Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council (2024)

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

Post Office Box 256

Nixon, Nevada 89424

Telephone: (775) 574-1000

Fax (775) 574-1054

REGULAR MEETING MINUTES

Tribal Chambers ~ Nixon, NV

September 6, 2024

Members Present:

Steven Wadsworth, Tribal Chairman Edward Ely II, Vice Chairman

Harriet Brady, Councilmember John Guerrero, Councilmember

Judith Davis, Councilmember Della John, Councilmember

Georgina Wadsworth, Councilmember Genevieve John, Councilmember

Nicholas Cortez, Councilmember

Member Absent: Nathan Dunn, Councilmember

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Wadsworth called the September 6, 2024, Regular Tribal Council meeting of the Pyramid Lake

Paiute Tribal Council to order at 6:00 p.m.

ROLL CALL

The roll call was taken by Brenda A. Henry, Tribal Council Secretary. Councilmember Dunn was absent. All

other Councilmembers were present at the roll call and a quorum was established for this meeting.

Councilmember Guerrero attended via zoom.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA

Chairman Wadsworth presented the agenda.

Joann Shaw, Enrollment Officer, corrected the number of regular memberships for approval, itis from 12 and

not 11.

Councilmember Della John, on behalf of NUMU Inc., stated the Board didn’t have a chance to update their

presentation and would like to pull it and place it on the next meeting agenda. Also pull the NUMU Inc. request

under New Business #3 for Funding Request.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the agenda with changes. Councilmember Davis seconded the

motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

PUBLIC COMMENT

Leona Collins, Tribal member. Ms. Collins commented about the Facebook posts about a dog that’s been

roaming around Rabbit Circle. A Cane Corso, a big dog that can grow to 25 inches tall and 100 pounds, a

) Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

protector dog. It’s been chasing kids and also bit someone who ended up in urgent care. It’s been reported to

the Rangers and animal control and a comment was made there is nothing in the ordinance, but they now

have an animal ordinance that was passed. Her concern is with the dog being allowed to run loose and chase

anyone, how do they protect the community? They need to be proactive instead of reactive before the dog

does harm somebody.

CONSENT AGENDA

Items listed presented on the consent agenda included:

Approval Enrollment - Regular Membership (11) with Resolution

Approval Wes Williams August 2024 Invoice #4283

Approval Quarles & Brady August 2024 Invoice

Approval Silver State Government Relations Invoice #1505

- NS

Councilmember Brady requested to pull item #4. Approval Silver State Government Relations Invoice #1505

for discussion.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve items #1 through #3 on the Consent Agenda. Councilmember

Brady seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions.

MOTION PASSED.

Item #4. Approval of Silver State Government Relations Invoice #1505.

Councilmember Geneveive John said he didn’t submit a report. Ms. Henry said the report is on the flash

drives, it wasn’t printed because it’s 60 pages.

Councilmember Brady wondered if it was itemized for the billing but since she hasn’t reviewed it, she would

table it.

Councilmember Brady motioned to table the Silver State Government Relations Invoice #1505 so the Council

can review. Councilmember Genevieve John seconded the motion. Votes were six (6) for and two (2)

opposed (Davis, Wadsworth) with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

Chairman Wadsworth announced the new Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal members: Azalea Lynn Bateman, Ariana

Beth Villa Pando James, Nevaehlynn Maris Kavanaugh, Micah Anthony Rae Lara, Fawn Rose Marrietta, Zariana

Praise Martinez, Dominic Jay Pepion, Javier Antonio Perez, Carter Nicholas Rodriguez, Leilani Tabatha

Sampson, and Carlito Viliami Sampson.

ENROLLMENT Joanne Shaw, Enrollment Officer

1. Approval Acknowledgement of Relinquishments (3) with Resolutions.

a. Acknowledgement of Relinquishment for Adult #1.

Councilmember Brady asked if a letter was received that this person was enrolled at Reno Sparks Indian

Colony.

Ms. Shaw said this person was enrolling with the Walker River Paiute Tribe.

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. Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to approve the Acknowledgement of Relinquishment of Adult #1 - Selena

Lockwood. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion. Votes were six (6) for and zero (0) opposed with

two (2) abstentions (Della John, Brady). MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 081-24 ENROLLMENT

- RELINQUISHMENT SELENA LOCKWOOD

b. Acknowledgement of Relinquishment for Adult #2.

Councilmember Brady said this was the one she had a question about the receiving of a letter from Reno

Sparks Indian Colony (RSIC).

Ms. Shaw stated she did receive a letter.

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to approve the Acknowledgement of Relinquishment of Adult #2 - Alicia Parker.

Councilmember Wadsworth seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero

(0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED. (the votes on this motion were changed, see below)

c. Acknowledgement of Relinquishment for Adult #3

There was a question on the Certificate of Indian Blood (CIB), it states pending.

Ms. Shaw said once they file for relinquishment, she notes pending on the CIB so the Tribal member can’t

come into the office and request a new ID. She can have him resubmit a new form if the Council wishes.

He just put PLPT in the Tribe and Address line on the form, but this should be the name and address of the

Tribe he is going to enroll at and he didn’t mark the second line on the relinquishment form, “Date of my

acceptance into another tribe.”

Councilmember Brady asked if he was already accepted at RSIC?

Ms. Shaw said he won’t be accepted until he is relinquished from Pyramid Lake. He should have put RSIC on

the form instead of Pyramid Lake.

Councilmember Brady asked how adult #2 got accepted.

Ms. Shaw said she is scheduled to be accepted by RSIC once she is relinquished from Pyramid Lake, which is

when she sends the relinquishment resolution to their enrollment office then she will be processed for

acceptance at RSIC.

Councilmember Brady said she wants to pull her vote because she was under the impression adult #2 was

already accepted.

Ms. Shaw said RSIC can’t accept her until she has been relinquished.

Councilmember Brady said she wants to pull her vote on adult #2 and abstain.

Councilmember Della John said she would like to pull her vote and abstain also.

Vice Chairman Ely motioned to approve the acknowledgement of Relinquishment of Adult #2 - Alicia Parker.

Councilmember Wadsworth seconded the motion. Votes were six (6) for and zero (0) opposed with two

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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

(2) abstentions (Brady, Della John). MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 082-24 ENROLLMENT -

RELINQUISHMENT ALICIA PARKER

Ms. Shaw said regarding adult #3, she can contact him and ask him to put RSIC on his application but on the

top of his application it does say he is going to apply at RSIC.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the Acknowledgement of Relinquishment of Adult #3 - Mark S.

