The Eighth Osage Nation Congress convened for its final special session and passed appropriation bills including funding to continue its storm shelter program and to provide internet services to Osage elders.
Ahead of the 2024 Osage Inauguration of the incoming Congress members elected in the June 3 General Election, the final special session took place July 8-9 to consider various bills as part of legislative business. In his executive message, Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear said his office issued the special session proclamation at the request of the Treasury Department for the budget-related legislation.
Standing Bear noted a bill is also for consideration creates a revolving fund for money intended to pay for broadband service for Osage elders living within the Osage Reservation. “We think it’s a good benefit for all of our (Osage) elders to come back home and get free internet – once we’re able to build that internet out,” he said.
Bills receiving passing Congressional votes include:
ONCA 24-58 (sponsored by Congresswoman and Congressional Appropriations Committee Chair Jodie Revard) is “An act to amend ONCA 21-73 for a supplemental appropriation of non-tribal funds to the Wildland Fire RTRL Bluestem Project in the amount of $95,840. The vote was 12-0.
ONCA 24-59 (Revard) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-83 to provide appropriation modifications and supplemental appropriations to the Executive Branch in the amount of $4,712,163 of Non-Tribal funds. The vote was 12-0.
ONCA 24-60 (Revard) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-84 to provide authorization modifications to the Executive Branch for indirect cost increasing the overall amount by $11,395. The vote was 12-0.
ONCA 24-61 (Revard) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-85 to provide appropriation modifications and supplemental appropriations to the Executive Branch in the amount of $162,884. The bill passed 9-3 with “yes” votes from Congress members Scott BigHorse, Otto Hamilton, Billy Keene, Brandy Lemon, Whitney Red Corn, Revard, Pam Shaw, Paula Stabler and Congressional Speaker Alice Goodfox. “No” votes came from John Maker, Eli Potts and Joe Tillman.
ONCA 24-62 (sponsored by Congressman Scott BigHorse) is An Act to establish a revolving fund in the Treasury for internet services to Osage Nation Elders; to authorize expenditures out of the fund. The bill passed with an 8-4 vote. “Yes” votes came from Revard, Shaw, Stabler, BigHorse, Hamilton, Keene, Lemon and Maker. Voting “no” were Tillman, Potts, Red Corn and Goodfox.
ONCA 24-63 (BigHorse) is An Act to authorize and appropriate the amount of $382,620 to the Elder Broadband Assistance Fund (created by the passage of ONCA 24-62). The bill passed 9-3 with “yes” votes from Stabler, Tillman, BigHorse, Hamilton, Keene, Lemon, Maker, Potts and Revard. “No” votes came from Shaw, Red Corn and Goodfox.
ONCA 24-64 (Potts) is “An Act to amend ONCA 22-78 to provide a supplemental appropriation in the amount of $500,000 to the Storm Shelter Assistance Fund. The bill passed with an 8-4 vote with “yes” votes from Stabler, Tillman, BigHorse, Hamilton, Keene, Maker, Potts and Goodfox. “No” votes came from Lemon, Red Corn, Revard and Shaw.
ONCA 24-65 (Potts) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-85 to provide an appropriation to the Osage Veterans Memorial Fund in the amount of $72,000. During the special session, the Veterans Memorial Commission met with the Appropriations Committee and its members said the funding would be used to plan a group trip for Osage military veterans to attend the 80th anniversary commemoration of the Ira Hayes Flag Raising in Arizona in February 2025, which includes a parade with other veteran organizations participating. The bill passed 12-0.
ONCA 24-66 (Shaw) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-85 to provide an appropriation to the Osage Nation Museum for a matching grant in the amount of $51,500. According to a fiscal analysis of the bill, the $51,500 in tribal funding would go toward a required match for a grant in order for ONM to receive $125,000 for the museum “to expand their baseline inventory of about 5,000 objects. This expansion of inventory does not consist of procuring new objects; rather the inventory would consist of describing, measuring, assessing the condition, and taking digital images of the items currently in the museum’s possession.” The bill passed 12-0.
ONCA 24-67 (Stabler) is An Act to amend ONCA 23-108 to provide supplemental appropriations to Si-Si A-Pe-Txa (ON Health Services) in the amount of $400,000 in Non-Tribal funds. The bill passed 12-0. Stabler said Si-Si-A-Pe-Txa received the grant recently and invited Grants employee Megan Mays to discuss the grant during an Appropriations Committee meeting.
Mays said Si-Si-A-Pe-Txa was awarded a three-year grant with $400,000 to be received per year to fund three additional Public Health employees. The bill passed 12-0.
After all bills received final votes, Goodfox called on outgoing Congresswoman Stabler to make the motion to adjourn the two-day special session. “We will miss you, thank you for all you’ve done for our Osage people, Congresswoman,” Goodfox said.
Stabler then made her final motion followed by 12 “yes” votes from her legislative colleagues to end the session.
For more information on sessions, committees and filed legislation, visit the Congress/ Legislative Branch website at: www.osagenation-nsn.gov/who-we-are/legislative-branch
