update to the plan.
TRIBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT LAWS AND POLICIES
Tribal laws and policies that apply to economic development include, but are not limited to, the
following:
• Tribal Constitution
• Tribal Corporate Charter
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Flathead Reservation Corporation Ordinance 54A—describes the rules followed by CSKT
for chartering and regulating economic development corporations organized under the
Tribes’ Constitution. ²³
• Gaming Ordinance 92D (Amended) regulates all forms of gaming conducted within the
boundaries of the reservation. ²⁴
• Limited Liability Ordinance 104A - provides the rules followed by CSKT for chartering
limited liability companies under Tribal law; may be used to organize solely-owned and
member-owned companies. ²⁵
• Resolution #03-100 Establishing Policy and Procedures for Board and Committee
Memberships
• Tribal Council Policy to Strengthen the Owner/Operator Relationship with Tribally Owned
Businesses (Corporations)
• 2015 Sustainable, Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS)/Plan – Some of
the objectives in this strategy have been completed, and others are ongoing and listed in
this new CEDS. Upon adoption by the Tribal Council, this 2020 Comprehensive Economic
Development Strategy will replace the 2015 CEDS.
• Tribal Procurement Policy—adopted by Tribal Resolution 11-246 in 2011, requiring that
Tribal purchases of goods and services follow a priority of sources:
1. government sources first
2. then Indian businesses, and
3. Lastly, other commercial organizations/vendors.
Tribal government entities are encouraged to purchase items through Property and
Supply Department staff members, who can assist them in adhering to the priority of
sources policy. Tribal entities do not utilize property and supply are required to follow the
priority of sources listed above and document the vendor selection on the purchase
requisition.
• Indian Preference Ordinance – established “to counter the effects of discrimination
against Indians and to promote Tribal and individual economic self-sufficiency ... so that
preference is granted to qualified Indian employees and qualified Indian-owned entities
within the boundaries of the Flathead Indian Reservation whenever permitted by federal
law.” This preference is also applicable for the award of contracts and subcontracts for
the procurement of services, materials, supplies, and equipment required for work to be
performed. First preference is given to CSKT member-owned businesses that bid within
10% of the low bid or price quote for a product or service and allows them to adjust their
•
23
To review a copy, go to www.cskt.org. Click on the “Services” button at the top of the page, then click on “Economic Development” and look
for the “Available Documents” at the bottom of the page.
24
A Gaming Commission, consisting of three licensed Tribal members appointed by the Tribal Council, is responsible for the administration of
gaming licenses, promulgating gaming rules pursuant to the ordinance, game operations, and internal fiscal affairs relating to gaming operations.
25 To review a copy, go to www.cskt.org. Click on the “Services” button at the top of the page, then click on “Economic Development” and look
for the “Available Documents” at the bottom of the page.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 59
bid to meet the low quote. Second preference is given to any other Indian-owned
business.
Tribal Procurement and Indian Preference Policy Compliance – While Indian preference and
procurement policies establish a process for using Tribal member-owned businesses in the
procurement of goods and services, non-compliance with these policies by some departments is
a concern.
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3. ECONOMIC STRENGTHS, WEAKNESSES, OPPORTUNITIES, AND
THREATS (SWOT)
The following identification of the reservations' strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and
threats (SWOT) provides a platform from which to develop an action plan for economic
development priorities. It answers, “Where are we now?” and helps identify assets that can be
leveraged, weaknesses and threats that should be acknowledged and remedied (if possible), and
opportunities that could improve the Reservation economy.
STRENGTHS
PEOPLE, CULTURE, ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
The people and the rich culture and environmental quality of the Tribal homeland are the
Reservation’s greatest strengths.