Zuniga. Councilmember Wadsworth seconded the motion. Votes were six (6) for and zero (0) opposed

with two (2) abstentions (Della John, Brady). MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 083-24

ENROLLMENT - RELINQUISHMENT MARK S ZUNIGA

Chairman Wadsworth announced the members relinquishing membership from Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe:

Selena Lockwood, Alicia Parker, and Mark S. Zuniga.

Councilmember Wadsworth asked Ms. Shaw about a comment in her report about her need for assistance in

her office and has she worked this into her budget?

Ms. Shaw said she has not started on her budget yet because she wasn’t sure she would be able to get help

based on the type of arrangements she can make to move into a bigger office.

Councilmember Wadsworth asked for a date when the Transit Department was moving into their new

building.

Chairman Wadsworth said it was going to be September but looks like October now. There were pushbacks,

for one, the plumber’s union went on strike, and they couldn’t get a final inspection completed.

Ms. Shaw updated the enrollment number for the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe with 3,018 Tribal members.

MINUTES

1. August 26, 2024, Special BM Minutes.

Councilmember Wadsworth requested to table the minutes due to the many questions.

Councilmember Wadsworth motioned to table the August 26, 2024, Special BM minutes. Councilmember

Brady seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions.

MOTION PASSED.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

1. Discussion Employee Interviews/Organizational Chart.

Chairman Wadsworth explained they had this discussion a couple of meetings back about who this

governing body would interview. There is no hard copy or consistency on who they interview at the

Council level. He provided a list on the white board for Council to review but is looking for criteria to

determine what departments would interview before them. For example, did they want department heads

who supervise employees, manage budgets, oversee other departments, provide direct services to

members, departments that are separate from the Tribe but still need resolutions approved by the Council,

and ability to change policies or employee classifications.

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

In reviewing the last organizational chart, Councilmember Genevieve John mentioned the School Board

oversees the High School.

Chairman Wadsworth said they will have a full Executive Team starting on Monday and will be meeting

next week to talk about the chart and possibly deciding to go back to it, but they already have a conflict, so

they won't be following it 100%.

Councilmember Cortez said the interview list would be the department heads, which the Chairman listed.

Chairman Wadsworth let the Council know there are department heads who haven’t interviewed before

the Council.

Councilmember Genevieve John asked, wasn’t that the purpose of the Executive Team? To complete the

interviews of departments under them? They need to get the positions consistently.

Councilmember Wadsworth stated there wasn’t an Executive Officer on board at the time which is the

reason interviews came before the Council.

Councilmember Cortez said they've done interviews for most of the departments, and it would make sense

to have everyone across the board interview before them or to just limit it to the Executive Officers.

Sherry Ely-Mendes, Programs Officer, suggested they follow the organizational chart and Councilmember

Genevieve John is correct, if they put the Executive Team in the positions they are in, they should be

responsible for the hiring and supervision of the departments underneath them. If the Council wants to

interview the departments underneath them, then the Executive Team should have the opportunity to preinterview them and to let the Council know who they choose because they are familiar with the

requirements for those positions. It’s an important part of building a team. That would take the

administrative piece off the Council’s plate, and they can oversee the legislative part which is the Council's

duty.

Councilmember Brady asked if this would be the first interview not the pre-interview?

Ms. Ely-Mendes said she would suggest they be allowed to do the interviews and hiring for their programs

but if the Council decides they want to be the one to do the hiring, they allow the Executive Team to

interview and screen the candidates that will come before Council because they will be the ones working

with the candidates.

Councilmember Wadsworth said that is already happening through the Human Resources (HR)

Department. When they have the screening panel, they include the Executive Team plus a Personnel

Committee member and a member of administration. It’s just when it comes to the decision on whether it

goes to the Council because some do and some don't.

Trish Connor, Contracts and Grants, stated in the policies and procedures manual, section two, 2-1, Tribal

Council, it does give the power of the Tribal Council to exercise control over personnel management

through adoption of program budgets, the pay plan, the personnel policies, and procedures submitted by

the Personnel Committee. The Tribal Council through resolution must exercise changes to the Personnel

Manual and under A. Duties. a3. Selection of the Executive Team or other management overseen by the

Executive Team, board, or commission from among the list of qualified, eligible applicants recommended

submitted by interview panels. It is covered for what the Council is looking for but if the Council wants

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~ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

them to clean it up or make it tighter, they can but she recommends revisions to this policy and making

edits off that.

Councilmember Davis asked if the applicants are already being screened and the finalists are being

forwarded to the Council.

Chairman Wadsworth said yes but not all of them.

Councilmember Genevieve John said they are supposed to be interviewing upper management, and she

doesn’t think they need to be involved in some of the hirings.

Chairman Wadsworth said this topic is just for discussion now but eventually he would like to submit it in a

resolution, so they have something that is searchable.

Vice Chairman Ely asked the Chairman who he supervises?

Chairman Wadsworth said until they go back to the organizational chart, it’s all the members of the

Executive Team, the Health Clinic Director, Tribal Secretary, and Contracts and Grants.

Vice Chairman Ely said he is sometimes puzzled when they interview a person who has already been

interviewed and they ask them the same questions. They need to trust their Executive Team to interview

applicants in the departments they oversee.

Councilmember Davis said she sees the need to look these over with some going to the Executive Team but

with Law Enforcement and their accountability back to the Tribe and the membership, that responsibility

should be at the Council level. This needs to be further discussed in a workshop to answer all the questions

and comments. As the governing body, they need to be accountable to the membership when it comes to

Law Enforcement, Judicial and the bigger programs.

There was a Council consensus to have a workshop on September 25, 2024, at 5 p.m. to further discuss the

organization chart and Tribal Council Interview List.

Councilmember Della John requested to include items discussed for the Strategic Planning.

2. Request for Approval of Divorce Ranches Interviews. Audrey Andrews, PhD Candidate,

Anthropology Department UNR.

Ms. Andrews provided a summary of her request. She is currently teaching anthropology classes at Salt

Lake Community College and is requesting permission for her dissertation research to take photographs of

the ranches within the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal (PLPT) boundaries to include oral history interviews.

She has identified 77 divorce ranches in the greater Reno area and the PLPT has between 10 and 12. She is

working with Billie Jean Guerrero, the Museum Director, who has full access to her research and has

identified some Tribal members to interview, one being Levi Frazier. They will also be creating an exhibit

on the divorce ranches of Pyramid Lake at the Museum. Also, in attendance with her is the NAGPRA

Coordinator, her supervisor for the past two years.

