The Ninth Osage Nation Congress will convene for its first 24-day Tzi-Sho Session starting Sept. 3 with the priority of considering and approving the 2025 fiscal year budgets for government operations across the three branches.
This will be the first regular session of the 12 legislators after six members were reelected in the June 3, 2024, General Election. They will meet at the ON Legislative Chambers along Main Street in Pawhuska for the fall session, including Congressional select and standing committee meetings, which will be live-streamed and recorded.
The Tzi-Sho Session may be extended up to three additional days at the written request of two-thirds of Congress members in accordance with the Osage Constitution. Priority is placed on budgetary matters during this session as the Nation’s 2025 fiscal year begins Oct. 1.
Day 1 of the session will include an Executive Message delivered by Principal Chief Geoffrey Standing Bear and the Legislative Message by newly-seated Congressional Speaker Pam Shaw. The Tzi-Sho Session is the second of two regular sessions mandated by the 2006 Constitution.
Throughout the Tzi-Sho Session, Congressional committee meetings will be scheduled to initially consider appropriation bills containing the budgets for the Nation’s three-branch government operations, entities, boards and commissions.
Government operations budgets to be considered by Congress include those for the various Executive Branch departments/ programs; Office of the Chiefs administration; the Legislative Branch and its respective Congressional Office operations; the Nation’s boards and commissions; cultural donations; the Attorney General’s Office – which operates independently of the three branches; and the Judicial Branch.
Also, Congressional committee meetings will include initial consideration of appointed board/ commission member appointees subject to Congressional confirmation votes to serve full three-year terms.
Once available, all legislative bills, resolutions, including appropriation/ budget bills, are on file with the Congressional Clerk’s Office and can be viewed/ downloaded from the Congressional website: https://www.osagenation-nsn.gov/who-we-are/legislative-branch
The Tzi-Sho Session and committee meetings are public (except executive sessions allowed by Osage law to discuss confidential and proprietary matters) and will be live-streamed at: https://www.osagenation-nsn.gov/who-we-are/legislative-branch/live-media