PARTNERSHIPS
Another major strength is the partnerships that continue to be developed to improve the
economic well-being of Tribal members and other Reservation residents. For example, the Tribes
have been working with a Steering Committee of Sustainable Economic Development Project
Partners to guide the development of this Sustainable Economic Development Strategy. These
partners have identified an abundance of resources that can be utilized to help the Reservation
economy. Steering Committee Partners include:
• Salish Kootenai College
• Montana Department of Commerce
• Lake/Sanders County Job Service
• S&K Business Services/Sovereign Leasing and Financing
• Lake County Community Development Corporation
• Multiple Tribal government departments, including
o Education
o Forestry/Fire Control
o Lands
o Human Resource Development
o Finance Office
o Personnel
Other potential partners who can assist with economic development include the following:
• U.S. Department of Commerce Economic Development Administration (EDA) – planning
and infrastructure development grants
• U.S. Department of Agriculture – planning and infrastructure grants and loans
• Small Business Administration and Business Development Centers
• U.S. Department of Labor
• U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs – loan and grant opportunities
• U.S. Treasury Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) Program
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Adult Children and Families Agency,
Administration for Native Americans (ANA) – planning and workforce development grants
U.S. Department of Transportation – TIGER grants
Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians (ATNI)
ONABEN: A Native American Business Network
Montana Indian Business Alliance (MIBA) – see attached Business Resource Directory
Montana Department of Commerce
o Native American Business Assistance Program
Funds Tribes to provide technical assistance to entrepreneurs.
Offers small grants for entrepreneurs (see Business Resource Directory)
Funds Tribal economic development feasibility studies and plans.
o Big Sky Trust Fund
Grants for Preliminary Architecture and Engineering Reports
Montana Economic Development Association (MEDA)
Montana Associated Technology Roundtables (MATR)
Native American Finance Officers Association (NAFOA)—This national, not-for-profit
organization works with tribal governments and enterprises and provides educational
resources and forums about business, finance, and accounting, including information
about best practices. NAFOA also provides professional idea-sharing and networking
opportunities for its members. See www.nafoa.org .
Other potential grant funders include:
o Kellogg Foundation
o MJ Murdock
o Kresge Foundation
o Shakopee Tribe
o Seminole Nation
o OP&WE Edwards Foundation
o Charlotte Martin Foundation
o Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation
o Orton Foundation
o Lower Flathead Valley Foundation
o Bill Gates Foundation
o Kraft Foods
o Blue Cross/Blue Shield Foundation
o Northwest Area Foundation
o St. Luke Foundation
o Nike N7
o Apple Foundation
o Notah Begay Foundation
o Wal-Mart
Additional agencies that aid entrepreneurs are listed in the attached Business Resource
Directory.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 62
•
Other agencies that provide apprenticeship opportunities and workforce training are
listed in the attached Workforce Training Directory.
OTHER STRENGTHS
Additional strengths are listed in the following SWOT analysis that was completed in late 2014 by
the Steering Committee. After compiling the previous Economic Setting section of this document,
CSKT’s Economic Development Office and Sovereign Leasing and Financing Company identified
additional strengths and weaknesses and opportunities and threats that were added to the
Committee’s SWOT analysis.
WEAKNESSES OR CHALLENGES
BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT
At least two-thirds of the 771 Tribal members who completed the 2014 CSKT Job and Training
Needs Survey said their household faced at least one of the following barriers to employment,
and almost half said their household struggled with two or more of these barriers.
Job Training or Education-Specific
Barriers Experienced by Tribal
Members
Training or educationspecific barrier
% Tribal
Members
Lack of money for education or
training
43.4%
Lack of computer skills
33.8%
Lack of education
32.9%
Lack of job skill training
30.7%
Lack of work experience
30.1%
Lack of job search training
20.2%
In addition to the barriers listed in the table, Tribal member survey respondents noted the
following as the most important barriers to a job, job training, or education.
lack of transportation
problems associated with disabilities and health
discrimination
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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criminal charges or addiction
no driver’s license
OTHER WEAKNESSES OR CHALLENGES
Additional weaknesses or challenges are listed in the following SWOT analysis.
OPPORTUNITIES AND THREATS
The creation of Opportunity Zones has led to incentives for many groups and governments to
pursue development in areas previously thought to be too challenging or potentially
hindered by the economic distress of that land base. One such project is the revitalization of
the Camas Bathhouse in the Sanders County region. Currently, CSKT is amid restructuring
many organizations within the government, and it is not clear if outside investment will be
beneficial to the goals of CSKT. The Tribes will continue to evaluate the opportunity when
assessing this project.