Councilmember Brady informed the Council that she is working with Wes Williams, Legal Counsel about a

clause in the Tribe’s Research Agreement.

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Ms. Henry, Tribal Secretary, stated the research agreement was forwarded to Mr. Williams for review, and

she connected him with Councilmember Brady who had questions on the agreement. She was hoping for a

response back by the meeting but hadn’t received a response from him.

Ms. Andrews restated this was permission for her dissertation at UNR and not for a book but if anything,

becomes of it she would collaborate and come back to the Council for permission.

Councilmember Brady said she asked at the last meeting if there could be potential for a book out of this

and believes Ms. Andrews provided an affirmative answer and so this is the reason to involve legal counsel.

Councilmember Davis asked if this gets approved and is published, will this have an impact on the

irrigators on the amount of water received from the State Water Master for their allocations. For the

allocations they get X amount of acreage and if she finds new ones, can that make the numbers decrease the

allocations?

Councilmember Della John said the water allocation for irrigation comes out of the assignments. Members

have acreage in production, so many acres, foot per acre and that is all they turn down. If they don’t have

anything in production, or they are not irrigating, then it’s not given to them. These ranches are in the

mountains except for S Bar S, and she is not sure if it has any water rights. If the water is not in production,

it sits in storage.

Chairman Wadsworth stated they understand Ms. Andrews just wants to take pictures and conduct

interviews but they still would like to hear back from the Tribe’s legal counsel.

This item is to remain tabled and to be brought back before the Council on September 20, 2024, Special TC

meeting.

3. Request for Approval Resolution Endorsement of Kamala Harris for President and Tim Walz for

Vice President.

Chairman Wadsworth reminded the Council this item was previously tabled for questions, and he has

provided an updated resolution.

Diana Mitchell said she has seen this before endorsing a candidate, specifically a Democrat within an

election cycle. When the Tribe endorses a candidate and disregards everybody else because not everyone is

Democrat, they could be a Republican or Independent. She has heard those voices from others, but

personally she is a Democrat and will be endorsing this candidate also. She can understand if the Tribe

would support a Presidential candidate with ITCN as a group of tribal leaders but as a Tribal Council, they

are the voice of a community. It’s important to hear the voice of the community as stated there are 3018

Tribal members. If ITCN had an endorsement they would be the voice and would say the Tribal leaders

from the State of Nevada support this candidate.

Councilmember Brady said, “That does not make sense. | don’t get what you're saying. Can you explain it,

because Chairman Wadsworth is the Tribe’s representative.”

Chairman Wadsworth said they are not making the decision, which is their recommendation, but it still

should be the individual’s right to vote for whomever they wish. They are not telling them how to vote.

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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Currently no Tribes in Nevada have done this since 2016 when the majority of Tribe’s endorsed Hillary

Clinton. In speaking with other Chairmans, they were not sure if they endorsed in 2016, but they did

endorse Senator Harry Reid and donated to his campaign. For this one they are not asking for a donation.

Karole McQueen said if they vote to approve the resolution, as a Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal member the

Council would not be speaking on her behalf.

Councilmember Cortez reiterated his opinion that a governmental body should try to remain neutral,

because it does alienate other individuals that are trying to vote. One item that worries him is the fact they

have a polling location next to the chambers and anything can be construed as a reason to take away their

polling site and can be turned into a bias. The Reno Sparks Indian Colony (RSIC) had an issue with their

chairman endorsing a candidate in the middle of election season and they did have repercussions for their

polling site. He wouldn’t want to see the Tribal members not able to vote and have their votes invalidated

because of it.

A question was asked how long it took the RSIC to get to their polling station?

Councilmember Wadsworth said she didn’t think it was that long; it was in the election year it was held,

and it was pushed through when a suit was filed against Washoe County in 2016.

Councilmember Della John said the lawsuit was filed by three veterans from the Tribe.

Councilmember Cortez asked do they want to take that risk since it was three of their veterans that

advocated for the vote? That was the time the Tribe’s oldest elder voted for the first time and this event is

meaningful to him because it is something they don’t see every day.

Betty Aleck asked what this endorsement is seeking to accomplish and what is the message they want to

relate to the citizens?

Chairman Wadsworth read the third “whereas” from the resolution, “the quality of life for our Tribal

members residing both on and off the Pyramid Lake Indian Reservation is directly tied to our right to selfdetermination and partnership with the federal government, and whereas in our unending effort and

responsibility as stewards of the land, water, resources and Tribal members of the Pyramid Lake, we the

Tribal Council are appreciative of the support given to us by the current Bide-Harris Administration.” Now,

therefore, let it be resolved, “the Tribal Council hereby endorses Kamala Harris for President and Tim Walz

for Vice-President. We believe that their support of all Native Tribes in the United States will further

continue to repair the historically fractured relationship, both through meaningful policy enactment, and

commitment to always honor Tribal Sovereignty.” And the last bit is a direct quote from Kamala Harris.

Betty Aleck, THPO commented even through the Biden Administration and its so-called green policies have

resulted in more geothermal plants and lithium mines being constructed and the destruction of a lot of

cultural resources on ancestral Tribal Lands.

~ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Councilmember Cortez motioned for the Tribe to remain neutral on this matter. Vice Chairman Ely seconded

the motion. Votes were three (3) for and four (4) opposed (Wadsworth, Genevieve John, Della John, Brady)

with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION FAILED. Councilmember Guerrero, on zoom did not vote.

Councilmember Genevieve John said they have members who are on both sides of the party and as Tribal

leaders they must make decisions that are sometimes contrary to what the membership wants. She thinks

the resolution is okay because it is what they have done for the Tribe throughout their term and doesn’t see

where it will be detrimental because this was posted in the agenda that it was being discussed. If they could

delay and see what the membership thinks and put it on the next agenda for more feedback.

Chairman Wadsworth said they will leave it tabled for the next meeting.

Councilmember Brady asked to rework the last whereas or remove it based on Ms. Aleck’s comments.

Councilmember Cortez said rather than an endorsement, do a resolution encouraging people to vote and if

you feel strongly about it as a Tribal leader, go out and get people to vote on an individual basis rather than

a governmental basis.

