Oneida Business Committee (2021)
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Oneida Nation
Oneida Business Committee
Legislative Operating Committee
PO Box 365 • Oneida, WI 54155-0365
Oneida-nsn.gov
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LEGISLATIVE OPERATING COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA
Business Committee Conference Room - 2nd Floor Norbert Hill Center
December 15, 2021
9:00 a.m.
This Legislative Operating Committee meeting will be closed to the public in accordance with Oneida
Business Committee resolution BC-12-08-21-B, Updating Public Gathering Guidelines During Public
Health State of Emergency - COVID-19.
I.
Call to Order and Approval of the Agenda
II.
Minutes to be Approved
1. December 1, 2021 LOC Meeting Minutes (pg. 2)
III.
Current Business
1. Budget Management and Control Law Amendments (pg. 4)
IV.
New Submissions
V.
Additions
VI.
Administrative Updates
VII.
Executive Session
VIII. Recess/Adjourn
A good mind. A good heart. A strong fire.
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Oneida Nation
Oneida Business Committee
Legislative Operating Committee
PO Box 365 • Oneida, WI 54155-0365
Oneida-nsn.gov
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ONEIDA
LEGISLATIVE OPERATING COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
Oneida Business Committee Conference Room-2nd Floor Norbert Hill Center
December 1, 2021
9:00 a.m.
Present: David P. Jordan, Daniel Guzman King, Marie Summers, Jennifer Webster, Kirby
Metoxen (Microsoft Teams)
Others Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen Hooker, Carmen Vanlanen, Brooke Doxtator,
Bonnie Pigman, Lawrence Barton, Rhiannon Metoxen (Microsoft Teams), Justin Nishimoto
(Microsoft Teams), Eric Boulanger (Microsoft Teams), Rae Skenandore (Microsoft Teams), Amy
Spears (Microsoft Teams)
I.
Call to Order and Approval of the Agenda
David P. Jordan called the December 1, 2021, Legislative Operating Committee meeting
to order at 9:00 a.m.
Motion by Marie Summers to adopt the agenda as is; seconded by Jennifer Webster.
Motion carried unanimously.
II.
Minutes to be Approved
1. November 17, 2021 LOC Meeting Minutes
Motion by Marie Summers to approve the November 17, 2021 LOC meeting minutes and
forward to the Business Committee for consideration; seconded by Daniel Guzman King.
Motion carried unanimously.
III.
Current Business
1. Furlough Law Amendments
Motion by Jennifer Webster to approve the updated draft, legislative analysis, and the fiscal
impact statement request memorandum and forward to the Finance Department directing
that a fiscal impact statement be prepared and submitted to the LOC by December 15, 2021;
seconded by Marie Summers. Motion carried unanimously.
2. Oneida General Welfare Law
Motion by Jennifer Webster to approve the Oneida General Welfare law adoption packet
and forward to the Oneida Business Committee for consideration; seconded by Marie
Summers. Motion carried unanimously.
IV.
New Submissions
1. Oneida Nation Arts Board Bylaws Amendments
Motion by Jennifer Webster to add the Oneida Nation Arts Board bylaws amendments to
the Active Files List with Jennifer Webster as the sponsor; seconded by Marie Summers.
Motion carried unanimously.
A good mind. A good heart. A strong fire.
Legislative Operating Committee Meeting Minutes of December 1, 2021
Page 1 of 2
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V.
Additions
VI.
Administrative Items
VII.
Executive Session
VIII. Adjourn
Motion by Marie Summers to adjourn at 9:25 a.m.; seconded by Daniel Guzman King.
Motion carried unanimously.
Legislative Operating Committee Meeting Minutes of December 1, 2021
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Oneida Nation
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Oneida Business Committee
Legislative Operating Committee
=DODDOD=
PO Box 365 • Oneida, WI 54155-0365
ONEIDA
Oneida-nsn.gov
Legislative Operating Committee
December 15, 2021
Budget Management and Control
Law Amendments
Submission Date: 10/7/20
LOC Sponsor: Jennifer Webster
Public Meeting: n/a
Emergency Enacted: 11/24/20, 5/12/21,
11/10/21
Summary: On August 12, 2020, during an executive session discussion on the supervision of the Chief
Financial Officer, the Oneida Business Committee adopted a motion to send the entire subject of
supervision of the Chief Financial Officer to the LOC for further analysis to create permanent amendments
in the Budget Management and Control law for Tiers III, IV, and V for future events. The Legislative
Operating Committee added the Budget Management and Control law amendments to its Active Files List
on October 7, 2020. On November 24, 2020, the Oneida Business Committee adopted emergency
amendments to the Budget Management and Control law through resolution BC-11-24-20-E to address
how the Nation would adopt the budget during the COVID-19 pandemic. The emergency amendments to
the Law are set to expire on May 24, 2021. On May 12, 2021, the Oneida Business Committee adopted
emergency amendments to the Budget Management and Control law through resolution BC-05-12-21-C
to address the Nation’s non-compliance with the budget development process and timelines. The
emergency amendments to the Law were then extended by the Oneida Business Committee on November
10,2021, through the adoption of resolution BC-11-10-21-B. The emergency amendments to the Law will
now expire on May 12, 2022.
10/7/20 LOC: Motion by Jennifer Webster to add the Budget Management and Control Law Amendments
to the Active Files List with Jennifer Webster as the sponsor; seconded by Daniel Guzman
King. Motion carried unanimously.
10/21/20:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda Ninham-Lamberies,
Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen Hooker, Rae Skenandore, James Petitjean, Rhiannon Metoxen,
Kristal Hill. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this
work session was to review the Budget Management and Control law line by line and begin
discussing potential amendments. Attorney will update the draft based on suggestions during
this work meeting, and will note all parking lot issues, and will schedule another work meeting
with this team.
11/24/20:
E-Poll Conducted. This e-poll was titled, “Approval of the Budget Management and Control
Law Emergency Amendments Adoption Packet.” The requested action of this e-poll was to
approve the Budget Management and Control law emergency amendments adoption packet
and forward to the Oneida Business Committee. This e-poll was approved by Jennifer
Webster, David P. Jordan, Marie Summers, and Kirby Metoxen. Daniel Guzman King did not
provide a response during the e-poll time frame.
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11/24/20 OBC: Motion by Lisa Liggins to amend the agenda to add two (2) items [1) item V.D. Adopt
resolution entitled Emergency Amendments to the Budget Management and Control Law; and
2) item V.E. Adopt resolution entitled Approval of Final Draft Fiscal Year 2021 Budget and
Budget Directives], seconded by Marie Summers. Motion carried.
Motion by Lisa Liggins to adopt resolution 11-24-20-E Emergency Amendments to the
Budget Management and Control Law, seconded by David P. Jordan. Motion carried.
12/2/20 LOC: Motion by Kirby Metoxen to enter into the record the results of the November 24, 2020, epoll titled, “Approval of the Budget Management and Control Law Emergency Amendments
Adoption Packet”; seconded by Jennifer Webster. Motion carried unanimously.
12/2/20:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Daniel Guzman King, Marie
Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen Hooker, Rhiannon Metoxen, Kristal Hill. This was a
work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to
provide a brief update to the LOC on the status of holding a work meeting with the Treasurer,
Budget Analyst, and Strategic Planner to collect information on how to efficiently and
effectively incorporate community input into the budget process.
1/22/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda Ninham-Lamberies,
Rae Skenandore, James Petitjean. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams.
The purpose of this work meeting was to discuss with Finance potential issues that need to be
addressed in the proposed amendments to this law.
1/28/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Jennifer Webster, Marie Summers, Daniel Guzman
King, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristal Hill, Rhiannon Metoxen. This was a work meeting held
through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to provide the LOC an
update on the January 22 work meeting with Finance, and discuss a plan for moving this item
forward.
2/9/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda
Ninham-Lamberies, Rae Skenandore, James Petitjean. This was a work meeting held through
Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to discuss potential amendments to
the Budget Management and Control law and discuss a plan for moving this legislative item
forward.
2/25/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda
Ninham-Lamberies, Rae Skenandore, James Petitjean. This was a work meeting held through
Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to discuss a potential outline for a
law that would include not only information on the budget, but broader financial policies of
the Nation.
4/28/21 OBC: [Considerations regarding the Budget Management and Control Law] Motion by Kirby
Metoxen to acknowledge we are out of compliance and going forward we get into compliance.
Motion failed due to lack of support.
Motion by David P. Jordan to direct the LOC [Legislative Operating Committee] to have
emergency amendments to the Budget Management and Control law to remove much of the
budget process/deadlines and leave it simply at a budget should be adopted by September 30,
2021 and direct the LOC to continue working with Finance to get the Budget Management
and Control law amended, seconded by Jennifer Webster. Motion carried.
4/29/21:
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5/5/21 LOC:
meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to discuss how
to address the 4/28 directive from the Oneida Business Committee to bring forward emergency
amendments to the law.
Motion by Jennifer Webster to approve the Budget Management and Control law emergency
adoption packet and forward to the Oneida Business Committee for consideration; seconded
by Daniel Guzman King. Marie Summers abstained. Motion carried.
5/12/21 OBC: Motion by Lisa Liggins to adopt resolution 05-12-21-C Emergency Amendments to the
Budget Management and Control Law, with two (2) changes [1) at line 73, insert "BE IT
FURTHER RESOLVED, the deadlines provided in the Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Calendar,
which is published on the Oneida Portal and was shared at the April 6, 2021, Budget Kick-off
meeting, are suspended until further notice."; and 2) change last resolve to "BE IT FINALLY
RESOLVED, the Treasurer shall present a resolution to a special Business Committee work
session, scheduled no later than June 11, 2021, which provides the general framework for the
Fiscal Year 2022 budget development process, which shall include, but is not limited to,
information such as the budget calendar, opportunities for community input and discussion,
line item guidance, and new position definition, guidance, and review process."], seconded by
Jennifer Webster. Motion carried.
5/25/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda Ninham-Lamberies,
Rae Skenandore. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this
work meeting was to go through the draft and begin flushing out potential policies and topics
to be included in the law.
6/16/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda
Ninham-Lamberies, Rae Skenandore. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft
Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to continue going through the draft and begin
flushing out potential policies and topics to be included in the law.
7/7/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda
Ninham-Lamberies, Rae Skenandore. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft
Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to continue going through the draft and begin
flushing out potential policies and topics to be included in the law.
10/12/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Cristina Danforth, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda
Ninham-Lamberies, Rae Skenandore. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft
Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to review and discuss the updated proposed
draft one final time before it is presented to the Legislative Operating Committee for their
consideration.
10/14/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Carmen Vanlanen, Kristal Hill. This was a work
meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to review and
discuss the proposed draft of amendments to the Law developed by the Treasurer and Finance.
10/15/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Carmen Vanlanen, Kristal Hill. This was a work
meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to continue
reviewing and discussing the proposed draft of amendments to the Law developed by the
Treasurer and Finance.
10/20/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristal Hill, Rhiannon Metoxen. This was a work
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updated draft and redline of the proposed amendments to the Law to prepare the draft to be
formally approved on the next LOC meeting agenda.
11/3/21 LOC: Motion by Jennifer Webster to approve the Budget Management and Control law emergency
amendments extensions packet and forward to the Oneida Business Committee for
consideration; seconded by Daniel Guzman King. Motion carried unanimously.
Motion by Kirby Metoxen to approve the draft of proposed amendments to the Budget
Management and Control law and direct that a legislative analysis be developed; seconded by
Jennifer Webster. Motion carried unanimously.
11/3/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen Hooker, Carmen Vanlanen, Rhiannon
Metoxen. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work
meeting was to discuss section 121.6-4 of the Law in relation to resolution BC-10-08-08-A
and determine next steps for moving forward.
11/4/21:
Work Meeting. Present: Clorissa N. Santiago, Lawrence Barton, Ralinda Ninham-Lamberies,
Rae Skenandore. This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this
work meeting was to review and discuss with Finance the changes the LOC made to the
proposed draft after it was submitted to them, and collect input from Finance.
11/9/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Kirby Metoxen, Jennifer Webster, Daniel Guzman
King, Marie Summers, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen Hooker, Carmen Vanlanen, Kristal Hill.
This was a work meeting held through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting
was to review the input on the proposed draft that was collected from the Finance Department.
11/10/21 OBC: Motion by David P. Jordan to adopt resolution 11-10-21-B Extension of the Emergency
Amendments to the Budget Management and Control Law, seconded by Kirby Metoxen.
Motion carried.
12/9/21:
Work Meeting. Present: David P. Jordan, Jennifer Webster, Clorissa N. Santiago, Kristen
Hooker, Carmen Vanlanen, Kristal Hill, Rhiannon Metoxen. This was a work meeting held
through Microsoft Teams. The purpose of this work meeting was to briefly review the
legislative analysis and the public comment period notice.
Next Steps:
Approve the updated draft, legislative analysis, and public comment period notice, and
forward the Budget Management and Control law amendments to a public comment period
to be held open until February 2, 2022.
A good mind. A good heart. A strong fire.
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Title 1. Government and Finances – Chapter 121
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BUDGET AND FINANCES
121.1. Purpose and Policy
121.2. Adoption, Amendment, Repeal
121.3. Definitions
121.4. Authority and Responsibilities
121.5. Budget
121.6. Expenditures and Assets
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121.7. Grants
121.8. Debts
121.9. Employment and Labor Allocations
121.10. Budget Contingency Planning
121.11. Reporting
121.12. Enforcement
121.1. Purpose and Policy
121.1-1. Purpose. The purpose of this law is to set forth the requirements to be followed by the
Oneida Business Committee and the Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to be presented
to the General Tribal Council for approval, and to establish financial policies and procedures for
the Nation which:
(a) institutionalize best practices in financial management to guide decision makers in
making informed decisions regarding the provision of services, implementation of business
plans for enterprises, investments, and capital assets;
(b) provide a long term financial prospective and strategic intent, linking budget
allocations to organizational goals, as well as providing fiscal controls and accountability
for results and outcomes;
(c) identify and communicate to the membership of the Nation spending decisions for the
government function, grant obligations, enterprises, membership mandates, capital
expenditures, technology projects, and capital improvement projects;
(d) establish a framework for effective financial risk management; and
(e) encourage participation by the Nation’s membership.
121.1-2. Policy. It is the policy of the Nation to rely on balanced-based budgeting strategies,
identifying proper authorities and ensuring compliance and enforcement. The Nation shall use
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), established by the Financial Accounting
Standards Board, and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) in accounting and
reporting for the financial activities of the various entities of the Nation, unless they conflict with
applicable legal requirements.
121.2. Adoption, Amendment, Repeal
121.2-1. This law was adopted by the Oneida Business Committee by resolution BC-02-08-17C, and amended by resolution BC-__-__-__-__.
121.2-2. This law may be amended or repealed by the Oneida Business Committee or the General
Tribal Council pursuant to the procedures set out in the Legislative Procedures Act.
121.2-3. Should a provision of this law or the application thereof to any person or circumstances
be held as invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions of this law which are considered
to have legal force without the invalid portions.