The following table lists the opportunities and threats identified by the Steering Committee and
during the analysis of the reservation's economic setting.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 64
CSKT SWOT ANALYSIS TABLE
Strengths
Growing Collaboration with
State/Federal Government
Social Media Fosters
Community
University and Educational
Systems
Salish Kootenai College
Stable Government
Family Perspective
Diverse Training Resources,
Partnerships, and
Collaboration Survey and
Study Data
Entrepreneurship Training
Opportunities:
- S&K Bus. Services/
Sovereign Lsg. & Financing.
Weaknesses or Challenges
Barriers to Employment
More Single Parent Families
Opportunities
Mission West CDP Provides
Training for Business Owners
No Employee Loyalty – No
Guarantee of Pension
High School Juniors Meet with
Tribal Education Re: Job Trends
& Opportunities
Media Sensation vs.
Emotional Honesty
Networking with Retiring Small
Businesses
Micromanaging
Tribal or Rez Bucks,
Transportation System and
Resources
Pablo Business
Change in Value of
Employment vs. “having a
job”
Media Has Shifted Our Ideas
& Changed Our Society
More.
Quickly
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2021
Park.
SKC & Job Corps Training
Opportunities
MT Department of Commerce
Tourism Training – Maria
Valandra looked at
community values.
Indian Pref. Office – Tribal
Member Job Opportunities and
Contractor List
Threats
Abundance of Caution! (Slow)
Lack of Apprenticeship and Work
Experience Opportunities
Cost of Living—Inflation! —
People Need to be Paid a Livable
Wage
Substance Abuse – Worker
Reliability/Job Retention Concerns
Fee Landowners—Continued Land
Subdivision and Resource
Development/Overuse in Sensitive
Natural and Cultural Resource Areas
Hopelessness in the Minds of Youth
Environmental Discontinuity, Global
Warming, Climate Change, Food
Supply
Cost of Secondary Education
Economic Leakage
Page 76
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2021
Page 76
- Montana Community
Development.
Corp. (CDC)
- Lake Co. CDC
- Small Business
Administration.
Indian Preference Ordinance &
Office
Many Educated, Professional
People
Broad Natural Resource
Base, Pristine, Scenic
Environment
Unique Cultural Setting and
Knowledge Base—Culture
Committees and People’s
Center
New Bicycle/Pedestrian
Pathways Providing Alternative
Transportation and Recreation
Opportunities in Warmer
Months
Partnership with Job Service
Polson
Some tribal corporations pay Help Non-Native Community
lower entry-level wages
Understand support for tribal
than tribal governments.
businesses is support for
family (Tribes are like a large
family who need to support
Lack of Motivated, Trained
each other.)
Workers for Some Jobs
and Everyday Job Tasks
Free Testing and Classes at SKC
Consume Too Much
for Individuals to Obtain High
Time—Hard to Focus on
Culture
School Equivalency Certificate
Must Live in Two Worlds &
Survive in Both
Lack of Marketing Re
Benefits of Indian Preference
Office & Non-Compliance
w/Ordinance
It’s Hard to Connect With
Shifting Goals & Priorities
Too Much Governmental
The dependence-welfare
system incentivizes lowincome status.
Lack of Financial Resources
Too Many Distractions in
Mainstream Society
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
International Economy
Non-Native Lake Trout OutCompeting Native Fish Populations
in Flathead Lake
Effects of Federal Budget
Sequestration and Continuing
Resolutions on Tribal Compact/638
Contracts and Corporation
Contracts
Natural and Man-made Disasters
Value(s) of Culture, Place, and
History to Others—Promote
Tribally-Guided Tours, Native
Crafts Vendor Stands, Canoe
Building, and Races on
Flathead Lake
DHRD Transit
MT Main Street Goal to Work
w/SKC to Fund More
Apprenticeships
Char-Koosta – Market Tribal
Businesses & Indian Preference
Benefits
Page 77
- Cell Phones
- Video Games
- TV—Little Focus
on Community
Growing Population on Rez
Lack of Soft Skills
- Respectful
Communications
- Service Orientation
SKQ Dam
Degradation of Values
(Social Fabric)
No Consensus on Path to
Take Amongst 8000+
Members
Internal Resistance from
Some Departments or
Entities in Following
Established Policies
Regarding Bid Opportunities
& Employment
Short-Term Wants (Mass
Media Demands)
Tribal members are
unwilling to work for nontribally affiliated entities.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Growing Market for Made in
Montana/Native Products
SQK Quality Meats
Development of Hot Springs
Area
Water Compact
Salary Survey
Entrepreneurial Incentives
- Grants
- Marketing Thru Media
Gift Cards
- Owner Gets Benefit
- Gift Card Receiver Gets A
Good Meal
A few Flathead Lake lots may
be available for development
and lease.