NEW BUSINESS

1. Request for Approval of General Counsel Legal Services Proposal. Pilar Thomas, Quarles & Brady

LLP

Ms. Thomas said she is a partner with the law firm Quarles & Brady, LLP and has represented the Tribe for

about six years, previously she was with Lewis and Roca. At the time she was brought on to help the Tribe

with evaluating and working with NextEra, the large solar developer who has done two and now three

solar projects on Dodge Flats working closely with the Council to negotiate agreements that worked out

favorably for the Tribe. They aided the Tribal government on the cannabis issues that went bad and the

litigation that surrounded it. Some of it was in favor of the Tribe and some of it still unresolved, which is

still in the Tribe’s favor. They provide contract review for licensing of fiber which includes the licensing and

intellectual property issues. Another issue is the retroceding of the BIA 638 contracts with the Bureau of

Indian Affairs (BIA). She brought two of her team members to introduce to the Council, Jason Croxton and

Dan Roberts.

Mr. Croxton explained he is Senior Counsel to Quarles & Brady and has been on board for just over a year

primarily working with the Indian law and policy team. He previously worked for the Navajo Housing

Authority in the Phoenix area. He has worked closely with Benjamin John on various business-related

projects, the Sutcliffe Tank Project and the amendment to the HEARTH Act leasing regulations related to

solar and wind. He has also worked on a variety of other smaller contracts related to film and television

and other similar matters.

Mr. Roberts said he is a litigator with Quarles & Brady and has been involved in the Cannabis dispute and

enterprise with John O’Neil who is also an experienced litigator who is the general counsel for the law firm.

They also dealt with the issues with Crosby Lodge and they and another firm are currently working on that

issue. He had been with the firm for eight years and also worked for the Navajo Housing Authority but

didn’t know Mr. Croxton at the time. He’s done litigation in Tribal Court in different jurisdictions, different

tribes, in Federal and State Court including Washoe County.

Councilmember Brady asked him about his experience, actions, and successes.

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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Mr. Roberts said there is the Cannabis case where the enterprise that contracted with the Tribe sued the

Tribe for quite a bit of money, millions of dollars. They are in arbitration with that one, privately arbitrated

as opposed to in the court and they have been successful in getting the arbitration to be put on hold

indefinitely so that certain issues can be resolved back within the Tribal Court. The biggest victory is it

pushed the issue, it put the plaintiff or the claimant in that case in a bad spot and now they are without

resolution against the Tribe. It was a $40 million claim, and they received zero. They were also successful in

defeating liens on Tribal fee land where they tried to get liens asserted against the land. They got a motion

to dismiss granted by the Washoe County Court in favor of the Tribe.

Vice Chairman Ely said it was obvious they can practice in Nevada, but do they see the firm becoming a

Commercial Realty representative licensed in Nevada because of Tribal land has fee land involved and non-

Tribal members fighting over leased land. The Tribe has had to get some expensive attorneys to litigate

some issues regard to NUMU Inc.

Ms. Thomas said John O’Neil is licensed in Nevada and when they represented the Tribe in Washoe County,

he was the lead attorney. They have other attorneys licensed in Nevada and relied on them for some of the

initial work with the Crosby Lodge issue.

Councilmember Brady corrected them in the matter of Pyramid Lodge not Crosby Lodge.

Ms. Thomas said the lease work they do for the Tribe, the easement work is all real estate type work. They

were representing the Tribe in the negotiations of trying to get the Lodge conveyed and part of the work,

even though she was the lead negotiator, she was relying on her Nevada real estate lawyers to tell her what

they could and could not be doing. There were a lot of issues around the legal documents, the promissory

note and the other joint development agreement and their validity under Nevada law. They worked on that

to help the Tribe know what their legal rights were as a Tribe and for NUMU Inc. She worked with Dan

Raybear because he is not licensed in Nevada either and he relied on their Nevada lawyers to help give him

advice on what kind of options were under Nevada law because they anticipated that if it were going to be

litigated it would be going into State Court.

Vice Chairman Ely said he did watch them on zoom when they were litigating for the cannabis.

Ms. Thomas said they wanted to foreclose on the S-Bar-S Ranch and take it from the Tribe, so they

defended that foreclosure action and got it dismissed under Federal Indian law principles on why the Tribe

was immune from suit and because of the Tribe’s immunity, the Tribe’s property is immune. Mr. Raybear

did all the briefings and all the research, but she argued it.

Councilmember Dunn asked how long their contract was for.

Ms. Thomas said the original contract was for two years and they had subsequent engagement letters for

new litigation which then added to the contract. Their contract was for about three years when she came

on from Lewis and Roca. Before with Lewis and Roca it was an hourly rate. When it went to a flat rate, they

reviewed it in six months to see how much time they were spending and after they reviewed it, they

reduced the rate down to what it is now. It’s been the same rate for about three and a half years.

Councilmember Cortez said he was trying to figure out how they came up with the number because the

number of hours submitted on the latest invoice with the highest rate from each of your lawyers and

paralegal section comes to about half. He’s trying to justify the cost because a lot of the invoices they have

seen were the same number of hours per month.

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Ms. Thomas said this is an alternative fee arrangement they worked on four years ago with the Chairman

and the Council back then and the rationale is it’s easier for the Tribe to budget a flat amount and know

what the cost is going to be. The risk for them is in some months they have more hours than the flat rate

would have covered and in other months it’s less, but they did an analysis and it has equaled out so the rate

you have paid and the hours they have worked have been basically equaled out. So, the Tribe hasn't paid

more, and they haven’t worked less.

Councilmember Cortez said the reason he is asking is because Ms. Thomas stated any extra expertise, any

additional work, the Tribe is going to be charged for that additional amount.

In response Ms. Thomas said for example, when litigation is a separate matter, they charged the Tribe

separately that was because for litigation, if they win, they can ask for attorney fees to cover their costs, so

litigation is separate, but all her time and Mr. Croxton’s time is the flat fee.

Councilmember Cortez asked when to deal with specialties such as copyright or IP work that would be an

additional cost?

Ms. Thomas said it would normally be an additional cost but the most recent IP work they did, it was

included in the flat rate. She tries to keep the cost as low as possible.

Councilmember Brady noted they aren’t doing this all by themselves, there are people doing research and

others for the administrative work.

Ms. Thomas said they have legal assistants but don’t charge for their work, so the Tribe won't see the work

put on the invoices. They have a legal intern who just took the bar so if she did any work for the Tribe, it

would be included in the flat rate. Other lawyers, they might see on the invoice, are invoiced at a flat rate

but if they go over the top then they will add that extra cost. She rolls as much IP work into the flat rate and

the Tribe only pays the difference. It saves the Tribe a lot of money knowing how much IP lawyers charge.

Councilmember Cortez said it would be helpful if it were included in the agreement in writing because

according to their proposal, any outside costs would be an additional cost. Having it written down is better

than having it said orally.