121.2-4. In the event of a conflict between a provision of this law and a provision of another law,
the provisions of this law shall control. Provided that, nothing in this law amends or repeals the
1 O.C. 121- Page 1
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requirements of resolution BC-10-08-08-A, Adopting Expenditure Authorization and Reporting
Requirements.
121.2-5. This law is adopted under authority of the Constitution of the Oneida Nation.
121.3. Definitions
121.3-1. This section shall govern the definitions of words and phrases used within this law. All
words not defined herein shall be used in their ordinary and everyday sense.
(a) “Balanced budget” means that the cost of current expenses and service provisions is
equal to the forecasted current revenue sources.
(b) “Capital contribution” means an act of giving money or assets to a company or
organization.
(c) “Capital expenditure” means any non-recurring and non-physical improvement as
follows:
(1) Any item with a cost of five thousand dollars ($5,000) or more and a useful life
of one (1) year or more; or
(2) Items purchased together where none of the items individually costs more than
two thousand dollars ($2,000), but the total purchase price for all of the items is ten
thousand dollars ($10,000) or more.
(d) “Capital improvement” means a non-recurring expenditure for physical improvements,
including costs for:
(1) acquisition of existing buildings, land, or interests in land;
(A) Acquisition of existing buildings and land completed by the Oneida
Land Commission are not included in this definition.
(2) construction of new buildings or other structures, including additions and major
alterations;
(3) acquisition of fixed equipment;
(4) landscaping;
(5) physical infrastructure; and
(6) similar expenditures with a cost of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) or more
and a useful life of one (1) year or more.
(e) “CFO” means the Nation’s Chief Financial Officer, or their designee at their discretion.
(f) “Debt” means the secured or unsecured obligations owed by the Nation.
(g) “Debt Service Coverage Ratio” means a measurement of creditors available cash flow
to pay debt obligations. This ratio evaluates if an entity has income capacity to service
debts. The Debt Service Coverage Ratio is calculated by dividing the net operating income
by the total debt service costs.
(1) Net operating income is the income or cash flows that are left over after all of
the operating expenses have been paid.
(h) “Executive Manager” means a position of employment within the Nation that is the
highest level in the chain of command under the Oneida Business Committee who is
responsible for a department or division of the Nation, which includes, but is not limited
to, the following positions within the Nation: General Manager, Gaming General Manager,
Retail General Manager, Chief Legal Counsel, and Chief Financial Officer.
(i) “Expenditure report” means a financial report which includes, but is not limited to, a
statement of cash flows, revenues, costs and expenses, assets, liabilities, and a statement of
1 O.C. 121- Page 2
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financial position.
(j) “Finance Administration” means the department of the Nation which consists of the
Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial Officer, the executive assistant to the
Chief Financial Officer, and any other designated employee.
(k) “Fiscal year” means the one (1) year period each year from October 1st to September
30th.
(l) “Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio” means a measurement of a creditors capacity of
earnings level or ability to cover its fixed charges such as debt payments, interest expenses,
and leases expenses. Financial institutions will evaluate this ratio for purposes of credit
risk. The Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio is calculated by adding the earnings before interest
and taxes (EBIT) to the interest expense, lease expense and other fixed charges, and then
dividing that adjusted EBIT by the amount of fixed charges plus interest.
(m) “Fund unit” means any board, committee, commission, service, program, enterprise,
department, office, or any other division or non-division of the Nation which receives an
appropriation approved by the Nation.
(n) “Line item” means the specific account within a fund unit’s budget or category that
expenditures are charged to.
(o) “Manager” means the person in charge of directing, controlling, and administering the
activities of a fund unit.
(p) “Nation” means the Oneida Nation.
(q) “Secretary” means the Oneida Nation Secretary.
(r) “Treasurer” means the Oneida Nation Treasurer, or their designee at their discretion.
121.4. Authority and Responsibilities
121.4-1. Oneida Business Committee. The Oneida Business Committee shall:
(a) oversee the development of the Nation’s budget;
(b) oversee the implementation of the Nation’s budget;
(c) develop priorities, a strategic plan, or broad goals to assist in guiding the budget; and
(d) exercise the authority provided in Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution and Bylaws
of the Oneida Nation, as delegated to the Oneida Business Committee by the General Tribal
Council.
121.4-2. Treasurer. In accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws of the Oneida Nation, the
Nation’s Treasurer shall:
(a) accept, receive, receipt for, preserve and safeguard all funds in the custody of the
Nation, whether they be funds of the Nation or special funds for which the Nation is acting
as trustee or custodian;
(b) deposit all funds in such depository as the Nation shall direct and shall make and
preserve a faithful record of such funds;
(c) submit expenditure reports and other financial reports as deemed necessary by the
Oneida Business Committee or the General Tribal Council at:
(1) the annual General Tribal Council meeting;
(2) the semi-annual General Tribal Council meeting; and
(3) other such times as may be directed by the Oneida Business Committee or the
General Tribal Council; and
1 O.C. 121- Page 3
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(d) present the proposed draft budget to the General Tribal Council at the annual budget
meeting.
121.4-3. Chief Financial Officer. The CFO shall:
(a) ensure the Nation’s budget is properly implemented;
(b) provide managers with monthly revenue and expense reports;
(c) assist with the submission and presentation of the Treasurer’s report to the Oneida
Business Committee, which shall specifically include any monthly variances that are
either:
(1) a difference of three percent (3%) or more from the adopted annual budget; or
(2) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more in total;
(d) provide the Oneida Business Committee with information and reports as requested;
(e) present the Treasurer’s report and hold financial condition meetings with the Nation’s
management on a minimum of a quarterly basis; and
(f) inform the appropriate Executive Manager of any fund unit which does not follow the
budget development process guidelines or deadlines as set forth by the Treasurer.
121.4-4. Managers. Managers shall:
(a) ensure that their business units operate, on a day-to-day basis, in compliance with the
budget adopted pursuant to this law;
(b) report to the CFO and their relevant Executive Manager explanations and corrective
actions for any monthly variance that is either:
(1) a difference of three percent (3%) or more from the adopted annual budget; or
(2) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more in total;
(c) submit budget review reports to the CFO on a reasonable and timely basis not to exceed
thirty (30) calendar days from the end of the month; and
(d) submit a budget for their fund unit in accordance with the budget schedule and
guidelines as adopted by the Oneida Business Committee.
121.5. Budget
121.5-1. The Nation shall develop, adopt, and manage an annual budget. All revenues and
expenditures of the Nation shall be in accordance with the annual budget.
(a) The Nation’s budget shall be a balanced budget and not propose to spend more funds
than are reasonably expected to become available to the Nation during that fiscal year.
(1) Underwriting debt resources or the utilization of existing debt instruments shall
be expressly prohibited from use to balance the Nation’s annual budget.
(b) The budget shall align with any strategic plan, broad goals, or priorities developed and
adopted by the Oneida Business Committee on behalf of the Nation.
(c) The Nation’s corporate entities shall not be included in the Nation’s budget.
121.5-2. Content of the Budget. The Nation’s budget shall include the following information:
(a) Estimated revenues to be received from all sources;
(b) The individual budgets of each fund unit;
(c) A description of each line item within each fund unit’s budget;
(d) The estimated expenditures by each fund unit; and
(e) Summary of employment position counts including prior year, current year, and
budgeted year.
1 O.C. 121- Page 4
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121.5-3. Fund Categories. The Nation’s budget shall include, but not be limited to, the following
categories of fund accounts:
(a) General Fund. The General Fund account is the Nation’s main operating fund which
is used to account for all financial resources not accounted for in other funds.
(b) Permanent Executive Contingency Fund. The Permanent Executive Contingency Fund
account is used by the Nation to prevent default on debt and to sustain operations during
times of extreme financial distress.
(c) Grant Reserve Fund. The Grant Reserve Fund account is used by the Nation to prefund the expenditures of grants upon receipt.
121.5-4. Budget Adoption Procedure. The Nation shall develop and adopt its budget according
to the following procedures:
(a)
Budget Schedule and Guidelines. The Treasurer shall develop the necessary
guidelines, including specific timelines and deadlines, to be followed by the managers that
have budget responsibility in preparing and submitting proposed budgets. The Treasurer
shall submit the guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for review and approval
through the adoption of a resolution by __(insert month)__ of each year.
(1) The budget schedule and guidelines shall include at least one (1) opportunity
for community input from the Nation’s membership on what should be included in
the upcoming fiscal year budget.
(2) Each fund unit shall be responsible for complying with the budget schedule and
guidelines to submit a proposed budget to the Treasurer. The Finance
Administration shall not submit any budget on behalf of a fund unit unless granted
express permission from the CFOOneida Business Committee.
(3) The Oneida Business Committee shall set a deadline through the adoption of a
resolution for when the Treasurer shall submit their budget guidelines to the Oneida
Business Committee for review and approval.
(b) Annual Proposed Budgets. The Treasurer shall receive, review, and compile the
proposed budgets from all the fund units into the Nation’s draft budget. The Treasurer shall
present the Nation’s draft budget to the Oneida Business Committee for review each year
to ensure that it is consistent with the Nation’s strategic plan, broad goals, and budget
strategy.
(1) (1) Notification of Budget Increases. The Treasurer shall identify in the budget
guidelines a percentage of an increase in a fund unit’s budget from the prior year
budget that is required to be noticed to the Oneida Business Committee. The
Treasurer shall notify the Oneida Business Committee of any fund units whose
proposed budget increased by __(insertthis percentage)__ or more from the prior
budget.
(c) Final Draft Budget. The Oneida Business Committee shall work with the Treasurer,
CFO, and managers to compile a final draft budget to be presented to the General Tribal
Council. The Oneida Business Committee shall approve, by resolution, the final draft
budget to be presented to the General Tribal Council.
(d) Community Meetings. Once the Oneida Business Committee has approved the final
draft budget, the Treasurer shall hold, at a minimum, two (2) community informational
meetings to present the contents of the final draft budget that will be presented to the
General Tribal Council.
1 O.C. 121- Page 5
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(e) Budget Adoption. The Oneida Business Committee shall present the budget to the
General Tribal Council with a request for adoption by resolution no later than September
30th of each year. The General Tribal Council shall be responsible for adopting the
Nation’s budget.
(1) Continuing Budget Resolution. In the event that the General Tribal Council
does not adopt a budget by September 30th, the Oneida Business Committee may
adopt a continuing budget resolution(s) until such time as a budget is adopted by
the General Tribal Council.
(2) Emergency Budget Adoption. In the event that the Nation proclaims an
emergency, in accordance with the Emergency Management law, whichthat stays
in effect for at least one (1) month and prevents the presentation to and adoption of
the budget by the General Tribal Council, the Oneida Business Committee shall
adopt the Nation’s budget.
121.5-5. Amendments to the Nation’s Budget. After the budget is adopted, amendments of the
budget shall not be permitted unless it is necessary to avoid a budget deficit. The Treasurer and
CFO shall identify when forecasted revenue and forecasted expenses are impacted in a manner
which creates a deficit for the current fiscal year. The Oneida Business Committee shall be
responsible for adopting an amendment to the budget through resolution of the Nation. The Oneida
Business Committee shall present notification of the budget amendment at the next available
General Tribal Council meeting.
121.6. Expenditures and Assets
121.6-1. Authority to Expend Funds. The Oneida Business Committee shall have the authority to
expend appropriated funds in accordance with the Nation’s adopted budget pursuant to the
Procurement Manual developed by the Purchasing Department. The authority to expend funds is
then necessarily delegated to other managers, including Executive Managers of the Nation who
manage budgets pursuant to their job descriptions based on the Procurement Manual.
121.6-2. Procurement Manual. The Purchasing Department shall develop a Procurement Manual
which provides the sign-off process and authorities required to expend funds on behalf of the
Nation. The Procurement Manual, and any amendments thereto, shall be approved by the Oneida
Business Committee through adoption of a resolution.
121.6-3. Fees and Charges. A program or service of the Nation funded through Tribal
contribution may charge fees for their services to cover operational costs.
(a) Before charging fees for services, a program or service shall first determine the full
cost of providing the program or service. The full cost of providing a program or service
includes all costs including operation costs, overhead such as direct and indirect costs, and
depreciation.
(b) Fees and charges may cover the full cost of service or goods whenever such fee or
charge would not present an undue financial burden to the recipient.
(c) Programs and services charging fees may offer fee waivers, provided that the program
or service has developed a standard operating procedure which outlines fee waiver
eligibility and requirements.
121.6-4. Unbudgeted Expenditures.
1 O.C. 121- Page 6
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(a) Approval of Unbudgeted Expenditures. The Oneida Business Committee shall present
notification of approve any unbudgeted expenditure prior to the expenditure being made
by a fund unit.
(b) Notification of the NationUnbudgeted Expenditures. The Oneida Business Committee
shall set through resolution a threshold amount for one million dollars ($1,000,000) or
moreunbudgeted expenditures that require notification by the Oneida Business Committee
to the General Tribal Council at the next available General Tribal Council meeting.
(bc) Unbudgeted Supplemental Funding. In the event that the Nation receives any
supplemental or emergency funding of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($250,000)
or more, the Oneida Business Committee shall develop and adopt, through resolution, a
spending plan to guide expenditures of the supplemental funding in accordance with any
provided guidance for the supplemental funding and audit compliance.
121.6-5. Obligated Future Expenditures. No fund unit shall obligate the Nation to make any
future expenditures beyond the current budget year unless the fund unit identifies, and the Oneida
Business Committee approves through the adoption of a resolution, the source and extent of any
future funds that are recommended to be held in reserve to meet that future obligation.
121.6-6. Unexpended Funds.
(a) Unexpended Capital Improvement Funds. Unexpended capital improvement funds
shall carry over to the next fiscal year’s budget, provided that such funds are required to
remain appropriated for the same purpose as originally budgeted until the project is
complete. Once a capital improvement project is complete, any remaining unexpended
funds shall be returned to the General Fund.
(b) Unexpended Capital Expenditure Funds. The Treasurer shall ensure that all
unexpended capital expenditure funds are reallocated to the fiscal year budget two (2) years
out from the fiscal year in which the funds were unexpended. Such unexpended funds shall
be returned to the General Fund.
121.6-7. Capital Contributions. Any capital contributions made by the Nation shall be identified
in the annual budget.
(a) Any reassignment of a loan provided by the Nation into a capital contribution shall be
noticed to the General Tribal Council.
121.6-8. Assets of the Nation shall not be divested, or borrowed against, to balance the annual
budget.
121.6-9. Capital Improvements.
(a) Capital Improvement Plan for Government Services. The Oneida Business Committee
shall develop, and the General Tribal Council shall approve, a capital improvement plan
for government services.
(1) The capital improvement plan for government services shall cover a period of
five (5) to ten (10) years and shall include any risks and liabilities.
(2) The capital improvement plan for government services shall be reassessed once
every five (5) years. The Oneida Business Committee shall provide a status report
and recommendation for any improvements that have not been completed or that
have been modified at the time of the reassessment.
(b) Capital Improvement Plan for Enterprises. Capital improvement plans for enterprises
may be brought forward as needed, provided that the Oneida Business Committee shall
approve all capital improvement plans for enterprises.