Tribal Education Dept.
Scholarships
Page 78
Membership is not informed
about job training
opportunities.
SKC’s LSAMP Scholarship &
International Research
Programs
Many Members Renting
versus Owning Homes—No
Equity
American Indian College Fund
Scholarships
Housing and Home Site
Waiting Lists – Need to
Develop More Residential
Lease Lots
Need for No-Cost
Computer Literacy Training
for the Unemployed
Lack of Work Experience
Economic and Resource
Sustainability
Limited # of Tribal
Commercial/Industrial Lots
for Bringing in Outside
Business and Serving Tribal
Entrepreneurs
Infrastructure $ Needed to
Develop a Business Park
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Dual Enrollment and STEM
Program with SKC for High
School Students
Over 1/3 of Tribal Members
Responding to the Survey
are Very Interested in
Starting a New Business.
Food Sovereignty Ideas/Mission
Mountain Food Enterprise
Center/SKC
Alternative Energy and Energy
Conservation Opportunities
Other Tribal Programs to Form
a Coalition
Climate Change Plan and
Planning Group / EAGLES
Page 79
Inadequate Water Storage at Fishing Derbies and
SKE Resulting in Increased
Commercial Fish Sales of
Fire Insurance Rates
Flathead Lake Trout
Inadequate water storage in
Pablo has resulted in a
moratorium on new
Commercial Dev’t. – College
can’t expand
Succession Planning Needed
for Retiring Tribal Managers
Lack of Adequate
Recreational and Fitness
Facilities in Many
Communities—limited for
youth even with the recent
build of skate parks
No large facility for Tribal
wakes in the
Ronan/Pablo/Polson areas
Funding for training through
WIOA and HELP-Link
programs operated by Job
Service Polson. Access to job
readiness skills training and
apprenticeship information.
Work Experience & Emergency
Hire CSKT Job Opportunities
Small Business Administration
assistance
Frequent entry-level CSKT jobs
are available.
Day labor postings are
available from Job Service
Polson.
New Tribal Broadband
System
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
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Substance Abuse Affecting
Adults and Children of
Abusers—Need Education,
Prevention, Treatment,
and Aftercare
1/5 of the unemployed do
not have a high school
diploma or equivalency
certificate.
Indian Health Service
Funding Cuts for
Sewer/Water Infrastructure
Increasing Electricity Costs
Sčilíp Agency and Old
Dumpsites Need Clean-Up
Need Skilled Workers for
Higher-Paying Jobs
Need to Update Tribal
Administrative Procedures
Ordinance
Tribal Building
Maintenance Needs
Few CSKT day labor
opportunities and many
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Tribal members cannot hold
a permanent full-time job.
Losing Traditions/Way of Life
Difficulty getting into a
substance-abuse treatment
center
Impacts from the COVID-19
pandemic
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4 STRATEGIC DIRECTION, ACTION PLAN & EVALUATION
This section is divided into three subsections:
• Strategic Direction – which includes the vision and goals that CSKT has for economic
development on the reservation
• Action Plan – the specific, measurable, action-oriented, realistic, and time-bound (SMART)
objectives and steps CSKT and its partners plan to take to accomplish these goals,
including reasonable cost estimates and potential funding sources and objectives that
address economic resilience. ²⁶
• Evaluation – the measures of success that determine whether the goals and objectives
have been met
STRATEGIC DIRECTION
Over a decade ago, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes adopted vision and mission
statements. While these are long-range statements that apply to more than economic
development, they provide the comprehensive direction that must guide CSKT’s economic action
steps.