Ms. Thomas said this is just the proposal, if the Council agrees to extend the engagement and enters a new

contract, because the old contract is carried over with the new engagement letters, they will have to update

the original scope of the original contract for the new engagement letters. The matters they have worked

on would fall under the general language of the original contract and they would make it clear for the

Council under the new contract. Their goal is to keep the costs as low as possible, they proposed a flat fee

again with no increase in the fee. Since the RFP requested a two-year contract, they are committing a flat

fee to stay the same for two more years so it would be a total of five years at the same flat fee. You would

know what the costs are going to be unless something comes up, like litigation, and you know what the

rates would be for litigation, but the transactional items stay in the flat fee.

Councilmember Brady asked how this would look different with an hourly fee? Who else would be on the

billing that they don’t see?

Ms. Thomas said the billing would look a lot different. Everyone would be on billing, but the dollar amounts

would be different. Once a month it could be a $4,000 bill and the next it might be $25,000 depending on

the work they do, or you might get a bill for zero or $1,000. When you do it hourly, you are subject to the

hours, so you must know what is coming down the road.

-11-|Page

’ “Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Councilmember Genevieve John asked if this contract is for two years?

Chairman Wadsworth said they must accept the proposal first and then work on the contract with what

Councilmember Cortez asked to be added.

Councilmember Cortez asked if they could table until they see a draft of the contract, if they will be

updating the current contract that is in place? He would like to see it on paper before making an official

approval. Councilmember Genevieve John seconded the motion.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to table pending a draft contract by next Tribal Council meeting September

20, 2024.

Councilmember Genevieve John asked if only Mr. Croxton and herself were under the contract. Ms. Thomas

confirmed her, and Mr. Croxton were under the fixed amount of the contract amount. If the Tribe needed

assistance with another litigation and they had to use Dan Roberts for litigation it would be under a

separate agreement.

Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

2. Request for Approval Retrocede Detention Services Law Enforcement 638 Contract Resolution.

Pilar Thomas, Quarles & Brady LLP

Ms. Thomas explained the Tribe received a letter from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Office of Justice

Services, District Three, advising the Tribe and other Northern Nevada Tribes, the BIA would no longer

cover detention services. The BIA had a contract with Washoe County to house tribal inmates. BIA’s

rationale was the Tribe’s 638 contract which the Tribe entered in FY24 included detention services. What

that meant was in the scope of services covered under the law enforcement 638 contract amongst all the

other law enforcement programs, services, functions, and activities there was a provision for detention

services. They met with the Chairman, Tribal Court, Sherry Ely-Mendes, Programs Officer, and the Chief of

Police about what this meant for the Tribe picking up the tab with the inclusion in the 638 contracts. They

found this was the first time the BIA included in your 638 contract the detention services function; all the

previous contracts don’t have the detention services in it because the BIA was paying for it but for FY24

they inserted it. The Tribe didn’t ask for it, didn’t ask for the money for it and they didn’t give the Tribe

more money for it. On their recommendation, the Chairman sent BIA a letter stating the Tribe is formally

retroceding back the detention services function, which the Tribe is allowed under the 638 Contract. The

Tribe doesn’t have to have a reason, they just have to say they are retroceding even though the Tribe gave

them three major reasons. In the meantime, the BIA came back and said they will give the Tribe about

$44,000 for detention services which is not enough and secondly, if the Tribe had accepted the funds, then

you would have accepted the responsibility for detention services. The Tribe would have to enter a contract

with Washoe County to house tribal inmates and pick up the difference. If the Tribe accepted the $44,000

from BIA but it costs $150,000 then the Tribe would have to pay the difference. BIA has said if you want to

formally retrocede, they require a resolution from the Council to formally retrocede the detention services

back to the BIA which would excise it from the 638 contracts. They would be fully responsible for all

detention services, and it would go back to the way it was prior to the FY24, and they would be responsible

for contracting with Washoe County to house tribal inmates. BIA wants a formal resolution, even though it

is not required under the regulations. The resolution authorizes the Chairman to send a letter again which

agrees to retrocede and to give it back to BIA.

~ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Councilmember Davis motioned to approve the resolution to Retrocede Detention Services Law Enforcement

638 Contract. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion.

Councilmember Wadsworth said there is no date in the resolution so BIA could hold it for 90 days or

forever. They could hold off on the Tribe and in the meantime, there is no contract to house tribal

prisoners.

Ms. Thomas clarified they were not retroceding the funding only the function, the Tribe is keeping the

funding because they never gave the Tribe money for detention services. The date of the retrocession is the

date of the resolution. The Chairman sends them a letter with the resolution saying effective today the

Tribe retrocedes and let BIA oversee the rest.

Vice Chairman Ely asked if this is going to be a yearly thing BIA will try to slip into the contract.

Ms. Thomas said yes, she strongly recommends reading the contract next time to see what is included. BIA

clearly slipped it in because they were tired of paying for it and they didn’t tell the Tribe. Chief Parsons said

they never talked to him about it, they never asked for it, never submitted a budget for it. A

recommendation from Chief Parsons was if the Tribe wants to take on detention services, then they need to

develop a budget, see how much it’s going to cost and ask BIA for the funding.

Councilmember Della John asked if they were in the same situation with investigations because they have

never contracted for investigation but noticed the Police have unmarked vehicles and they are calling

themselves detectives.

Ms. Thomas said she hasn’t read the Tribe’s law enforcement contract that closely, but she can review it.

The 638 contracts typically cover patrol, dispatch, and investigations, which is typical scope of services for

law enforcement.

Councilmember Della John said there is one investigator in the whole of Western Nevada and the Tribe’s

portion of his salary is big, he is a federal investigator. They have never contracted his services because it's

too expensive. Not sure how they are paying for it, the Tribe doesn’t get much investigation, they snuck it in

like this one.

Ms. Thomas said with the standard law enforcement contract you would have had detention services in it,

the fact that BIA was paying for your detention services prior to 2024 was something they decided to do.

Then they decided to insert it into your law enforcement contract, but typical law enforcement services

would include resources to investigate, patrol, for dispatch or to hold cell resources but the Tribe makes

the decisions.

Votes were seven (7) for and zero (0) opposed with one (1) abstention (Brady). MOTION PASSED

3. Request for Approval PLPT 2024-2029 Strategic Plan with Resolution. Trisha Conner & Dr.

Frederick Steinman, Director University Center for Economic Development UNR

Ms. Conner said this process started a year ago, as directed by the Tribal Council, a community needs

assessment was completed and with that information they contracted with the University of Center of

Economic Development at UNR to complete the Strategic Plan.