1 O.C. 121- Page 7
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(c) Capital Improvement Plan Implementation. Capital improvement plans for
government services and enterprises shall be implemented, contingent on available funding
capacity.
121.7. Grants
121.7-1. Expending Grant Funds. Grant funds shall be expended according to any non-negotiable
grant requirements and guidelines of the granting agency.
(a) Grant funds may be utilized for, but not limited to, the following:
(1) purchases;
(2) travel;
(3) training;
(4) hiring grant required positions;
(5) incentives and retention efforts; and
(6) any other requirements attached to the funds as a condition of the Nation’s
acceptance of the grant funds.
(b) Grant funds may be utilized for an expenditure even when other policies of the Nation
do not allow for Tribal contribution to make that same expenditure, if only grant funds are
utilized for the expenditure and all requirements or obligations of the grant are met.
Provided that, grant funds may be subject to the requirements of the budget contingency
plan and any cost containment initiatives adopted by the Oneida Business Committee.
121.7-2. Exhaustion of Non-Tribal Funds. When grant funds provide for forward funding as
applicable to a function for which the Nation’s funds have also been appropriated, those grant
funds shall be used before appropriating the Nation’s funds unless the Nation’s funds are needed
to make up an otherwise shortfall in the overall fund unit budget or there is a restriction on the
grant funds that provide otherwise.
121.7-3. Grant Reporting. At the time of submission of proposed annual budgets, any fund unit
which receives grant funding shall submit a status report of the grant funding received to the
Oneida Business Committee. The status report shall include, but not be limited to:
(a) information on the progress of the utilization of the grant funds;
(b) the number of employees the grant funding supports fully or partially; and
(c) compliance with obligations of the grant funding.
121.7-4. Grant Reserve Fund Account. The Oneida Business Committee shall maintain a Grant
Reserve Fund account within the ownership investment report to be used to pre-fund the
expenditures of grants upon receipt. The Grant Reserve Fund account shall be a restrictedan
obligated fund, that is fully funded with separately identified cash resources.
(a) The Treasurer, in consultation with the CFO, shall establish, and the Oneida Business
Committee shall approve, the level of funds required in the Grant Reserve Fund account
relative to the scale of grant dollars we receive on an annual basis.
(b) The Treasurer shall set aside funds within the budget in the Grant Reserve Fund account
until the established level has been achieved.
121.7-5. Grant Funded Positions. If the grant funding for a fully grant funded position is
eliminated, then the position shall be eliminated until such a time that a new position can be
included and approved in the Nation’s annual budget and labor allocations.
1 O.C. 121- Page 8
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121.8. Debts
121.8-1. General. The acquisition of debt by the Nation shall be processed in accordance with
sound fiscal diligence. The Nation shall comply with all relevant federal and state banking laws,
rules, and policies applicable to the credit agreement.
(a) Any debt instrument utilized by the Nation shall not exceed the life of what is being
encumbered.
121.8-2. ApprovalNotice of the Acquisition of Debt. Any debt underwritten by the Nation for one
million dollars ($1,000,000) or more shall be noticed to the General Tribal Council at the next
available meeting after the execution of the credit agreement encumbering all pledges of
repayment.
121.8-3. Use of Debt. Credit proceeds may be utilized for project capital, general use, financing
of equity, and all unspecified uses. Compliance with debt covenants is required to avoid credit
default.
121.8-4. Credit Ratios. Maintaining fiscally responsible prudent credit ratios is consistent with
effective budget management and financial control.
(a) Debt Service Coverage Ratio. The Debt Service Coverage Ratio shall not exceed a
range of zero (0) to two (2) as defined by Generally Accepted Accounting Principles.
(b) Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio. The Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio shall be maintained
at a range of one and twenty-five hundredths (1.25) or higher as defined by Generally
Accepted Accounting Principles.
121.8-5. Corporate Debt. The Nation shall not be obligated to any debt obligations of its corporate
entities.
121.9. Employment and Labor Allocations
121.9-1. Employment Cap. The Treasurer and CFO shall identify a maximum number of fulltime equivalent (FTE) employees to be employed by the Nation. The Oneida Business Committee
shall have the authority to approve this employment cap, and any amendments thereto, through the
adoption of a resolution. The employment cap shall be reviewed annually by the Oneida Business
Committee.
(a) Employment positions that are fully funded through grants shall not be included in the
employment cap.
(b) The Nation shall not exceed the number of FTE employees identified in the
employment cap.
121.9-2. Labor Allocations List. The Treasurer, CFO, Executive Managers, and the Executive
Human Resources Director shall utilize the Nation’s employment cap to develop a labor
allocations list. The labor allocations list shall identify the number of FTE employees each
employment area of the Nation is allocated. The Oneida Business Committee shall have the
authority to adopt the labor allocation list, and any amendments thereto, through the adoption of a
resolution. The Oneida Business Committee shall review the labor allocations list on an annual
basis.
(a) The total number of FTE employees identified in the labor allocations list shall not
exceed the Nation’s employment cap.
(b) The Treasurer, CFO, Executive Managers, and Executive Human Resources Director
shall develop a standard operating procedure which identifies a process for the
consideration of requests to revise the labor allocations list. The Oneida Business
1 O.C. 121- Page 9
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Committee shall approve this standard operating procedure, and any amendments thereto,
through the adoption of a resolution.
121.9-3. Unbudgeted Positions. Any position which has not been specifically budgeted for and
included in the labor allocation list shall be prohibited. Budgeted labor dollars and approved
positions shall not be transferrable in any form.
(a) Exception. The Oneida Business Committee may authorize an unbudgeted position for
a fund unit if the fund unit is a revenue generating fund unit undergoing an economic
development initiative, which may include, but is not limited to, any new business
development, expansion, merger, acquisition, or renovation which results in a new profit
revenue source for the Nation.
121.10. Budget Contingency Planning
121.10-1. Budget Contingency Plan. The Oneida Business Committee shall work with the CFO,
Executive Managers, and managers to create a budget contingency plan which provides a strategy
for the Nation to respond to extreme financial distress that could negatively impact the Nation.
(a) Extreme financial distress includes, but is not limited to:
(1) natural or human-made disasters;
(2) United States Government shutdown;
(3) emergency proclamations; and
(4) economic downturns.
(b) The Oneida Business Committee shall approve the budget contingency plan, and any
amendments thereto, through the adoption of a resolution.
121.10-2. Cost Saving Tools. As part of the budget contingency plan, the Oneida Business
Committee may require the use of cost saving tools, provided that the use of such complies with
all laws of the Nation. Cost saving tools may include, but are not limited to, the use of the
following:
(a) stabilization funds;
(b) reductions of expenditures;
(c) furloughs; and
(d) layoffs.
121.10-3. When the Oneida Business Committee determines that the Nation is under extreme
financial distress, the Oneida Business Committee shall be responsible for implementing the
budget contingency plan.
121.10-4. Permanent Executive Contingency Fund Account. The Oneida Business Committee
shall maintain a Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account within the ownership investment
report to be used to prevent default on debt and to sustain operations during times of extreme
financial distress. The Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account shall be a restricted fund.
(a) The Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account shall consist of a minimum
reserve of one (1) year of operating expenses to ensure continuity of business for the
Nation.
(b) The Treasurer, in consultation with the CFO, shall set aside __(insertestablish, and the
Oneida Business Committee shall approve through the adoption of a resolution, the
percentage)___ of the annual budget that shall be set aside in the Permanent Executive
Contingency Fund account until the established level has been achieved.
1 O.C. 121- Page 10
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(c) Funds in the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account may only be used when
the Oneida Business Committee has determined that the Nation is under extreme financial
distress for the following purposes and only to the extent that alternative funding sources
are unavailable:
(1) payments to notes payable to debt service, both principal and interest, and
applicable service fees;
(2) employee payroll, including all applicable taxes;
(3) payments to vendors for gaming and retail;
(4) payments to vendors for governmental operations;
(5) payments to any other debt; and
(6) to sustain any of the Nation’s other operations during implementation of the
budget contingency plan.
121.11. Reporting
121.11-1. Monthly Reporting. The Treasurer shall provide monthly reports and quarterly
operational reports from direct reports to the Oneida Business Committee in accordance with the
Secretary’s Oneida Business Committee packet schedule for the Oneida Business Committee
meeting held for the acceptance of such reports.
(a) The Treasurer’s monthly reports shall include revenue and expense summaries.
121.11-2. Annual and Semi-Annual Reporting to the General Tribal Council. The Treasurer shall
report on all receipts and expenditures and the amount and nature of all funds in their possession
and custody, at the annual and semi-annual General Tribal Council meetings, and at such other
times as requested by the General Tribal Council or the Oneida Business Committee.
(a) The Treasurer reports shall include an independently audited annual financial statement
that provides the status or conclusion of all the receipts and debts in possession of the
Treasurer including, but not limited to, all corporations owned in full or in part by the
Nation.
121.11-3. Audits. The Internal Audit Department, annually, shall conduct independent
comprehensive performance audits, in accordance with the Nation’s Audit law, the Financial
Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board
(GASB), of randomly selected fund units or of fund units deemed necessary by the Oneida
Business Committee or Internal Audit Department. Each fund unit shall offer its complete
cooperation to the Internal Audit Department. The Oneida Business Committee may, as it deems
necessary, contract with an independent audit firm to conduct such audits.
121.12. Enforcement
121.12-1. Compliance and Enforcement. All employees and officials of the Nation shall comply
with and enforce this law to the greatest extent possible.
(a) The Executive Managers shall notify the Oneida Business Committee of any fund unit
which does not comply with the budget schedule or guidelines. A list of all fund units
which did not comply with the budget schedule or guidelines shall be included in the annual
report to the General Tribal Council.
121.12-2. Violations. Violations of this law shall be addressed using the applicable enforcement
tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited to, those related to
employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and removal from an elected position.
1 O.C. 121- Page 11
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121.12-3. Civil or Criminal Charges. This law shall not be construed to preclude the Nation from
pursuing civil or criminal charges under applicable law. Violations of applicable federal or state
civil or criminal laws, or any laws of the Nation, may be pursued in a court having jurisdiction
over any such matter.
End.
Adopted – BC-02-08-17-C
Emergency Amended – BC-11-24-20-E
Emergency Amended – BC-05-12-21-C
Emergency Extension – BC-11-10-21-B
Amended – BC-__-__-__-__
1 O.C. 121- Page 12
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ONEIDA NATION
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD NOTICE
Due to the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
Only Written Comments Will Be Accepted Until:
WEDNESDAY, February 2, 2022
Find Public Meeting Materials at
Oneida-nsn.gov/government/
register/public meetings
Send Public Comments to
LOC@oneidanation.org
BUDGET MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL LAW AMENDMENTS
The purpose of this law is to set forth the requirements to be followed by the Oneida Business
Committee and Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to be presented to the General
Tribal Council for approval, and to establish other financial policies and procedures for the
Nation.
The proposed amendments to the Budget Management and Control law will:
1. Expand the purpose and policy of this Law to address other financial policies and procedures for the Nation beyond just the budget process;
2. Eliminate the strategic planning provisions from this Law, instead providing simply that the
Oneida Business Committee should develop and adopt a strategic plan, broad goals, or priorities for the Nation that the budget shall reflect;
3. Clarify the authority and responsibilities of those individuals who play a part in the Nation’s budget process;
4. Simplify the budget process and procedure contained in the Law in an effort to improve the
Nation’s compliance with the Law and provide more flexibility to adjust the budget development and adoption procedure to meet the Nation’s current circumstances; and
5. Include new provisions which address unbudgeted expenditures, obligated future expenditures, capital contributions, grants, debt, employment and labor allocations, and unbudgeted positions.
For more information on the proposed amendments to the Budget Management and Control
law please review the public comment packet at oneida-nsn.gov/government/register/public
meetings.
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD CLOSES WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 2022
The Nation’s COVID-19 Team issued a declaration on March 27, 2020, titled “Suspension of Public Meetings
under the Legislative Procedures Act.” This declaration provides that the Legislative Procedures Act’s requirement to hold a public meeting during the public comment period is suspended due to the COVID-19 public health emergency. Oneida Business Committee resolution BC-12-08-21-B, Updating Public Gathering
Guidelines During Public Health State of Emergency - COVID-19, prohibits indoor public meetings from occurring when COVID-19 Case Activity rates are above low in Brown and Outagamie Counties, COVID-19
Percent Positive rates are above low in Brown and Outagamie Counties, and when COVID-19 Community
Transmission Rates by ZIP Code Tabulation Area are above low in the designated ZIP Codes or the ZIP Code
in which the activity is being held, as identified on the Wisconsin Department of Health Services website for
the most recent period. The Nation has not yet met these thresholds for holding an indoor public meeting. Although there will be no in person public meeting, the public comment period will still occur, and individuals
can participate in the legislative process by submitting written comments, questions, or other input via e-mail
to LOC@oneidanation.org.
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BUDGET MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL LAW
AMENDMENTS
LEGISLATIVE ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Intent of the
Proposed Law
Purpose
Affected
Entities
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Office
Revise the name of this law from Budget Management and Control Law to Budget
and Finances Law;
Expand the purpose and policy of this Law to address other financial policies and
procedures for the Nation beyond just the budget process [1 O.C. 121.1-1, 121.12];
Eliminate the strategic planning provisions from this Law, instead providing simply
that the Oneida Business Committee should develop and adopt a strategic plan,
broad goals, or priorities for the Nation that the budget shall reflect[1 O.C. 121.41(c), 121.5-1(b)];
Clarify the authority and responsibilities of those individuals who play a part in the
Nation’s budget process [1 O.C. 121.4];
Simplify the budget process and procedure contained in the Law in an effort to
improve the Nation’s compliance with the Law and provide more flexibility to
adjust the budget development and adoption procedure to meet the Nation’s current
circumstances [1 O.C. 121.5];
Include new provisions which address:
unbudgeted expenditures [1 O.C. 121.6-4];
obligated future expenditures [1 O.C. 121.6-5];
capital contributions [1 O.C. 121.6-7];
grants [1 O.C. 121.7];
debt [1 O.C. 121.8];
employment and labor allocations [1 O.C. 121.9]; and
unbudgeted positions. [1 O.C. 121.6-4].
To set forth the requirements to be followed by the Oneida Business Committee and
Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to be presented to the General Tribal
Council for approval, and to establish financial policies and procedures for the Nation
which:
institutionalize best practices in financial management to guide decision makers in
making informed decisions regarding the provision of services, implementation of
business plans for enterprises, investments, and capital assets;
provide a long term financial prospective and strategic intent, linking budget
allocations to organizational goals, as well as providing fiscal controls and
accountability for results and outcomes;
identify and communicate to the membership of the Nation spending decisions for
the government function, grant obligations, enterprises, membership mandates,
capital expenditures, technology projects, and capital improvement projects;
establish a framework for effective financial risk management; and
encourage participation by the Nation’s membership. [1 O.C. 121.1-1].
Oneida Business Committee, Finance Administration, Executive Managers, Oneida
Fund Units.
Page 1 of 19
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Related
Legislation
Public Meeting
Fiscal Impact
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
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23
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27
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35
36
37
Legislative Procedures Act, Internal Audit law, Emergency Management law, Oneida
Personnel Policies and Procedures, Administrative Rulemaking law, Furlough Policy,
Layoff Policy, Conflict of Interest law, Code of Ethics law, Removal law.