TRIBAL VISION
The traditional values that served our people in the past are imbedded in the many ways we serve
and invest in our people and communities, in the way we have regained and restored our
homelands and natural resources, in the ways we have built a self-sufficient society and
economy, in the ways we govern our reservation and represent ourselves to the rest of the world,
and in the ways we continue to preserve our right to determine our own destiny.
TRIBAL MISSION
Our mission is to adopt traditional principles and values into all facets of Tribal operations and
services. We will invest in our people in a manner that ensures our ability to become a completely
self-sufficient society and economy. And we will provide sound environmental stewardship to
preserve, perpetuate, protect, and enhance natural resources and ecosystems.
VALUES
The following Tribal values are written on the walls of the CSKT People’s Center in Pablo and
should be incorporated into all efforts for Tribal resource management and economic
development:
• Commitment
• Honesty
• Trust
• Vision
26.
Economic resilience is the ability to withstand and quickly recover from, and possibly avoid, economic “shocks” or disruptions.
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 83
•
•
•
•
Cooperation
Courage
Respect
Spirituality
Other values that are important to the partners who worked on this strategic plan include:
• Equality
• Loyalty
• Generosity
• Family
• Freedom
• Creativity
Core values identified by the Tribal membership in a survey of Tribal members living on the Flathead Reservation in
May of 2019.
Key values revealed by the 2019 survey of Tribal membership.
Kinship
Values listed in
the pre-survey.
Tribal members
were asked to
select the top 35.
that guide their
lives or families.
Prayer
Respect
Compassion
Honesty & Truth
Fortitude
Generosity
Humility
Wisdom
Courage
These are the
top 10 values
selected.
1
Respect
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Honesty & Truth
Responsibility
Faith
Compassion
Prayer
Helping
Forgiveness
Kinship
Thankfulness
Helping
Responsibility
Thankfulness
Faith
Forgiveness
Honor
TRIBAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GOALS
The following economic development goals were adopted by the Tribal Council in 2007 and
reaffirmed in 2013:
1. Reinforce traditional principles and values into all facets of Tribal operations and
service, including investing in our people in a manner that ensures our ability to become
a completely self-sufficient society and economy.
2. Provide a sustainable economy for our next generation (20- to 25-year horizon) that
includes, but is not limited to, the following:
CSKT Comprehensive Economic Development Plan/Strategy 2026
Page 84
a. Protect and develop the Tribal economy by taking advantage of the unique qualities
and opportunities of the tribal government status while protecting the environment.
b. Provide alternative revenues and job opportunities for the next generation.
c. Develop the skills and knowledge of our people.
d. Provide a broad range of opportunities for Tribal members by stimulating the Tribes’
private sector and facilitating economic growth.
e. Provide alternative development opportunities, including those that add value to
our natural resource base and create marketable products instead of just selling raw
materials off to outside parties.
3. Provide for near-term economic development (five- to ten-year horizon) that includes,
but is not limited to, the following:
a. Diversify revenue sources so as not to be dependent on limited sources such as the
government, timber, and energy.
b. Bring in investments and revenue from outside sources.
c. Maximize the flow of money in the local Tribal economy.
d. Extend the range of CSKT economic influence and businesses beyond the local
economy while promoting and protecting the interests of Tribal entrepreneurs.
e. Invest in Tribal members’ education and skills for the jobs of the future.
f. Establish curriculum at local colleges and training institutions that serve the
economic and business opportunities of the Tribes.
g. Make a transition from the current Tribal philosophy of employment to
employability.
h. Create business opportunities for individual Tribal members to participate in the
local, regional, and global marketplace.
i. Take advantage of development opportunities provided by the reservation setting,
including alternative energy, water development, utilities, pipelines, and other
transmission initiatives.
j. Develop policies for internal capacity building, workforce development, Tribal
procurement strategies, and other measures that will create alignment between
government services and economic development opportunities.
k. Establish targets for enterprise return on investment/profitability and funds for
reinvestment in existing enterprises as well as investment in new enterprise
opportunities.
4. Establish and monitor standards for enterprise/corporate business planning to assure all
chartered enterprises meet business planning standards and use plans to facilitate
linkages between Tribal goals and enterprise strategies.
5. Establish a process for preparation a
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