Dr. Steinman provided a summary of the key critical elements of the new five-year Strategic Plan for the

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe and the Pyramid Lake Paiute Reservation covering the 2024-2029 Strategic

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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Planning period. The purpose of a strategic plan is to provide an organization as well as a community with

a broad general overview of the general direction of which community leaders, community members,

various stakeholders and partners have chosen based upon a series of assessments of various individual

community concerns. A five-year comprehensive organizational and community strategic plan should be

thought of as a high level and overarching document to provide the organization of the community with a

general direction of specific goals, actionable items, and key elements that the organization will attempt to

pursue over that five-year period. They completed three separate Strategic Planning Workshops: 2

workshops on March 8t and March 9, April 6" and May 31st, 2024, and from these workshops they

arrived with a technical report which is provided to the Council for review. The critical elements of the new

five-year Organizational Strategic Plan include Core Values, Mission statement, Vision Statement, Set of

Organizational Strategic Goals and Objectives with Actionable items and Resiliency and Recovery Elements.

The last step is the implementation round where the real work begins. It was a lengthy process over the

past year to complete the community needs assessment and to build the Strategic Plan. In the final phase,

which is the implementation and development of financial and non-financial resources for allocating the

funds to the different parts of the organization as they relate to achieving the individual goals.

The agreement with the Tribe and the University is on an annual basis, at no additional cost, the Center for

Economic Development will work with the Tribe to complete upwards of four annual updates and revisions

of the Strategic Plan. It is wise to meet every year and ask if the plan is still relevant, provides overall

guidance and are the goals and objectives are something the Tribe still wants to pursue.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to approve the PLPT 2024-29 Strategic Plan with Resolution.

Councilmember Genevieve John seconded the motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with

zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL 085-24 PLPT 2024-29 STRATEGIC PLAN

4. For Discussion and Possible Action Tribal Council Ethics Policy. Councilmember Cortez

Councilmember Cortez presented two documents before Council: The Complaint Process Against an

Elected Tribal Council Member, this document drafted by Councilmember Della John, and the Pyramid Lake

Paiute Tribe Tribal Council, Committees, Boards, Commissions Code of Ethics which was presented by

Councilmember Guerrero in February 2024. Both these documents were presented to Council because they

had similar wording and reasons behind them because the Council doesn’t have a Code of Ethics or a

complaint policy to follow.

He took both the policies and merged them together into a red-lined version to get the Council on the same

page. This was previously sent to the council in July for their review and comments and includes definitions

and the process. Additionally, he included a complaint form for review. He would like to set a date for a

workshop so they can continue with discussions and take some action.

Councilmember Brady agreed with a workshop because she had questions regarding the misconduct,

specifically insubordination to whom? And would like to add outside influences, in regard to someone else

paying for political signs.

Councilmember Cortez said for the political signs, which should fall under the Election Ordinance because

it deals directly with the election.

Chairman Wadsworth agreed with Councilmember Cortez because you could have somebody doing that

who is not elected yet and these policies only cover elected Tribal Council members.

~ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

‘ . September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Councilmember Cortez explained to the audience that the policy is to state definitions so people will know

when it is a conflict of interest or harassment that is affecting them and to know what steps they need to

take because when it comes to the Tribal Council nothing is written down on paper. The most the

Constitution says is gross neglect of duty and improper conduct.

Councilmember Della John said the complaint process is against an elected official only applies to the Tribal

Council because it’s tied to the Constitution and those are the two reasons for removal from Tribal Council.

This won’t apply to the committees, boards, or commissions.

Councilmember Cortez said that is the reason for the red-lined, he was crossing those off, but he wanted to

get the Council's opinion on it. He did change the wording to be inclusive with Chairperson, Vice

Chairperson and etc., but it would be everyone’s decision if they want to exclude committee, board, and

commissions.

There was a Council consensus to have a workshop on September 30, 2024, at 5 p.m. to further discuss the

Tribal Council Ethics Policy.

5. Request for Approval of Election Board Requests. Jolyne Sander, Election Board

a. Approval to Call the 2024 Tribal Election

Ms. Sander is requesting to call the 2024 Tribal Election.

Councilmember Wadsworth asked if the election would be using the old Election Ordinance and changing it

to reflect the new ordinance? Ms. Sander confirmed they would still be using the old Election Ordinance.

Chairman Wadsworth said he understands Councilmember Wadsworth’s concern, with the current

ordinance, there is a primary and because the new ordinance is not yet approved but there is no primary

listed on the timeline submitted.

Councilmember Wadsworth said they can’t until they approved the new ordinance.

Ms. Sander said the Election Board previously came before the Council and it was requested to have the

primary election removed so they removed it. The timeline is only a guide now, they are here requesting to

call the election.

Councilmember Cortez motioned to call the 2024 Tribal Election. Councilmember Brady seconded the

motion. Votes were eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

b. Approval to Post the Tribal Election Ordinance PL 10-01 (revised) for comments.

Vice Chairman Ely stepped out of chambers at 8:17 p.m.

Ms. Sander is requesting to approve the amended ordinance. The one thing she changed from the working

group meeting was the cost, they did talk about $75 across the board for fees but this won't get approved

until after the candidates sign up, so it will stay at the same cost. They are in a crunch with the timeline, so

they must get moving.

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Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Councilmember Cortez motioned to post for 30 days the Tribal Election Ordinance PL 10-01 for public

comment. Councilmember Wadsworth seconded the motion. Votes were seven (7) for and zero (0)

opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED

Ms. Sander updated the Council on the Board; they will be having another meeting on Monday and have

invited Enrollment and the Tribal Secretary. They will also be including their alternates in case one of the

members needs to step down. This year is going to be different and its trial and error but hoping to have it

right and it will be easier for the alternates to step in. They have five members of the board and three

alternates, Tanda Roberts, Susie Albright and Da Nelle Smith.

Councilmember Davis motioned to approve the Election Board be allowed to bring on board their alternates

for the 2024 Tribal Election. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion. Votes were seven (7) for and zero

(0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED No response from Councilmember Guerrero who

was on zoom.

Vice Chairman Ely returned to chambers at 8:19 p.m.

Councilmember Della John asked if they would be keeping track of the ballots that are sent out and

returned? And will they still have to register?

Ms. Sander confirmed they would be keeping track of the ballots and no, they don’t have to register but

they will have to complete the request for absentee ballots and the reason for that is if a petition comes up,

the only way they can verify it is them is through their signature. They will have to keep those registration

forms on file for the signatures. That is how they always done it in the past for petitions, they compared the

signatures in the book.