A public comment period has not yet been held.
A fiscal impact statement has not yet been requested.
SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE DEVELOPMENT
A. Background. The Budget Management and Control law (“the Law”) was adopted by the Oneida
Business Committee through resolution BC-02-08-17-C to set forth the requirements to be followed
by the Oneida Business Committee and Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to be presented
to the General Tribal Council for approval and to establish a triennial strategy planning process for the
Nation’s budget. [1 O.C. 121.1-1]. On August 12, 2020, during an executive session discussion on the
supervision of the Chief Financial Officer, the Oneida Business Committee adopted a motion to send
the entire subject of supervision of the Chief Financial Officer to the LOC for further analysis to create
permanent amendments in the Budget Management and Control law for Tiers III, IV, and V for future
events. The Legislative Operating Committee added the Law to its Active Files List on October 7, 2020.
B. Emergency Amendments Adopted through Resolution BC-11-24-20-E. In November 2020, the
Oneida Business Committee sought emergency amendments to the Law to address the adoption of the
Nation’s budget during the COVID-19 Public Health State of Emergency. Due to the COVID-19
pandemic, holding a General Tribal Council meeting to adopt the budget would place members in
significant jeopardy of contact with the virus and cause the virus to spread throughout the community,
which would unduly jeopardize the health and safety of elders, children and adults. On November 24,
2020, the Oneida Business Committee adopted an emergency amendment to the Law through the
adoption of resolution BC-11-24-20-E which included a new provision that provided that in the event
that the Nation proclaims an emergency, in accordance with the Emergency Management law, which
prevents presentation and adoption of the budget by the General Tribal Council, the Oneida Business
Committee shall adopt the Nation’s budget. These emergency amendments to the Law were set to
expire on May 24, 2021.
C. Emergency Amendments Adopted through Resolution BC-05-12-21-C. At the April 28, 2021, Oneida
Business Committee meeting the Nation’s Secretary provided a memorandum which expressed
concerns regarding the Nation’s lack of compliance with the Law and requested that the Oneida
Business Committee make one of the following considerations: an emergency repeal of the Law due to
the fact that the processes and procedures, specifically the deadlines for the various steps of the budget
process contained in the law are not currently being followed; or emergency amendments to the Law
to remove much of the budget process and/or deadlines and revise the Law so it simply states a budget
should be adopted by September 30th. The Oneida Business Committee then adopted a motion directing
the Legislative Operating Committee to develop emergency amendments to the Law to address this
issue. The Oneida Business Committee then adopted emergency amendments to the Law on May 12,
2021, through resolution BC-05-12-21-C which removed details of the budget process from the Law
and instead directed the Treasurer to develop the necessary guidelines and procedures, including
specific deadlines, for the Nation’s budget development process, and then submit those guidelines for
the development of the budget to the Oneida Business Committee for review and approval. These
emergency amendments to the Law were set to expire on November 12, 2021.
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D. Emergency Amendments Extended through Resolution BC-11-10-21-B. On November 10, 2021, the
Oneida Business Committee extended the emergency amendments to the Law adopted through
resolution BC-05-12-21-C for an additional six (6) month period. The Legislative Procedures Act
allows the Oneida Business Committee to extend emergency amendments for a six (6) month time
period. [1 O.C. 109.9-5(b)]. A six (6) month extension of the emergency amendments to the Law was
requested to provide additional time for the Legislative Operating Committee to process the adoption
of permanent amendments to the Law. The emergency amendments to the Law will now expire on May
12, 2022.
E. The Legislative Operating Committee is now seeking the permanent adoption of comprehensive
amendments to the Law.
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SECTION 3. CONSULTATION AND OUTREACH
A. The following positions within the Nation participated in the development of this Law and legislative
analysis:
Treasurer;
Chief Financial Officer;
Assistance Chief Financial Officer;
Budget Analyst; and
Strategic Planner.
B. The following laws of the Nation were reviewed in the drafting of this analysis:
Legislative Procedures Act;
Internal Audit law;
Emergency Management law;
Oneida Personnel Policies and Procedures;
Administrative Rulemaking law;
Furlough Policy;
Layoff Policy;
Conflict of Interest law;
Code of Ethics law; and
Removal law.
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A. This Law has followed the process set forth in the Legislative Procedures Act (LPA).
On October 7, 2020, the Legislative Operating Committee added this Law to its Active Files
List.
On November 24, 2020, the Oneida Business Committee adopted an emergency amendment to
the Law through the adoption of resolution BC-11-24-20-E to address the adoption of the
Nation’s budget during the COVID-19 Public Health State of Emergency.
On May 12, 2021, the Oneida Business Committee adopted additional emergency amendments
through resolution BC-05-12-21-C which removed details of the budget process from the Law
and instead directed the Treasurer to develop the necessary guidelines and procedures,
including specific deadlines, for the Nation’s budget development process, and then submit
those guidelines for the development of the budget to the Oneida Business Committee for
review and approval.
SECTION 4. PROCESS
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On November 3, 2021, the Legislative Operating Committee approved the draft of proposed
amendments to the Law.
Additionally, on November 3, 2021, the Legislative Operating Committee approved the
emergency amendments extensions packet and forwarded these items to the Oneida Business
Committee for consideration.
On November 10, 2021, the Oneida Business Committee extended the emergency amendments
to the Law for an additional six (6) month period through the adoption of resolution BC-11-1021-B.
On December 15, 2021, the Legislative Operating Committee will consider the approval of an
updated draft of amendments to the Law and this legislative analysis. The Legislative Operating
Committee will also consider scheduling a public comment period to be held for the proposed
amendments to this Law.
B. At the time this legislative analysis was developed the following work meetings had been held
regarding the development of this Law:
October 21, 2020: LOC work meeting held with the Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer,
Assistant Chief Financial Officer, Budget Analyst, and Strategic Planner.
December 2, 2020: LOC work meeting.
January 22, 2021: Work meeting with Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial
Officer, Budget Analyst, and Strategic Planner.
January 28, 2021: LOC work meeting.
February 9, 2021: Work meeting with Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief
Financial Officer, Budget Analyst, and Strategic Planner.
February 25, 2021: Work meeting with Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief
Financial Officer, Budget Analyst, and Strategic Planner.
April 29, 2021: LOC work meeting.
May 25, 2021: Work meeting with Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial Officer,
and Budget Analyst.
June 16, 2021: Work meeting with Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief
Financial Officer, and Budget Analyst.
July 7, 2021: Work meeting with Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial
Officer, and Budget Analyst.
October 12, 2021: Work meeting with Treasurer, Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief
Financial Officer, and Budget Analyst.
October 14, 2021: LOC work meeting.
October 15, 2021: LOC work meeting.
October 20, 2021: LOC work meeting.
November 3, 2021: LOC work meeting.
November 4, 2021: Work Meeting with the Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial
Officer, and Budget Analyst.
November 9. 2021: LOC work meeting.
C. COVID-19 Pandemic’s Effect on the Legislative Process. The world is currently facing a pandemic
of COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in high rates of infection and mortality, as well
as vast economic impacts including effects on the stock market and the closing of all non-essential
businesses. A public meeting for the proposed amendments to the Law will not be held due to the
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COVID-19 pandemic, but a public comment period for the submission of written comments will be
held open.
Declaration of a Public Health State of Emergency.
On March 12, 2020, Chairman Tehassi Hill signed a “Declaration of Public Health State
of Emergency” regarding the COVID-19 pandemic which declared a Public Health State
of Emergency for the Nation until April 12, 2020, and set into place the necessary authority
for action to be taken and allows the Nation to seek reimbursement of emergency
management actions that may result in unexpected expenses.
The Public Health State of Emergency has since been extended until January 23, 2021, by
the Oneida Business Committee through the adoption of resolutions BC-03-28-20-A, BC05-06-20-A, BC-06-10-20-A, BC-07-08-20-A, BC-08-06-20-A, BC-09-09-20-A, BC-1008-20-A, BC-11-10-20-A, BC-12-09-20-D, BC-01-07-21-A, BC-02-10-21-A, BC-03-1021-D, BC-05-12-21-A, BC-06-23-21-B, BC-07-28-21-N, BC-09-22-21-A, and BC-11-2421-F.
COVID-19 Core Decision Making Team Declaration: Suspension of Public Meetings under the
Legislative Procedures Act.
On March 27, 2020, the Nation’s COVID-19 Core Decision Making Team issued a
“Suspension of Public Meetings under the Legislative Procedures Act” declaration which
suspended the Legislative Procedures Act's requirement to hold a public meeting during
the public comment period, but allows members of the community to still participate in the
legislative process by submitting written comments, questions, data, or input on proposed
legislation to the Legislative Operating Committee via e-mail during the public comment
period.
Oneida Busines Committee Resolution BC-12-8-21-B, Updating Public Gathering Guidelines
During Public Health State of Emergency - COVID-19.
On December 8, 2021, the Oneida Business Committee adopted resolution BC-12-08-21B, Updating Public Gathering Guidelines During Public Health State of Emergency COVID-19, which superseded Oneida Business Committee resolution BC-08-13-21-A,
Setting Public Gathering Guidelines During Public Health State of Emergency - COVID19, and provides updated guidelines on holding meetings both indoors and outdoors.
This resolution provides that when the following levels are met, indoor meetings of the
Nation are feasible, provided that all organizers and participants should consider additional
health safety measures when attending such as wearing a face mask, washing hands
frequently, and social distancing:
When COVID-19 Case Activity rates are at or below low in Brown and Outagamie
Counties, or the county in which the activity is being held, as identified on the
Wisconsin Department of Health Services website for the most recent period.
When COVID-19 Percent Positive rates are at or below low in Brown and
Outagamie Counties, or the county in which the activity is being held, as identified
on the Wisconsin Department of Health Services website for the most recent
period.
When COVID-19 Community Transmission Rates by ZIP Code Tabulation Area
are at or below low in designated ZIP Codes or the ZIP Code in which the activity
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is being held, as identified on the Wisconsin Department of Health Services
website for the most recent period.
Conclusion.
Although a public meeting will not be held on the proposed amendments to the Law, a
public comment period will still be held open in accordance with resolution BC-12-08-21B and the Legislative Procedures Act as modified by the COVID-19 Core Decision Making
Team’s “Suspension of Public Meetings under the Legislative Procedures Act” declaration.
SECTION 5. CONTENTS OF THE LEGISLATION
A. Purpose and Policy. Both the purpose and policy section of this law has been extended through the
proposed amendments. The purpose of this Law has always been to set forth the requirements to be
followed by the Oneida Business Committee and the Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to
be presented to the General Tribal Council for approval, but now the Law goes on to provide that the
purpose is also to establish financial policies and procedures for the Nation which: institutionalize best
practices in financial management to guide decision makers in making informed decisions regarding
the provision of services, implementation of business plans for enterprises, investments, and capital
assets; provide a long term financial prospective and strategic intent, linking budget allocations to
organizational goals, as well as providing fiscal controls and accountability for results and outcomes;
identify and communicate to the membership of the Nation spending decisions for the government
function, grant obligations, enterprises, membership mandates, capital expenditures, technology
projects, and capital improvement projects; establish a framework for effective financial risk
management; and encourage participation by the Nation’s membership. [1 O.C. 121.1-1]. The policy
of the Nation has been amended so that it is clear that the Nation relies on balanced-based budgeting
strategies, not value-based budgeting strategies as previously included in the Law, which identify the
proper authorities and ensure compliance and enforcement. [1 O.C. 121.1-2]. The policy has also been
expanded to include that the Nation shall use Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP),
established by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, and the Governmental Accounting Standards
Board (GASB) in accounting and reporting for the financial activities of the various entities of the
Nation, unless they conflict with applicable legal requirements. [1 O.C. 121.1-2].
Effect. The proposed amendments to the purpose and policy provisions of the Law provide greater
insight on the various general financial policies and procedures of the Nation that this Law governs
in addition to the requirements to be followed by the Oneida Business Committee and the Oneida
fund units when preparing the budget to be presented to the General Tribal Council for approval.
B. Removal of the Strategic Planning Provisions. The provisions of the Law regarding strategic
planning, previously found in section 121.4, has been removed from the Law. Previously, the Law
included detailed provisions on the Oneida Business Committee’s development of the triennial strategic
plan, as well as the fund unit’s contribution to the strategic plan. Now, the Law simply references that
it is a responsibility of the Oneida Business Committee to develop priorities, a strategic plan, or broad
goals to assist in guiding the budget [1 O.C. 121.4-1(c)], and to review the draft budget developed by
the Treasurer each year to ensure that it is consistent with the Nation’s strategic plan, broad goals, and
budget strategy. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(b)]. The budget is required to align with any strategic plan, broad
goals, or priorities developed and adopted by the Oneida Business Committee on behalf of the Nation.
[1 O.C. 121.5-1(b)].
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Effect. The provisions of the Law regarding the strategic planning process were removed to allow
greater flexibility in how the Oneida Business Committee and the corresponding fund units develop
a strategic plan. In August 2020, the Oneida Business Committee hired a Strategic Planner whose
role and responsibilities include assisting the Oneida Business Committee with their strategic
planning responsibilities. Removing the details of the strategic planning process from this Law will
allow the Strategic Planner flexibility in changing the process for how a strategic plan is developed
until the most effective and efficient process is found.
C. Authority and Responsibilities. Section 121.4 has been reorganized as the authority and
responsibilities section of the Law and contains provisions that were previously found in the Law as
well as new provisions. This section of the Law provides the various authority and responsibilities of
different entities including the Oneida Business Committee, the Treasurer, the Chief Financial Officer
(CFO), and the managers. The authorities and responsibilities of the Oneida Business Committee has
been expanded. Previously the Law provided that the Oneida Business Committee was responsible for
budget oversight, necessary emergency action, and supervision of the CFO. Now the Law provides that
the Oneida Business Committee shall oversee the development and implementation of the Nation’s
budget; develop priorities, a strategic plan, or broad goals to assist in guiding the budget; and exercise
the authority provided in Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution and Bylaws of the Oneida Nation,
as delegated to the Oneida Business Committee by the General Tribal Council. [1 O.C. 121.4-1]. In
regard to the authority and responsibilities of the Treasurer, the Law has been expanded to include
accept, receive, receipt for, preserve and safeguard all funds in the custody of the Nation, whether they
be funds of the Nation or special funds for which the Nation is acting as trustee or custodian; and deposit
all funds in such depository as the Nation shall direct and shall make and preserve a faithful record of
such funds in addition to the responsibilities previously found in the Law. [1 O.C. 121.4-2]. In regard
to the authority and responsibilities of the CFO, the Law has been expanded to include the following
responsibilities in addition to the responsibilities previously found in the Law: ensure the Nation’s
budget is properly implemented; assist with the submission and presentation of the Treasurer’s report
to the Oneida Business Committee, which shall specifically include any monthly variances that are
either: a difference of three percent (3%) or more from the adopted annual budget or fifty thousand
dollars ($50,000) or more in total; provide the Oneida Business Committee with information and reports
as requested; present the Treasurer’s report and hold financial condition meetings with the Nation’s
management on a minimum of a quarterly basis; and inform the appropriate Executive Manager of any
fund unit which does not follow the budget development process guidelines or deadlines as set forth by
the Treasurer. [1 O.C. 121.4-3]. In regard to the authority and responsibilities of the managers, the Law
has been expanded to include the following responsibilities in addition to the responsibilities previously
found in the Law submit a budget for their fund unit in accordance with the budget schedule and
guidelines as adopted by the Oneida Business Committee; and that the managers report to their relevant
Executive Manager in addition to the CFO any explanations and corrective action for monthly
variances. [1 O.C. 121.4-3].
Effect. The expansion of the authorities and responsibilities section of the Law ensures that the
authorities and responsibilities of the various entities and individuals who play a role in the
execution of this Law is clear and transparent to all parties involved. The increased transparency in
the authorities and responsibilities in the proposed amendments also hopes to increase
accountability and compliance with the Law.
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D. General Information on the Budget. The Law provides general information on the Nation’s budget.
The Nation is required to develop, adopt, and manage an annual budget, of which, all revenues and
expenditures of the Nation shall be in accordance with. [1 O.C. 121.5-1]. The Nation’s budget is
required to be a balanced budget, meaning that it does not propose to spend more funds than are
reasonably expected to become available to the Nation during that fiscal year. [1 O.C. 121.5-1(a)]. The
Law expressly prohibits underwriting debt resources or the utilization of existing debt instruments to
balance the Nation’s annual budget. [1 O.C. 121.5-1(a)(1)]. Information on the Nation’s corporate
entities is not included in the Nation’s budget. [1 O.C. 121.5-1(c)]. The provisions regarding the content
of the budget remain as previously provided in the Law, except that a new requirement for the content
of the budget was included. Now the Law requires that a summary of employment position counts,
including prior year, current year, and budgeted year be included in the Nation’s budget. [1 O.C. 121.52(e)]. A new provision was added to the Law to address the fund categories of the Nation’s budget.
The Nation’s budget is now required to include the General Fund – which is the Nation’s main operating
fund which is used to account for all financial resources not accounted for in other funds; the Permanent
Executive Contingency Fund – which is used by the Nation to prevent default on debt and to sustain
operations during times of extreme financial distress; and the Grant Reserve Fund – which is used by
the Nation to pre-fund the expenditures of grants upon receipt. [1 O.C. 121.5-3].
Effect. The proposed amendments to the Law provide greater clarification on general principles
regarding the Nation’s budget. The requirement that the Nation’s budget be a balanced budget, that
was not balanced through the use of debt instruments, sets the overall tone and provides guidance
for how the budget is then developed.
E. Budget Adoption Procedure. The Law sets forth the procedure to be followed when developing the
Nation’s budget. Previously, the Law was very detailed and contained a great amount of process and
procedure in regard to the development of the budget. Previously the budget development and adoption
procedure in the Law was as follows: the Treasurer’s office was required to schedule at least one (1)
community input budget meeting prior to December 1st of each year where community members are
afforded an opportunity to provide input as to what should be included in the upcoming fiscal year
budget. The Treasurer then had to place a community budget input meeting packet on the Oneida
Business Committee agenda no later than the last Oneida Business Committee meeting in January. The
Oneida Business Committee was then required to review the community budget input meeting packet
and hold work meetings to create a priority list of services of the Nation, which had to be approved by
resolution no later than the last meeting in February. Then the Chief Financial Officer was required to
develop the necessary guidelines, including specific deadlines, to be followed by the managers that
have budget responsibility in preparing and submitting proposed budgets, and submit those guidelines,
as approved by the Treasurer, to the Oneida Business Committee. The Oneida Business Committee was
then responsible for revising the guidelines as necessary, and approving those guidelines within thirty
(30) calendar days of receiving the guidelines from the Chief Financial Officer. The Chief Financial
Officer was then responsible for receiving, reviewing, and compiling the proposed budgets into the
Nation’s draft budget, and presenting that draft budget to the Oneida Business Committee no later than
the last Oneida Business Committee meeting in May. In the month of May, the CFO and the Oneida
Business Committee would meet to review the draft budget and provide any recommendations for
modifications, and then meet with the managers of each fund unit for which the Oneida Business
Committee is considering altering the fund unit’s proposed budget. The Oneida Business Committee
was required to complete all meetings with fund unit managers by the end of June each year. The
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Oneida Business Committee would then work with fund unit managers and the CFO to compile a final
draft budget to be presented to the General Tribal Council, which had to be approved, by resolution of
the Oneida Business Committee, to be presented to the General Tribal Council by the end of July each
year. Once the Oneida Business Committee has approved the final draft budget, the Treasurer was then
required to hold, at a minimum, two (2) community informational meetings to present the contents of
the final draft budget that will be presented to the General Tribal Council. The Oneida Business
Committee was required to present the budget to the General Tribal Council with a request for adoption
by resolution no later than September 30th of each year. In the event that the General Tribal Council
did not adopt a budget by September 30th, the Oneida Business Committee was permitted to adopt a
continuing budget resolution(s) until such time as a budget is adopted. The proposed amendments to
the Law take a much more simplified approach. The proposed amendments to the Law provide that the
Treasurer shall develop the necessary guidelines, including specific timelines and deadlines, to be
followed by the managers that have budget responsibility in preparing and submitting proposed
budgets, and that the Treasurer shall submit the guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for review
and approval through the adoption of a resolution. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(a)]. The deadline for when the
Treasurer shall submit their budget guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for review and
approval shall be set through the adoption of a resolution. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(a)(3)]. The Treasurer’s
guidelines are required to include at least one (1) opportunity for community input from the Nation’s
membership on what should be included in the upcoming fiscal year budget. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(a)(1)].
Each fund unit is then responsible for complying with the budget schedule and guidelines to submit a
proposed budget to the Treasurer. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(a)(2)]. The provisions of the Law regarding the
review and compilation of all annual proposed budgets into the final draft budget to be presented to the
General Tribal Council, and subsequent community meetings regarding the budget, are substantially
similar to the provisions of the Law that were previously excluded without excess process and deadline
dates. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(b)-(e)]. The proposed amendments to the Law also incudes a new emergency
budget adoption provision which provides that in the event that the Nation proclaims an emergency, in
accordance with the Emergency Management law, that stays in effect for at least one (1) month and
prevents the presentation to and adoption of the budget by the General Tribal Council, the Oneida
Business Committee shall adopt the Nation’s budget. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(e)(2)]. The proposed
amendments then address amendments to the Nation’s budget and provides that after the budget is
adopted, amendments of the budget shall not be permitted unless it is necessary to avoid a budget
deficit, and the Oneida Business Committee is responsible for adopting an amendment to the budget
through resolution of the Nation, but notification of the budget amendment is required to be made at
the next available General Tribal Council meeting. [1 O.C. 121.5-5].
Effect. The proposed amendments to the Law greatly simplify and streamline the budget
development and adoption procedure. Since the original adoption of this Law in 2017, the Nation
has struggled to comply with all the provisions and deadlines contained in this Law. Although the
proposed amendments to the Law keep the same general framework, it provides more flexibility to
adjust the budget development and adoption procedure to meet the Nation’s current circumstances
so that the most effective and efficient process can be utilized.
F. Expenditures and Assets. Section 121.6 of the Law provides information on expenditures and assets
and addresses the following topics: authority to expend funds, the Procurement Manual, fees and
charges, unbudgeted expenditures, obligated future expenditures, unexpended funds, capital
contributions, and capital improvements. Previously, the Law provided that the Treasurer’s authority
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to expend appropriated funds is delegated to the CFO, who shall make such expenditures in accordance
with the adopted budget. The Law then previously provided that authority is necessarily delegated to
other managers, including executive managers, of the Nation who manage the budgets, pursuant to their
job descriptions based on the procurement manual rules developed by the Purchasing Department. Now
the Law has been revised to provide that it is the Oneida Business Committee that has the authority to
expend appropriated funds in accordance with the Nation’s adopted budget pursuant to the Procurement
Manual developed by the Purchasing Department, and that the authority to expend funds is then
necessarily delegated to other managers, including Executive Managers of the Nation who manage
budgets pursuant to their job descriptions based on the Procurement Manual. [1 O.C. 121.6-1]. Instead
of requiring the Procurement Manual to be adopted as rules in accordance with the Administrative
Rulemaking law as previously required, the proposed amendments to the Law will now only require
that the Procurement Manual be approved by the Oneida Business Committee through the adoption of
a resolution. [1 O.C. 121.6-2]. The provision on fees and charges remains substantively the same as
previously included in the Law. [1 O.C. 121.6-3]. The provision regarding unbudgeted expenditures is
a new addition to the Law and provides guidance on the approval of unbudgeted expenditures, when
notification of unbudgeted expenditures is required to go to the General Tribal Council, and the
requirement for spending plans for unbudgeted supplemental funding that is received by the Nation. [1
O.C. 121.6-4]. The provision regarding obligated future expenditures is a new addition to the Law and
prohibits any fund unit from obligating the Nation to make any future expenditures beyond the current
budget year unless the fund unit identifies, and the Oneida Business Committee approves through the
adoption of a resolution, the source and extent of any future funds that are recommended to be held in
reserve to meet that future obligation. [1 O.C. 121.6-5]. The provisions regarding unexpended capital
improvement funds and unexpended capital expenditure funds remain the same as previously found in
the Law, except that clarification was added that unexpended capital expenditure funds shall be returned
to the General Fund. [1 O.C. 121.6-6]. The provision regarding capital contributions is a new addition
to the Law, and requires that any capital contributions made by the Nation be identified in the annual
budget, and any reassignment of a loan provided by the Nation into a capital contribution be noticed to
the General Tribal Council. [1 O.C. 121.6-7]. The Law then prohibits any assets of the Nation from
being divested or borrowed against to balance the annual budget. [1 O.C. 121.6-8]. The provisions of
the Law regarding capital improvement plans for both government services and enterprises remains as
found previously in the Law. [1 O.C. 121.6-9].
Effect. The proposed amendments to the Law expend the information that is provided in the Law
regarding expenditures and assets of the Nation. The Procurement Manual developed by the
Purchasing Department was changed from a rule that had to be adopted in accordance with the
Administrative Rulemaking law to a manual that had to be approved by the Oneida Business
Committee through the adoption of a resolution in an effort to provide greater ease and flexibility
in making revisions to the Procurement Manual while still providing some oversight. New
provisions were included in the Law regarding unbudgeted expenditures, obligated future
expenditures, and capital contributions to provide greater insight on how these issues should be
handled by the Nation since the Law was previously silent on these matters.. It should be noted that
the Law provides that the Oneida Business Committee shall set through resolution a threshold
amount for unbudgeted expenditures that require notification by the Oneida Business Committee
to the General Tribal Council at the next available General Tribal Council meeting. [1 O.C. 121.64(b)]. Notification of unbudgeted expenditures is currently address by Oneida Business Committee
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resolution BC-10-08-08-A, Adopting Expenditure Authorization and Reporting Requirements.
Resolution BC-10-08-08-A requires that expenditures for items and specific projects which were
not identified in the approved budget and total two hundred and fifty thousand dollars ($250,000)
or more, shall be formally noticed to the General Tribal Council at the next available General Tribal
Council regular or special meeting. This resolution would control notification of unbudgeted
expenditure in compliance with section 121.6-4 of this Law until such a time that the resolution is
amended, rescinded, or superseded to provide a different threshold for unbudgeted expenditures
that requires notification to the General Tribal Council.
G. Grants. A new section regarding grants was added to the Law. Previously, the Law referenced grants
in regard to budget contingency planning, how grant funding may be utilized, and the exhaustion of
non-tribal funds. The Law previously provided that grant funds are exempt from requirements of the
budget contingency plan and any cost containment initiatives as such funding is not reliant on Tribal
contributions. Now the Law addresses expending grant funds, exhaustion of non-tribal funds, grant
reporting, a Grant Reserve Fund Account, and grant funded positions. The Law currently reflects the
same guidance on expending grant funds as was previously included in the Law, except now the Law
clarifies that grant funds may also be utilized for incentives and retention efforts. [1 O.C. 121.7-1(a)].
The Law then clarifies that Grant funds may be utilized for an expenditure even when other policies of
the Nation do not allow for Tribal contribution to make that same expenditure, if only grant funds are
utilized for the expenditure and all requirements or obligations of the grant are met, provided that, grant
funds may be subject to the requirements of the budget contingency plan and any cost containment
initiatives adopted by the Oneida Business Committee. [1 O.C. 121.7-1(b)]. The provision on the
exhaustion of non-tribal funds remains the same as previously included in the Law. The provisions on
grant reporting are new additions to the Law. At the time of submission of proposed annual budgets,
any fund unit which receives grant funding is required to submit a status report of the grant funding
received to the Oneida Business Committee. [1 O.C. 121.7-3]. The Law now creates a Grant Reserve
Fund account for the Nation, which is an obligated fund, to be used to pre-fund the expenditures of
grants upon receipt, that is fully funded with separately identified cash resources. [1 O.C. 121.7-4]. The
Law then provides guidance on grant funded positions, providing that if the grant funding for a fully
grant funded position is eliminated, then the position shall be eliminated until such a time that a new
position can be included and approved in the Nation’s annual budget and labor allocations. [1 O.C.
121.7-5].
Effect. The purpose of the new provisions regarding grants that have been added to the Law is to
add clarification to ensure that grants are utilized effectively and efficiently within Nation. The
expanded provisions of the Law regarding the utilization of grants will provide more flexibility in
how grant funds are spent. The provisions of the Law regarding grant reporting will ensure that
pertinent information on grants is efficiently tracked and shared with the Oneida Business
Committee. The creation of the Grant Reserve Fund account will ensure that the Nation is prepared
and ready to pre-fund the expenditure of grants if needed.
H. Debts. A new section regarding debt was added to the Law. Previously, the Law only referenced debt
in regard to allowable payments to be made from the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account
under budget contingency planning guidelines. This new section of the Law addresses general
provisions on debt, notice of the acquisition of debt, use of debt, credit ratios, and corporate debt. The
Law provides that any acquisition of debt by the Nation shall be processed in accordance with sound
fiscal diligence, and that the Nation will comply with all relevant federal and state banking laws, rules,
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and policies applicable to the credit agreement. [1 O.C. 121.8-1]. Any debt instrument utilized by the
Nation is prohibited from exceeding the life of what is being encumbered. [1 O.C. 121.8-1(a)]. The
Law now provides guidance on when the acquisition of debt is required to be noticed to the General
Tribal Council. Any debt underwritten by the Nation for one million dollars ($1,000,000) or more shall
be noticed to the General Tribal Council at the next available meeting after the execution of the credit
agreement encumbering all pledges of repayment. [1 O.C. 121.8-2]. Credit can then be used for project
capital, general use, financing of equity, and all unspecified uses. [1 O.C. 121.8-3]. The Law then
provides guidance on maintaining fiscally responsible prudent credit ratios – such as the Debt Service
Coverage Ratio and the Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio – in accordance with Generally Accepted
Accounting Principles. [1 O.C. 121.8-4]. The section on debt then prohibits the Nation from being
obligated to any debt obligations of its corporate entities. [1 O.C. 121.8-5].