Councilmember Della John commented she was thinking about the disaster for the last mail out using the

same list and addresses.

Councilmember Wadsworth said the issue wasn’t with them.

Ms. Sander suggested the Chairman do a video and get it on social media for the community members.

Encourage the community members to inform their off-reservation family members to update their

addresses. They need to get the word out to the community. Again, everybody must register for an

absentee ballot, if they are coming in personally to vote then all they need is their ID or Tribal ID.

Councilmember Della John asked how they would know if they mailed in an absentee ballot and then they

show up.

Ms. Sander said they will have a list of the absentee ballots and numbering; they will be able to track the

absentee ballots that are mailed by the number. If the member comes in to cast a ballot they will know and

will be told they have to bring in their ballot. This is covered in the ordinance, and it will be in the cover

letter that is sent out with the registration. If they don’t bring it in, they don’t’ vote.

Councilmember Brady said she remembers years back when somebody had numbered them, and they

invalidated them.

Ms. Sanders said the ballots be electronically and they are always numbered. The only time the numbers

are off is if there is a spoiled ballot. The problem they have is figuring out if they are going to do paper

ballots or regular ballots since they don’t know the size of the ballots, which depends on how many people

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

are running plus they are not able to fold the ballots for the envelopes. So, on Monday they will be

discussing whether they will be doing paper ballots and doing a hand count.

Councilmember Brady forwarded an email to the Council about the Yurok Tribe having a tracking system

for when they send out the ballots and their absentee ballots. The Chairman or Tribal Secretary will

forward to Ms. Sanders.

Leona Collins, Election Board member, said there are still a lot of questions that they are going to have to

work through. Karole McQueen contacted Terry from Automated Election Services (AES) to attend the next

board meeting with them to assist them in answering some of their questions.

Councilmember Della John said Mark Thompson from Indian Dispute Resolutions is also a good resource,

he assists other tribes with their elections, she knows him from scheduling financial workshops with him.

Ms. Sander said any help or suggestions at this point would be helpful and appreciated.

Councilmember Brady stressed to the Chairman to do PSAs like Arlen Melendez and Anthony Sampson to

get out and vote; to get it out on social media.

6. Request for Approval Pyramid Lake (PL) Fisheries Requests. Mervin Wright Jr. PL Fisheries

Director

a. Approval Consideration to take action in response to US Fish and Wildlife Service

(USFWS) passing of all Lahontan Cutthroat Trout (LCT) into the lower Truckee River at

Marble Bluff Fish Facility with Resolution.

Mr. Wright stated he is bringing this before the Council for their consideration to pass all Cutthroat Trout at

Marble Bluff. Beginning in 2022 they had a series of four meetings with the USFWS where they expressed

concerns about the actions taking place at the Marble Bluff Fish Facility regarding the black pipe, as it was

known, and then it became known as the return pipe. The last meeting was held in February with the USFW

and the Pyramid Lake (PL) Fisheries Board. The USFWS stated they would issue a commitment letter

regarding the return pipe which is included in his report. The Tribe received the letter dated May 2, 2024,

to Chairman Wadsworth saying the removal of the return pipe from Marble Bluff to pass all LCT through

the facility. They have always been suspicious of the USFWS that they were going to do something different

to restrict access for all the cutthroats into the river. He talked with Tanya Summer and told her that he had

drafted a resolution for the PL Fisheries Board’s consideration. She appreciated that he shared the

information with her. The Board adopted the Resolution, PLF 06-24 stating that passing all LCT at Marble

Bluff Fish Facility is permanent. He thought he would draft a resolution for the Tribal Council's

consideration. When the PL Fisheries Board and the USFWS had their meetings, they expressed their

concerns about the return pipe, the Board wanted all LCT to pass into the river. The fish were here before

us, having access to the river, it’s their home and that is where they belong. As long as there is access to

Marble Bluff Fish Facility for all cutthroats there will be natural reproduction. They still have issues with

genetics management and rainbow hybridization, but they are continuing to work with the USFWS on

those.

Councilmember Davis motioned to approve the request for the Passing of all LCT into the lower Truckee

River at Marble Bluff Fish Facility with Resolution. Councilmember Cortez seconded the motion. Votes were

eight (8) for and zero (0) opposed with zero (0) abstentions. MOTION PASSED. RESOLUTION NO.: PL

086-24 PERMANENT ACCESS FOR ALL LCT IN THE LOWER TRUCKEE RIVER AT THE MARBLE BLUFF

FISH FACILITY

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__ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

- . September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

b. Approval of Receive updates on the Truckee River Effluent Removal Project.

Mr. Wright serves on the Nevada Water Planning Commission along with representatives from the Cities of

Reno, Sparks, Washoe County and TMWA. He was asked about the Effluent Removal Project and what the

Tribe was doing. He couldn’t answer the question because he didn’t know. He requested permission from

the PL Fisheries Board for approval to request an update on the Effluent Removal Project. At the last Water

Team meeting, he mentioned it to Chris Mixson, Water Team Attorney, who said he could provide a

summary for him on the project, but he told him to wait so he could bring it to the Council for directions for

Mr. Mixson to do that. He would like to receive an update from the Council on the Effluent Removal Project

and where it's currently at.

Vice Chairman Ely said Mr. Mixson will be at the next Water Team meeting on September 18, 2024, and can

provide the Council an update then.

c. Approval to Consider allowing Cui-ui Fishing for all Tribal members.

Mr. Wright explained when Dan Mosely was the Pyramid Lake Fisheries Director, he started a process for

the Cui-ui which was discussed at the Board level for a Cui-ui harvest. In working with the USFWS on how

they can do that. The USFWS told Mr. Mosely the fish must be downlisted. He has Mr. Mosely’s downlisted

plan, however, in talking with “folks,” it’s out of the question. As long as Marble Bluff is there, it’s going to

be an obstacle, they are not going to have full free access for the Cui-uis. Plus, if they downlist, people will

be coming after the water. He took Mr. Mosley’s plan, expanded it, and started talking with Rachel Yumans,

lead contact for the Cui-ui, at the USFWS. Their conversation moved to the USFWS Native Endangered

Species Recovery Permit from 2023-2028 which is a science permit, and it allows them to take pairs for Big

Ben. The permit allows for 500 fish to be taken, and 150 for Big Ben, but they never take that amount. Last

year they took 400 Cui-uis and this year they took 300 and that left 200 on the permit. In his last

conversation with Ms. Yumans, he asked if they could harvest the remaining 200, they would have to create

a plan or a permitting process. So, for the plan he referred to a 1980 resolution PL 10-80 and the March 6,