Effect. It is essential for effective budget management and financial control that the Nation have
guidelines for the acquisition and utilization of debt. The provisions included in the Law will assist
in ensuring that the Nation is fiscally responsible and exercising sound diligence if utilizing debt in
the future.
I. Employment and Labor Allocations. A new section regarding employment and labor was added to
the Law. Previously the Law did not address employment levels within the Nation or labor allocations.
This new section of the Law addresses an employment cap for the Nation, a labor allocations list, and
unbudgeted positions. The Law will now require that the Oneida Business Committee adopt an
employment cap for the Nation which sets the maximum number of full-time equivalent employees to
be employed by the Nation. [1 O.C. 121.9-1]. The Law also requires that the Oneida Business
Committee adopt a labor allocations list which identifies the number of full-time equivalent employees
each employment area of the Nation is allocated. [1 O.C. 121.9-2]. The Law then prohibits any position
which has not been specifically budgeted for and included in the labor allocation list, while specifying
that budgeted labor dollars and approved positions shall not be transferrable in any form. [1 O.C. 121.93]. Although unbudgeted positions are expressly prohibited, and exception was included in the Law
which allows the Oneida Business Committee to authorize unbudgeted positions for a fund unit. [1
O.C. 121.9-3(a)].
Effect. This is the first time that an employment cap or a labor allocations list is addressed in the
Law. These provisions were included in the Law in an effort to ensure that the Nation maintains a
manageable employment level. Costs related to maintaining the thousands of individuals employed
by the Nation is one of the Nation’s highest costs it must budget for, so it is essential that we are
able to ensure that the Nation maintains control over sustainable employee levels. The requirement
to maintain a labor allocation list will also ensure that the labor distribution throughout the various
employment areas of the Nation is regularly reviewed so that it can be ensured that labor is allocated
throughout the employment areas based on the needs of the Nation so that the best service can be
provided by all employment areas. [1 O.C. 121.9-2]. Although this will be the first time the Law
addresses an employment cap, this issue has previously been addressed through resolution by the
Oneida Business Committee. One such example of the Oneida Business Committee adopting an
employment cap for the Nation occurred within the adoption of the Fiscal Year 2021 budget as
adopted through resolution BC-11-24-20-F, Approval of Final Draft Fiscal Year 2021 Budget and
Budget Directives, which set an employment cap of two thousand and two hundred (2,200)
employees.
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J. Budget Contingency Planning. The provisions of the Law regarding budget contingency planning
were moved from what used to be the strategic planning section of the Law to its own section. The
amendments to the budget contingency planning section of the Law clarifies that emergency
proclamations qualify as extreme financial distress, while tribal shutdowns – which occurs when the
General Tribal Council has not approved a budget for the Nation prior to the beginning of a new fiscal
year – does not qualify as extreme financial distress. [1 O.C. 121.10-1(a)]. The Law requires that the
Oneida Business Committee maintain a Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account. Previously,
the Law provided that the Treasurer, in consultation with the CFO, shall establish, and the Oneida
Business Committee shall approve, the level of business continuity funds required in the Permanent
Executive Contingency account, that the Treasurer shall set aside business continuity funds in the
Permanent Executive Contingency account until the established level has been achieved. Now the Law
was clarified that the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account is a restricted fund, and that
Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account shall consist of a minimum reserve of one (1) year of
operating expenses to ensure continuity of business for the Nation. [1 O.C. 121.10-4(a)]. The
amendments also clarify that the Oneida Business Committee shall approve through the adoption of a
resolution the percentage of the annual budget that is required to be set aside in the Permanent Executive
Contingency Fund account until the established level has been achieved. [1 O.C. 121.10-4(b)].
Effect. In regard to the clarification on what constitutes extreme financial distress, Tribal
shutdowns was removed from the Law as an example of extreme financial distress because it was
not accurate that the General Tribal Council not approving a budget for the Nation prior to the
beginning of a new fiscal year that means the Nation has shut down and is in extreme financial
distress. The Law already addresses if the General Tribal Council does not adopt a budget by
September 30th of each year and provides that the Oneida Business Committee may then adopt a
continuing budget resolution(s) until such time as a budget is adopted. [1 O.C. 121.5-4(e)(1)].
Therefore, budget contingency planning for if the General Tribal Council does not adopt a budget
by September 30th of each year is not necessary. Additionally, emergency proclamations were
added as an example of extreme financial distress based on the Nation’s experience with the
COVID-19 pandemic and its resulting emergency proclamations. In regard to the amendments on
the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund Account, clarification was added so that the Law is
specific as to what level of funds is required to be in the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund
account, and that the Oneida Business Committee will approve through resolution the percentage
of the annual budget that is required to be set aside in the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund
account each year. These clarifications will ensure that the Treasurer and the Oneida Business
Committee can properly plan to fund the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account so that
the Nation is prepared for times of extreme financial distress.
K. Reporting. Clarification was added to this section of the Law which provides that the Treasurer’s
monthly reports to the Oneida Business Committee should include revenue and expense summaries. [1
O.C. 121.11-1(a)]. Additionally, a new provision was added to this section of the Law which addresses
annual and semi-annual reporting to the General Tribal Council. The Law now states that the Treasurer
shall report on all receipts and expenditures and the amount and nature of all funds in their possession
and custody, at the annual and semi-annual General Tribal Council meetings, and at such other times
as requested by the General Tribal Council or the Oneida Business Committee. [1 O.C. 121.11-2]. The
Treasurer’s reports are also required to include an independently audited annual financial statement that
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provides the status or conclusion of all the receipts and debts in possession of the Treasurer including,
but not limited to, all corporations owned in full or in part by the Nation. [1 O.C. 121.11-2(a)].
Effect. The revisions to the Law in this section provide more clarify on what information is
expected to be included in the Treasurer’s reports to the Oneida Business Committee and the
General Tribal Council. Although a new addition to this Law, the requirements of section 121.112(a) are not new requirements for the Treasurer’s reports, and this information was previously
contained in resolution GTC-11-15-08-C, Treasurer’s Report to include all Receipts and
Expenditures and the Amount and Nature of all Funds in the Treasurer’s Possession and Custody.
L. Enforcement. A provision was added to the enforcement section of the Law that provides that the
Executive Managers shall notify the Oneida Business Committee of any fund unit which does not
comply with the budget schedule or guidelines. [1 O.C. 121.12-1(a)]. Then a list of all fund units which
did not comply with the budget schedule or guidelines shall be included in the annual report to the
General Tribal Council. [1 O.C. 121.12-1(a)].
Effect. This provision was added to the Law in an effort to encourage compliance with the Law
by the fund units, and ensure there is accountability for those fund units that do not comply with
the Law. Requiring this information to be shared in the annual report to the General Tribal Council
also ensures transparency with the information shared with the Oneida Business Committee and
the General Tribal Council.
M. Minor Drafting Changes. Additional drafting and formatting changes have been made throughout
the Law for clarity.
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SECTION 6. EXISTING LEGISLATION
A. Related Legislation. The following laws of the Nation are related to this Law:
Administrative Rulemaking law. The Administrative Rulemaking law provides an efficient,
effective and democratic process for enacting and revising administrative rules. [1 O.C. 106.12].
Previously, this Law required the Procurement Manual to be adopted as rules in
accordance with the Administrative Rulemaking law. The proposed amendments to the
Law remove this provision and now only require that the Procurement Manual be
approved by the Oneida Business Committee through the adoption of a resolution. [1
O.C. 121.6-2].
This Law no longer delegates authority for the promulgation of rules in accordance
with the Administrative Rulemaking law.
Internal Audit Law. The Internal Audit law creates a process by which internal audits are
conducted upon the Nation’s entities and to delegate responsibilities for the purposes of
conducting such audits. [1 O.C. 108.1-1].
The Law provides that the Internal Audit Department, annually, shall conduct
independent comprehensive performance audits, in accordance with the Nation’s Audit
law, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and the Governmental
Accounting Standards Board (GASB), of randomly selected fund units or of fund units
deemed necessary by the Oneida Business Committee or Internal Audit Department.
[1 O.C. 121.11-3].
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Any internal audits conducted by the Internal Audit Department shall be made in
accordance with the audit process provided in the Internal Audit law. [1 O.C. 108.6].
Emergency Management Law. The purpose of the Emergency Management law is to provide
for the development and execution of plans for the protection of residents, property, and the
environment in an emergency or disaster; provide for the direction of emergency management,
response, and recovery on the Reservation, as well as coordinating with other agencies, victims,
businesses, and organizations; establish the use of the National Incident Management System
(NIMS); and designate authority and responsibilities for public health preparedness. [3 O.C.
302.1-1].
This Law provides that in the event that the Nation proclaims an emergency, in
accordance with the Emergency Management law, that stays in effect for at least one
(1) month and prevents the presentation to and adoption of the budget by the General
Tribal Council, the Oneida Business Committee shall adopt the Nation’s budget. [1
O.C. 121.5-4(e)(2)].
Under the Emergency Management law, the Oneida Business Committee is delegated
the responsibility to proclaim or ratify the existence of an emergency. [3 O.C. 302.81]. An emergency means a situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, safety,
property, or environment which requires urgent intervention to prevent further illness,
injury, death, or other worsening of the situation. [3 O.C. 302.3-1(f)]. No proclamation
of an emergency by the Oneida Business Committee may last for longer than sixty (60)
days, unless renewed by the Oneida Business Committee. [3 O.C. 302.8-2].
Oneida Personnel Policies and Procedures. The Oneida Personnel Policies and Procedures is
the Nation’s law which governs employment. The Oneida Personnel Policies and Procedures
provides the process for handling complaints, disciplinary actions, and grievances. [Section
V.D.].
The Law provides that violations of this Law shall be addressed using the applicable
enforcement tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited
to, those related to employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and
removal from an elected position. [1 O.C. 121.12-2].
An employee of the Nation who violates this Law may be addressed through the
disciplinary procedures found in Section V.D. of the Oneida Personnel Policies and
Procedures.
Conflict of Interest Law. The Conflict of Interest law ensures that all employees, contractors,
elected officials, officers, political appointees, appointed and elected members and all others
who may have access to information or materials that are confidential or may be used by
competitors of the Nation’s enterprises or interests be subject to specific limitations to which
such information and materials may be used in order to protect the interests of the Nation. [2
O.C. 217.1-1].
The Law provides that violations of this Law shall be addressed using the applicable
enforcement tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited
to, those related to employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and
removal from an elected position. [1 O.C. 121.12-2].
The Conflict of Interest law provides that if a supervisor is provided credible evidence
that an employee has failed to disclose a conflict of interest, the employee shall be
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placed on leave pursuant to the Nation’s Investigative Leave Policy, except that the
duration of the investigation for an alleged conflict of interest shall be concluded within
seven (7) days of the employee being placed on leave. A supervisor shall terminate an
employee from his or her employment with the Nation when an investigation
substantiates that the employee failed to disclose a conflict of interest. [2 O.C. 217.61].
The Conflict of Interest law provides that an Oneida Business Committee member who
fails to disclose a conflict of interest may be subject to removal pursuant to the
Removal Law or penalties pursuant to laws of the Nation regarding penalties. [2 O.C.
217.6-2].
The Conflict of Interest law provides that an elected or appointed official of the Nation
who fails to disclose a conflict of interest may be subject to penalties pursuant to laws
of the Nation regarding penalties, and subject to removal pursuant to the Removal Law
for elected members, or have their appointment terminated by the Oneida Business
Committee pursuant to the law governing board, committees and commissions for
appointed members. [2 O.C. 217.6-3].
Code of Ethics. The Code of Ethics promotes the highest ethical conduct in all of its elected
and appointed officials, and employees. [1 O.C. 103.1-1].
The Law provides that violations of this Law shall be addressed using the applicable
enforcement tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited
to, those related to employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and
removal from an elected position. [1 O.C. 121.12-2].
The Code of Ethics law provides that a government official who violates any portion
of the Code of Ethics as it applies to them, may be subject to removal, if elected, or
termination, if appointed. [1 O.C. 103.6-1(a)].
The Code of Ethics law provides that an individual from a program or enterprise of the
Nation who violates any portion of the Code of Ethics as it applies to them, may be
subject to the disciplinary procedures found in the Oneida Personnel Policies and
Procedures. [1 O.C. 103.6-1(b)].
Removal Law. The Removal law governs the removal of persons elected to serve on boards,
committees and commissions of the Nation. [1 O.C. 104.1-1].
The Law provides that violations of this Law shall be addressed using the applicable
enforcement tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited
to, those related to employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and
removal from an elected position. [1 O.C. 121.12-2].
An elected official of the Nation who violates this Law may be addressed through the
removal procedures found the Removal law.
Furlough Policy. The Furlough Policy enables the Nation to implement a furlough as a tool to
remedy an operating budget deficit. [2 O.C. 205.1-1].
This Law provides that as part of the budget contingency plan, the Oneida Business
Committee may require the use of cost saving tools, provided that the use of such
complies with all laws of the Nation. [1 O.C. 121.10-2]. Cost saving tools may include
furloughs. [1 O.C. 121.10-2(c)].
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Any furloughs made as part of the Nation’s budget contingency plan shall be made in
accordance with the furlough process provided in the Furlough Policy. [2 O.C. 205].
Layoff Policy. The purpose of the Layoff Policy is to establish a fair, respectful policy for
employee layoff and recall which enables the Nation’s programs and enterprises to operate
effectively and efficiently in varying economic conditions within the parameters of Oneida
Nation Seventh Generation mission, priorities, and objectives. [2 O.C. 207.1-1].
This Law provides that as part of the budget contingency plan, the Oneida Business
Committee may require the use of cost saving tools, provided that the use of such
complies with all laws of the Nation. Cost saving tools may include layoffs.
Any layoffs made as part of the Nation’s budget contingency plan shall be made in
accordance with the layoff process provided in the Layoff Policy. [2 O.C. 207].
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SECTION 8. ENFORCEMENT AND ACCOUNTABILITY
A. Enforcement. The Law provides that all employees and officials of the Nation are required to comply
with and enforce this Law to the greatest extent possible. [1 O.C. 121.12-1]. The Executive Managers
are required to notify the Oneida Business Committee of any fund unit which does not comply with the
budget schedule or guidelines. And then a list of all fund units which did not comply with the budget
schedule or guidelines shall be included in the annual report to the General Tribal Council. [1 O.C.
121.12-1].
B. Consequences of Violation of this Law. Violations of this law shall be addressed using the applicable
enforcement tools provided by the Nation’s laws and policies including, but not limited to, those related
to employment with the Nation, conflicts of interest, ethics, and removal from an elected position. [1
O.C. 121.12-2]. Additionally, this Law does not preclude the Nation from pursuing civil or criminal
charges under any federal or state civil or criminal laws, or any laws of the Nation. [1 O.C. 121.12-3].
SECTION 9. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
A. Approval Through Adoption of a Resolution. There are many instances throughout this Law in which
the approval of information, plans, or guidelines by the Oneida Business Committee or the General
Tribal Council is required to occur through the adoption of a resolution.
Examples. Examples of the requirement of approval through the adoption of a resolution can be
seen in the following instances throughout the Law:
Section 121.5-4 Budget Schedule and Guidelines. The Treasurer is required to submit
budget guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for review and approval through the
adoption of a resolution.
Section 121.5-4(3) Budget Schedule and Guidelines Deadline. The Oneida Business
Committee is required to set a deadline through the adoption of a resolution for when the
Treasurer shall submit their budget guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for
review and approval.
Section 121.5-4(c) Final Draft Budget. The Oneida Business Committee shall approve,
by resolution, the final draft budget to be presented to the General Tribal Council.
Section 121.5-4(e) Budget Adoption. The Oneida Business Committee shall present the
budget to the General Tribal Council with a request for adoption by resolution no later than
September 30th of each year.
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Section 121.5-4(e)(1) Continuing Budget Resolution. In the event that the General Tribal
Council does not adopt a budget by September 30th, the Oneida Business Committee may
adopt a continuing budget resolution(s) until such time as a budget is adopted by the
General Tribal Council.
Section 121.5-5 Amendments to the Nation’s Budget. The Oneida Business Committee
shall be responsible for adopting any amendment to the budget through resolution of the
Nation.
Section 121.6-2 Procurement Manual. The Procurement Manual, and any amendments
thereto, shall be approved by the Oneida Business Committee through adoption of a
resolution.
Section 121.6-4(b) Notification of Unbudgeted Expenditures. The Oneida Business
Committee shall set through resolution a threshold amount for unbudgeted expenditures
that require notification by the Oneida Business Committee to the General Tribal Council
at the next available General Tribal Council meeting.
Section 121.6-4(c) Unbudgeted Supplemental Funding. In the event that the Nation
receives any supplemental or emergency funding of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars
($250,000) or more, the Oneida Business Committee shall develop and adopt, through
resolution, a spending plan to guide expenditures of the supplemental funding in
accordance with any provided guidance for the supplemental funding and audit
compliance.
Section 121.6-5 Obligated Future Expenditures. No fund unit shall obligate the Nation
to make any future expenditures beyond the current budget year unless the fund unit
identifies, and the Oneida Business Committee approves through the adoption of a
resolution, the source and extent of any future funds that are recommended to be held in
reserve to meet that future obligation.
Section 121.9-1 Employment Cap. The Oneida Business Committee shall have the
authority to approve this employment cap, and any amendments thereto, through the
adoption of a resolution.
Section 121.9-2 Labor Allocations List. The Oneida Business Committee shall have the
authority to adopt the labor allocation list, and any amendments thereto, through the
adoption of a resolution.
Section 121.9-2 Labor Allocations List SOP. The Oneida Business Committee shall
approve this standard operating procedure for revisions to the labor allocations list, and
any amendments thereto, through the adoption of a resolution.
Section 121.10-1(b) Budget Contingency Plan. The Oneida Business Committee shall
approve the budget contingency plan, and any amendments thereto, through the adoption
of a resolution.
Section 121.10-4 Permanent Executive Contingency Fund Account. The Treasurer , in
consultation with the CFO, shall establish, and the Oneida Business Committee shall
approve through the adoption of a resolution, the percentage of the annual budget that shall
be set aside in the Permanent Executive Contingency Fund account until the established
level has been achieved.
Conclusion. The Legislative Operating Committee will need to ensure that any information that is
required to be approved through resolution prior to this Law being implemented is presented to the
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Oneida Business Committee for consideration in a resolution at the time of adoption of this Law.
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Additionally, the Legislative Operating Committee will need to ensure the Oneida Business
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Committee is aware of its responsibilities of approving information, guidelines, or plans through
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the adoption of a resolution when it is applicable.
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B. Fiscal Impact. Under the Legislative Procedures Act, a fiscal impact statement is required for all
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legislation except emergency legislation [1 O.C. 109.6-1]. Oneida Business Committee resolution BC739
10-28-20-A titled, “Further Interpretation of ‘Fiscal Impact Statement’ in the Legislative Procedures
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Act,” provides further clarification on who the Legislative Operating Committee may direct complete
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a fiscal impact statement at various stages of the legislative process, as well as timeframes for
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completing the fiscal impact statement.
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Conclusion. The Legislative Operating Committee has not yet requested a fiscal impact statement
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for this Law. A fiscal impact statement will be needed in the future, prior to the consideration of
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this Law by the Oneida Business Committee.
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Title 1. Government and Finances – Chapter 121
BUDGET MANAGEMENT AND CONTROL
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BUDGET AND FINANCES
121.1.
121.2.
121.3.
121.4.
121.5.
121.6.
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Purpose and Policy
Adoption, Amendment, Repeal
Definitions
Strategic Planning
Budget Process
Capital Improvements
121.7.
121.8.
121.9.
121.10.
121.11.
121.12.
Appropriation of the Nation’s Funds
Budget Authority
Budget Transfers; Amendments
Reporting
Authorizations and Signatures
Enforcement and Penalties
121.1.
Purpose and Policy
121.1-1. Purpose. The purpose of this law is to set forth the requirements to be followed by the
Oneida Business Committee and Oneida fund units when preparing the budget to be presented to
the General Tribal Council for approval, and to establish financial policies and procedures for the
Nation which: a triennial strategy planning process for the Nation’s budget.
(a) institutionalize best practices in financial management to guide decision makers in
making informed decisions regarding the provision of services, implementation of business
plans for enterprises, investments, and capital assets;
(b) provide a long term financial prospective and strategic intent, linking budget
allocations to organizational goals, as well as providing fiscal controls and accountability
for results and outcomes;
(c) identify and communicate to the membership of the Nation spending decisions for the
government function, grant obligations, enterprises, membership mandates, capital
expenditures, technology projects, and capital improvement projects;
(d) establish a framework for effective financial risk management; and
(e) encourage participation by the Nation’s membership.
121.1-2. Policy. It is the policy of the Nation to rely on value-based balanced-based budgeting
strategies, identifying proper authorities and ensuring compliance and enforcement. The Nation
shall use Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), established by the Financial
Accounting Standards Board, and the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) in
accounting and reporting for the financial activities of the various entities of the Nation, unless
they conflict with applicable legal requirements.
121.2.
Adoption, Amendment, Repeal
121.2-1. This law was adopted by the Oneida Business Committee by resolution BC-02-08-17C, and amended by resolution BC-__-__-__-__.
121.2-2. This law may be amended or repealed by the Oneida Business Committee and/or the
General Tribal Council pursuant to the procedures set out in the Legislative Procedures Act.
121.2-3. Should a provision of this law or the application thereof to any person or circumstances
be held as invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions of this law which are considered
to have legal force without the invalid portions.
121.2-4. In the event of a conflict between a provision of this law and a provision of another law,
the provisions of this law shall control. Provided that, nothing in this law amends or repeals the
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requirements of resolution BC-10-08-08-A, Adopting Expenditure Authorization and Reporting
Requirements.
121.2-5. This law is adopted under authority of the Constitution of the Oneida Nation.
121.3.
Definitions
121.3-1. This section shall govern the definitions of words and phrases used within this law. All
words not defined herein shall be used in their ordinary and everyday sense.
(a) “Appropriation” means the legislative act of designating funds for a specific purpose
in accordance with the provisions contained in this law.
(a) “Balanced budget” means that the cost of current expenses and service provisions is
equal to the forecasted current revenue sources.
(b) “Capital contribution” means an act of giving money or assets to a company or
organization.
(bc) “Capital expenditure” means any non-recurring and non-physical improvement as
follows:
(1) Any item with a cost of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) or more and an
estimated useful life of one (1) year or more; or
(2) Items purchased together where none of the items individually costs more than
two thousand dollars ($2,000.00), but the total purchase price for all of the items is
ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) or more.
(cd)
“Capital improvement” means a non-recurring expenditure for physical
improvements, including costs for:
(1) acquisition of existing buildings, land, or interests in land;
(A) Acquisition of existing buildings and land completed by the Oneida
Land Commission are not included in this definition.
(2) construction of new buildings or other structures, including additions and major
alterations;
(3) acquisition of fixed equipment;
(4) landscaping;
(5) physical infrastructure; and
(6) similar expenditures with a cost of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00) or more
and an estimated a useful life of one (1) year or more. 1
(de) “CFO” means the Nation’s Chief Financial Officer, or their designee at their
discretion.
(ef) “Debt” means the secured or unsecured obligations owed by the Nation.
(g) “Debt Service Coverage Ratio” means a measurement of creditors available cash flow
to pay debt obligations. This ratio evaluates if an entity has income capacity to service
debts. The Debt Service Coverage Ratio is calculated by dividing the net operating income
Acquisition of existing buildings and land completed by the Oneida Land Commission are not included in the
definition of “Capital Improvement.”
1
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by the total debt service costs.
(1) Net operating income is the income or cash flows that are left over after all of
the operating expenses have been paid.
(f) “Economic life” means the length of time an asset is expected to be useful.
(gh) “Executive Mmanager” means a position of employment within the Nation that is the
highest level in the chain of command under the Oneida Business Committee who is
responsible for a department or division of the Nation, which includes, but is not limited
to, any one of the following positions within the Nation: Chief Executive Officer/General
Manager, Gaming General Manager, Retail General Manager, Chief Legal Counsel, and/or
Chief Financial Officer.
(hi) “Expenditure report” means a financial report which includes, but is not limited to, a
statement of cash flows, revenues, costs and expenses, assets, liabilities, and a statement of
financial position.
(j) “Finance Administration” means the department of the Nation which consists of the
Chief Financial Officer, Assistant Chief Financial Officer, the executive assistant to the
Chief Financial Officer, and any other designated employee.
(ik) “Fiscal year” means the one (1) year period each year from October 1st to September
30th.
(l) “Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio” means a measurement of a creditors capacity of
earnings level or ability to cover its fixed charges such as debt payments, interest expenses,
and leases expenses. Financial institutions will evaluate this ratio for purposes of credit
risk. The Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio is calculated by adding the earnings before interest
and taxes (EBIT) to the interest expense, lease expense and other fixed charges, and then
dividing that adjusted EBIT by the amount of fixed charges plus interest.
(jm) “Fund unit” means any board, committee, commission, service, program, enterprise,
department, office, or any other division or non-division of the Nation which receives an
appropriation approved by the Nation.
(k) “General reserve fund” means the Nation’s main operating fund which is used to
account for all financial resources not accounted for in other funds.
(l) “GTC allocations” means expenditures directed by the General Tribal Council as
required payments and/or benefits to the Nation’s membership and are supported by either
a General Tribal Council or Oneida Business Committee resolution.
(mn) “Line item” means the specific account within a fund unit’s budget or category that
expenditures are charged to.
(no) “Manager” means the person in charge of directing, controlling, and administering
the activities of a fund unit.
(op) “Nation” means the Oneida Nation.
(p) “Rule” means a set of requirements, including citation fees and penalty schedules,
enacted in accordance with the Administrative Rulemaking law based on authority
delegated in this law in order to implement, interpret and enforce this law.
(q) “Secretary” means the Oneida Nation Secretary.
(qr) “Treasurer” means the elected Oneida Nation Treasurer, or his or her their designee
at their discretion.
121.4.
Strategic Planning Authority and Responsibilities
121.4-1. Oneida Business Committee. The Oneida Business Committee shall:
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(a) oversee the development of the Nation’s budget;
(b) oversee the implementation of the Nation’s budget;
(c) develop priorities, a strategic plan, or broad goals to assist in guiding the budget; and
(d) exercise the authority provided in Article IV, Section 1, of the Constitution and Bylaws
of the Oneida Nation, as delegated to the Oneida Business Committee by the General Tribal
Council. Triennial Strategic Plan. Prior to December 1st of each year, the Oneida Business
Committee, in consultation with the Executive Managers, shall develop a triennial strategic
plan which includes, but is not limited to:
(a) Major policy and budgetary goals for the Nation, both long and short term;
(b) Specific strategies and planned actions for achieving each goal; and
(c) Performance targets and indicators to track progress which, to the extent available,
includes, but is not limited to:
(1) Statistics and trending data for, at a minimum, the last three (3) complete fiscal
years; and
(2) Performance targets for, at a minimum, the next three (3) complete fiscal years
moving forward.
121.4-2. Treasurer. In accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws of the Oneida Nation, the
Nation’s Treasurer shall:
(a) accept, receive, receipt for, preserve and safeguard all funds in the custody of the
Nation, whether they be funds of the Nation or special funds for which the Nation is acting
as trustee or custodian;
(b) deposit all funds in such depository as the Nation shall direct and shall make and
preserve a faithful record of such funds;
(c) submit expenditure reports and other financial reports as deemed necessary by the
Oneida Business Committee or the General Tribal Council at:
(1) the annual General Tribal Council meeting;
(2) the semi-annual General Tribal Council meeting; and
(3) other such times as may be directed by the Oneida Business Committee or the
General Tribal Council; and
(d) present the proposed draft budget to the General Tribal Council at the annual budget
meeting. Fund Units’ Contributions to the Triennial Strategic Plan. Managers shall
annually develop, submit and maintain a triennial strategic plan for the fund unit’s
operations which aligns with the triennial strategic plan established by the Oneida Business
Committee pursuant to 121.4-1. Managers shall submit the fund unit’s triennial strategic
plan to the CFO when the fund unit’s budget is due and, at a minimum, shall include the
following in the plan:
(a) A statement of the fund unit’s mission;
(b) Specific goals including a description of the fund unit’s strategies as part of its service
group provided in 121.5-3(c) which aligns with the goals established in the Nation’s
triennial strategic plan;
(c) Specific strategies for achieving each of the fund unit’s goals; and
(d) Performance targets and indicators to track progress which, to the extent available,
includes, but is not limited to:
(1) Statistics and trending data for, at a minimum, the last three (3) complete fiscal
years; and
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(2) Performance targets for, at a minimum, the next three (3) complete fiscal years
moving forward.
121.4-3. Chief Financial Officer. The CFO shall:
(a) ensure the Nation’s budget is properly implemented;
(b) provide managers with monthly revenue and expense reports;
(c) assist with the submission and presentation of the Treasurer’s report to the Oneida
Business Committee, which shall specifically include any monthly variances that are
either:
(1) a difference of three percent (3%) or more from the adopted annual budget; or
(2) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more in total;
(d) provide the Oneida Business Committee with information and reports as requested;
(e) present the Treasurer’s report and hold financial condition meetings with the Nation’s
management on a minimum of a quarterly basis; and
(f) inform the appropriate Executive Manager of any fund unit which does not follow the
budget development process guidelines or deadlines as set forth by the Treasurer.
Budget Contingency Plan. The Oneida Business Committee shall work with the CFO, executive
managers and managers to create a budget contingency plan which provides a strategy for the
Nation to respond to extreme financial distress that could negatively impact the Nation. The
Oneida Business Committee shall approve, by resolution, the budget contingency plan and any
amendments thereto. The Oneida Business Committee is responsible for the implementation of
the budget contingency plan, provided that such implementation is predicated on the Oneida
Business Committee’s determination that the Nation is under extreme financial distress. For the
purposes of this section, extreme financial distress includes, but is not limited to, natural or humanmade disasters, United States Government shutdown, Tribal shutdown (which occurs when the
General Tribal Council has not approved a budget for the Nation prior to the beginning of a new
fiscal year) and economic downturns.