1980, Tribal Council minutes where the Council agreed that Tribal members can catch five Cui-uis,

however, the resolution states that Cui-ui fishing is closed to everybody. He provided these two documents

to Ms. Yumans and asked her if they could allow the five fish to be taken under a permitting process with

the condition that whoever gets a permit has to remove the tag and provide it to the fisheries as part of the

class study that they do. Howards Bay is really the only location where everyone went for Cui-ui fishing so

they could limit the fishing to Howards Bay. There will be an application that Tribal members will have to

complete. The PL Fisheries Board recommended they have workshops and public meetings to walk the

Tribal members through the process. On August 28, 2024, he received an email from Ms. Yumans which

said they are exploring the options on their end for a Tribal Harvest opportunity but wanted to make sure

they have the same understanding of the Tribe’s Recovery Permit. The Recovery Permit allows for

authorized activities, including purposeful take of a species, for the purposes that promote recovery,

enhancement of propagation or survival of the species. The Tribe’s Recovery Permit allows for the

purposeful take of up to 500 Cui-uis for the research outlined in the permit and 150 for spawning. The final

number of Cui-ui collected for these previously authorized activities is up to the Tribe, as long as it is fewer

than 500 and 150. They always encourage the permittees to consider the number of specimens needed to

fulfill the research objective each year and to take only what is necessary. The method of take should follow

what is authorized in a permit and in the locations delineated. They will need to update the permit because

three of the authorized individuals no longer work for the PL Fisheries. What he wanted to ask the Council

was to solicit comments because this plan is a draft, he would like to get comments from the Cultural

Department, Museum, Natural Resources, and he will email it to All PLPT, plus send it to Ms. Yumans and

her team in Reno. He is not asking for approval but only to move forward.

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_ Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

Vice Chairman Ely asked if this would threaten the Endangered Species Act (ESA), or will they have to delist

them? And who regulates the ESA?

Mr. Wright said no it wouldn't, the USFWS regulates the ESA.

Councilmember Brady said the PL Fisheries have been doing this permit since 1994 and it’s kind of similar

to the eagle feathers, you must go through a permit process.

Councilmember Davis said it seems doable, but she would like to see where the Tribe wouldn’t jeopardize

the fish by delisting them or somebody could make it look like it’s construed by saying they are taking

them, they could be delisted. She would like to see the harvest plan and the comments of the PL Fisheries

Board because there are no Board minutes in the packet to review.

Councilmember Brady said it is a good idea to have workshops, but she would also like to see stringent

guidelines, she would be worried someone would get a permit and then sell the fish.

Mr. Wright said they had the discussion also and with there only being one way into Howards Bay, they

would have a station set up and there would be set hours for harvest.

Councilmember Wadsworth said they should move it forward since there are generations who have not

fished or eaten Cui-ui, maybe they don’t know what they look like. Because it is our name, it’s important for

the kids to know where we got our name from.

Councilmember Brady said it could be a good educational opportunity. The fish that they received at the

high school, they cooked them and explained to the students the background of the fish.

Councilmember Cortez asked about the authorized area because it doesn’t say explicitly in the permit or

the special terms and conditions.

Mr. Wright said you don’t, they would go to the Marble Bluff Fish Facility and do the collection there. They

would have to put it in the permit or the plan.

Councilmember Genevieve John asked if he had an estimate of how many people would take advantage of

this permit?

Mr. Wright said they would have enough for 40 permits if they limited it to five per person.

Councilmember Genevieve John recommended 3 fish so more members could get a permit.

Mr. Wright said they have filets in the Fisheries freezer for anyone who wants to have some now, they must

fill out a sheet so they can keep track of the fish.

Councilmember Davis said it would be a good thing once he gets his plan together to possibly take some of

the younger people out to fish. A lot of younger people have never eaten a Cui-ui, let alone know how to

catch them.

Tilo Lara, Pyramid Lake Fisheries Board of Trustees Vice Chairman said there is more details to what has

been brought tonight and a lot they must still put together. A lot of the stuff they have brought up, they

have touched on with the age groups and how many children would come in. The plan would have very

-19-|Page

e

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

strategic guidelines, location, times, the who, what, where, when and how would be outlined in the plan and

then the workshop itself would require anglers to attend so they have been given the brief, they know the

rules and that way there are no violations. They wouldn't be jeopardizing what the USFWS is allowing them

to do, there are also tribes out there who are allowed to harvest endangered species. There is a means

where the Tribe can do this also; they just must do the research and then go through the process. They

would have to work with other departments for the roads, law enforcement, rangers and others who may

need to be involved.

The Council approved by consensus to move forward and follow through with the plan.

Councilmember Della John asked if the Tribe received a letter for his appointment for the Water Planning

Commission.

Mr. Wright said he went to the meeting the previous week at the Water Treatment Plant, and they want to

regionalize the Treatment Facility because the City of Sparks manages it now and they want to include

Reno, Washoe County and TMWA. He will keep the Council updated.

7. Discussion and Approval for Chairman Travel.

Chairman Wadsworth said he was invited to attend the Native Nevada Vote Forum in Las Vegas; they

provided a $1,000 scholarship but he is not all that impressed with it since everything is still To Be

Determined (TBD) and it starts next Thursday.

Councilmember Brady would like to see him go, especially for the panel on protecting Natural Resources

and water rights.

Councilmember Brady motioned to approve travel for Chairman Wadsworth. Councilmember Geneveive

John seconded the motion. Votes were seven (7) for and zero (0) opposed with one (1) abstention

(Wadsworth). MOTION PASSED

ADJOURNMENT

With no further business before the Tribal Council, Councilmember Cortez made a motion to adjourn the

meeting. The motion was seconded by Vice Chairman Ely. Votes taken were all in favor, Motion Carried.

The meeting adjourned at 9:08 p.m.

Submitted by,

Tribal Council Secretary

CERTIFICATION

-20-|Page

_* Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

_ September 6, 2024, Regular minutes

The foregoing minutes were adopted by the Pyramid Lake Tribal Council, governing body of the Pyramid

Lake Paiute Tribe, at a meeting duly held on the 15% day of November 2024, having nine (9) members

present, constituting a quorum, by the vote of eight (8) FOR and zero (0) OPPOSED, with zero (0)

ABSTENTIONS.

Minutes attested and concurred by: Zi aise

Steven Wadsworth, Tribal Chairman

Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribal Council

//

//

/

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