(a) Cost Savings Tools. As part of the budget contingency plan, the Oneida Business
Committee may require stabilization funds, reductions of expenditures, furloughs and other
cost saving tools provided that such tools are in compliance with the Nation’s laws,
specifically the Nation’s employment laws, rules and policies.
(b) Business Continuity Fund. The Oneida Business Committee shall maintain a
Permanent Executive Contingency account within the ownership investment report to be
used to prevent default on debt and to sustain operations during times of extreme financial
distress. The Treasurer, in consultation with the CFO, shall establish, and the Oneida
Business Committee shall approve, the level of business continuity funds required in the
Permanent Executive Contingency account. The Treasurer shall set aside business
continuity funds in the Permanent Executive Contingency account until the established
level has been achieved. Funds in the Permanent Executive Contingency may only be used
for the following purposes and only to the extent that alternative funding sources are
unavailable:
(1) Payments to notes payable to debt service, both principal and interest, and
applicable service fees;
(2) Employee payroll, including all applicable taxes;
(3) Payments to vendors for gaming and retail;
(4) Payments to vendors for governmental operations;
(5) Payments to any other debt; and
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(6) To sustain any of the Nation’s other operations during implementation of the
budget contingency plan.
(c) Grant Funds. Grant funds are exempt from requirements of the budget contingency
plan and any cost containment initiatives as such funding is not reliant on Tribal
contributions. Grant funds shall be spent according to any non-negotiable grant
requirements and guidelines of the granting agency to include purchases, travel, training,
hiring grant required positions and any other requirements attached to the funds as a
condition of the Nation’s acceptance of the grant funds.
121.4-4. Managers. Managers shall:
(a) Eensure that their business units operate, on a day-to-day basis, in compliance with the
budget adopted pursuant to this law;
(b) Rreport to the CFO and their relevant Executive Manager explanations and corrective
actions for any monthly variance that is either:
(1) a difference of three percent (3%) or more from the adopted annual budget; or
(2) fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more in total;
(c) Ssubmit budget review reports to the CFO on a reasonable and timely basis not to
exceed thirty (30) calendar days from the end of the month; and
(d) submit a budget for their fund unit in accordance with the budget schedule and
guidelines as adopted by the Oneida Business Committee.
121.5.
Budget Process
121.5-1. General. The Nation shall develop, adopt, and manage an annual budget. All revenues
and expenditures of the Nation shall be in accordance with the annual budget adopted by the
General Tribal Council. In creating the budget to present to the General Tribal Council for
consideration, the Oneida Business Committee, executive managers and managers shall follow the
processes provided in this law. The Oneida Business Committee may alter the deadlines provided
in this law only upon a showing of good cause, provided that, the Oneida Business Committee
shall approve any such alterations by resolution.
(a) The Nation’s budget shall be a balanced budget and not propose to spend more funds
than are reasonably expected to become available to the Nation during that fiscal year.
(1) Underwriting debt resources or the utilization of existing debt instruments shall
be expressly prohibited from use to balance the Nation’s annual budget.
(b) The budget shall align with any strategic plan, broad goals, or priorities developed and
adopted by the Oneida Business Committee on behalf of the Nation.
(c) The Nation’s corporate entities shall not be included in the Nation’s budget.
121.5-2. Content of the Budget. The Nation’s budget shall include the following information:
(a) Estimated revenues to be received from all sources;
(b) The individual budgets of each fund unit;
(c) A description of each line item within each fund unit’s budget;
(d) The estimated expenditures by each fund unit; and
(e) Summary of employment position counts including prior year, current year, and
budgeted year.
Community Input Budget Meeting(s). The Treasurer’s office shall schedule, at a minimum, one
(1) community input budget meeting(s) prior to December 1st of each year. At the community
input budget meeting(s), the Treasurer shall afford community members an opportunity to provide
input as to what should be included in the upcoming fiscal year budget. Any fund units that plan
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to request forecast variations for the upcoming budget shall present the need and anticipated dollar
amount of the requested forecast variation. For the purposes of this section, a forecast variation is
a fund unit’s requested deviation from the performance targets the fund unit submitted pursuant to
121.4-2(d)(2).
(a) The Treasurer shall ensure the community budget input meeting(s) are voice recorded
and transcribed.
(b) The CFO shall provide recommendations as to any forecast variations requested by
fund units.
(c) The CFO and any relevant managers shall provide responses and/or recommendations
to all comments and considerations presented by community members.
(d) The Treasurer shall work with the CFO to place a community budget input meeting
packet on the Oneida Business Committee agenda no later than the last Oneida Business
Committee Meeting in January. At a minimum, the packet is required to include:
(1) The community input budget meeting(s) transcript(s);
(2) Any applicable fund unit’s requested forecast variations; and
(3) Responses and/or recommendations by the CFO and any relevant managers
regarding requests for forecast variations and community members’ comments and
considerations related to forecast variations.
121.5-3. Fund Categories. The Nation’s budget shall include, but not be limited to, the following
categories of fund accounts:
(a) General Fund. The General Fund account is the Nation’s main operating fund which
is used to account for all financial resources not accounted for in other funds.
(b) Permanent Executive Contingency Fund. The Permanent Executive Contingency Fund
account is used by the Nation to prevent default on debt and to sustain operations during
times of extreme financial distress.
(c) Grant Reserve Fund. The Grant Reserve Fund account is used by the Nation to prefund the expenditures of grants upon receipt.
Priority List Established by the Oneida Business Committee. The Oneida Business Committee
shall review the community input budget meeting packet and shall hold work meetings to create a
priority list.
(a) The Oneida Business Committee shall establish the priority list by placing the
following services provided by the Nation in chronological order with the lowest number
having the highest priority. The order of the following service groups provided below has
no relation to the service groups’ anticipated and/or required placement within the Oneida
Business Committee’s priority list; the Oneida Business Committee’s priority list may vary
from year to year based on the needs of the Nation.
(1) Protection and Preservation of Natural Resources
(2) Protection and Preservation of Oneida Culture and Language
(3) Education and Literacy
(4) Health Care
(5) Economic Enterprises
(6) Building and Property Maintenance
(7) Human Services
(8) Public Safety
(9) Housing
(10) Utilities, Wells, Wastewater and Septic
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(11) Planning, Zoning and Development
(12) Membership Administration
(13) Government Administration
(b) The Oneida Business Committee shall approve the priority list by resolution no later
than the last meeting in February.
(c) The CFO shall maintain a list which places each fund unit into a corresponding service
group.
121.5-4. Budget Adoption Procedure. The Nation shall develop and adopt its budget according
to the following procedures:
(a)
Budget Schedule and Guidelines. The Treasurer shall develop the necessary
guidelines, including specific timelines and deadlines, to be followed by the managers that
have budget responsibility in preparing and submitting proposed budgets. The Treasurer
shall submit the guidelines to the Oneida Business Committee for review and approval
through the adoption of a resolution.
(1) The budget schedule and guidelines shall include at least one (1) opportunity
for community input from the Nation’s membership on what should be included in
the upcoming fiscal year budget.
(2) Each fund unit shall be responsible for complying with the budget schedule and
guidelines to submit a proposed budget to the Treasurer. The Finance
Administration shall not submit any budget on behalf of a fund unit unless granted
express permission by the Oneida Business Committee.
(3) The Oneida Business Committee shall set a deadline through the adoption of a
resolution for when the Treasurer shall submit their budget guidelines to the Oneida
Business Committee for review and approval.
(b) Annual Proposed Budgets. The Treasurer shall receive, review, and compile the
proposed budgets from all the fund units into the Nation’s draft budget. The Treasurer shall
present the Nation’s draft budget to the Oneida Business Committee for review each year
to ensure that it is consistent with the Nation’s strategic plan, broad goals, and budget
strategy.
(1) Notification of Budget Increases. The Treasurer shall identify in the budget
guidelines a percentage of an increase in a fund unit’s budget from the prior year
budget that is required to be noticed to the Oneida Business Committee. The
Treasurer shall notify the Oneida Business Committee of any fund units whose
proposed budget increased by this percentage.
(c) Final Draft Budget. The Oneida Business Committee shall work with the Treasurer,
CFO, and managers to compile a final draft budget to be presented to the General Tribal
Council. The Oneida Business Committee shall approve, by resolution, the final draft
budget to be presented to the General Tribal Council.
(d) Community Meetings. Once the Oneida Business Committee has approved the final
draft budget, the Treasurer shall hold, at a minimum, two (2) community informational
meetings to present the contents of the final draft budget that will be presented to the
General Tribal Council.
(e) Budget Adoption. The Oneida Business Committee shall present the budget to the
General Tribal Council with a request for adoption by resolution no later than September
30th of each year. The General Tribal Council shall be responsible for adopting the
Nation’s budget.
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(1) Continuing Budget Resolution. In the event that the General Tribal Council
does not adopt a budget by September 30th, the Oneida Business Committee may
adopt a continuing budget resolution(s) until such time as a budget is adopted by
the General Tribal Council.
(2) Emergency Budget Adoption. In the event that the Nation proclaims an
emergency, in accordance with the Emergency Management law, that stays in effect
for at least one (1) month and prevents the presentation to and adoption of the
budget by the General Tribal Council, the Oneida Business Committee shall adopt
the Nation’s budget.
Annual Proposed Budgets. The CFO shall develop the necessary guidelines, including specific
deadlines, to be followed by the managers that have budget responsibility in preparing and
submitting proposed budgets. Upon review of the Nation’s economic state, the CFO shall include
in the guidelines the exact amount that each service group’s cumulative budget is required to be
increased/decreased in accordance with its placement on the priority list. The CFO shall submit
the guidelines, as approved by the Treasurer, to the Oneida Business Committee for review in
accordance with the deadline as set by the Oneida Business Committee. The Oneida Business
Committee may revise the guidelines as it deems necessary and shall approve a set of budgetary
guidelines within thirty (30) calendar days of the date the budgetary guidelines proposed by the
CFO were received.
(a) In accordance with the approved budgetary guidelines, fund units offering like services
shall meet together to review each fund unit’s budget and discuss strategies for attaining
compliance with the approved budgetary guidelines. Each service group shall submit one
(1) draft budget which contains each fund unit’s individual proposed budget and
demonstrates cumulative compliance with the approved budgetary guidelines.
(b) The CFO ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
shall receive, review and compile the proposed budgets into the Nation’s draft
-------budget which the CFO shall present to the Oneida Business Committee no later than the
last Oneida Business Committee meeting in May. The CFO may not alter any proposed
budgets until such budgets have been reviewed by the Oneida Business Committee.
(1) The CFO shall return any service group’s draft budget that is in non-compliance
with the approved budgetary guidelines within ten (10) business days of the date
the budget was submitted to the CFO.
(2) Upon return, the CFO shall notice the service group of the amount of its noncompliance and provide the service group with a deadline for a compliant
resubmission.
(3) Any service group’s budget that remains in non-compliance upon the expiration
of the deadline provided by the CFO shall be included in the draft budget submitted
to the Oneida Business Committee noting the dollar amount of the service group’s
non-compliance. A service group’s continued non-compliance may result in
employee discipline according to the Nation’s laws, rules and policies governing
employment.
121.5-5. Amendments to the Nation’s Budget. After the budget is adopted, amendments of the
budget shall not be permitted unless it is necessary to avoid a budget deficit. The Treasurer and
CFO shall identify when forecasted revenue and forecasted expenses are impacted in a manner
which creates a deficit for the current fiscal year. The Oneida Business Committee shall be
responsible for adopting an amendment to the budget through resolution of the Nation. The Oneida
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Business Committee shall present notification of the budget amendment at the next available
General Tribal Council meeting.
Content of Budget. The CFO shall present the Nation’s draft budget to the Oneida Business
Committee for review each year to ensure that it is consistent with the Nation’s spending priorities
and budget strategy. The Nation’s draft budget shall include, but is not limited to:
(a) Estimated revenues to be received from all sources for the year which the budget covers;
(b) The individual budgets of each fund unit;
(c) A description of each line item within each fund unit’s budget;
(d) The estimated expenditures by each fund unit; and
(e) Each fund unit’s strategic plan showing alignment with the Nation’s goals.
121.5-6. Review of Draft Budget. In the month of May, the CFO shall meet with the Oneida
Business Committee to review the draft budget and provide any recommendations for
modifications.
(a) Following the Oneida Business Committee’s review of the draft budget with the CFO,
the Oneida Business Committee shall schedule meetings with managers of each fund unit
for which the Oneida Business Committee is considering altering the fund unit’s proposed
budget.
(b) The Oneida Business Committee shall complete all meetings with fund unit managers
required by this section by the end of June each year.
121.5-7. Final Draft Budget. The Oneida Business Committee shall work with fund unit
managers and the CFO to compile a final draft budget to be presented to the General Tribal
Council. The Oneida Business Committee shall approve, by resolution, the final draft budget to
be presented to the General Tribal Council by the end of July each year.
=====================================================
-----------------121.5-8. Community Meetings. Once the Oneida Business Committee has approved the final
draft budget, the Treasurer shall hold, at a minimum, two (2) community informational meetings
to present the contents of the final draft budget that will be presented to the General Tribal Council.
121.5-9. Budget Adoption. The Oneida Business Committee shall present the budget to the
General Tribal Council with a request for adoption by resolution no later than September 30th of
each year. In the event that the General Tribal Council does not adopt a budget by September
30th, the Oneida Business Committee may adopt a continuing budget resolution(s) until such time
as a budget is adopted.
121.6.
Capital Improvements Expenditures and Assets
121.6-1. Authority to Expend Funds. The Oneida Business Committee shall have the authority to
expend appropriated funds in accordance with the Nation’s adopted budget pursuant to the
Procurement Manual developed by the Purchasing Department. The authority to expend funds is
then necessarily delegated to other managers, including Eexecutive Mmanagers of the Nation who
manage budgets pursuant to their job descriptions based on the Pprocurement Mmanual. Capital
Improvement Plan for Government Services. The Oneida Business Committee shall develop and
the General Tribal Council shall approve a capital improvement plan for government services and
shall reassess the plan once every five (5) years. The capital improvement plan for government
services shall cover a period of five (5) to ten (10) years and shall include any risks and liabilities.
The Oneida Business Committee shall provide a status report and recommendation for any
improvements that have not been completed or that have been modified at the time of the
reassessment.
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121.6-2. Procurement Manual. The Purchasing Department shall develop a Procurement Manual
which provides the sign-off process and authorities required to expend funds on behalf of the
Nation. The Procurement Manual, and any amendments thereto, shall be approved by the Oneida
Business Committee through adoption of a resolution. Capital Improvement Plan for Enterprises.
Capital improvement plans for enterprises may be brought forward as needed in accordance with
the capital improvement rules which the Community Development Planning Committee and the
- - - - - - - - Division
- - - - - -shall
---- - - -create,
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-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_that
-_-_-_-~-- - -shall
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