539 ECONOMY The tribal economy is supported in large part from revenue earned from leasing agricultural lands and from gaming. Rightof-way agreements also contribute to the general fund. A large portion of monies is earned through taxes imposed upon utilities conducting business on tribal lands. Government as Employer. Through various governmental programs and tribal enterprises, the Shoshone-Bannock tribes employ over 1,100 tribal members and 153 non-Native individuals. The beadwork industry is the largest employer, with 400 tribal members working in that industry. The tribal government and gaming enterprises offer the next highest number of employment opportunities. Economic Development Projects. The Tribal Enterprise Board, a separate corporation from the tribal council, serves as the conduit for tribal commercial development. It coordinates all tribal projects including federally funded programs. The reorganization of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes' Economic Development Department resulted in the creation of the tribal planning department. A director was selected in 2001 and the existing staff was trained in the elements of planning. The primary goal of the planning department is to develop revisions to the tribe's comprehensive plan, which was first adopted in 1976. Other goals include providing technical support to tribal government departments, promoting economic development, and providing services to tribal members. The tribes recently signed an agreement with Power County to work in cooperation toward economic development projects that will affect the tribes and the county. They hope to reach a similar agreement with Bingham County. Additional projects being explored by the tribe include an RV park and the development of college credit courses in planning and management. The tribe also hopes to secure an agreement with the City of Pocatello and Power County to establish a foreign trade zone and an airfreight terminal at the Pocatello Airport. Agriculture and Livestock. Shoshone-Bannock Buffalo Enterprises manages a herd of over 250 head of buffalo. The herd grazes on the bluffs of the Fort Hall Bottoms and Cedar areas. Buffalo meat is sold at tribal stores and restaurants and donated to tribal functions. Buffalo robes are also sold, as are live buffalos. The tribes also authorize buffalo hunts for a fee. The Buffalo Enterprise Committee advises the tribe on management and marketing practices. The reservation lies in the heart of Idaho's prime agriculture land; principal crops grown in the area are potatoes, small grain, and alfalfa. While the major portion of the tribe's nearly 100,000 acres of irrigated land is leased to outside farming interests, the tribe continues to operate about 2,000 acres on its own. The tribe currently receives about $150 per acre of irrigated farmland that it leases and somewhat less for grazing land. In total, agriculture comprises one of the most significant sources of revenue on the reservation. Forestry. The reservation contains relatively little in the way of forest, none of which is considered commercially viable. Gaming. Shoshone-Bannock Gaming is located in Fort Hall at exit 80 on interstate Highway 15. It features 570 slots/VLTs, and high-stakes bingo, and it can hold up to 1,000 people. The building itself was constructed in 1992 as a multipurpose facility and thus serves as a venue for other community activities as well. The Bannock Peak Casino located on Interstate Highway 86 features 80 slot machines and one restaurant. The 1887 Dawes Severalty Act initiated the allotment of the reservation. This process was completed by 1914, with over 347,000 acres having been distributed among 1,863 individual allotments between 1911 and 1913 alone. By the time allotment of the tribal lands was terminated, nearly 36,000 acres had been alienated from Native ownership through sales, patents in fee, or certificates of competency. Surplus lands were ceded to Pocatello or sold to non-Natives, thus creating the checkerboard pattern of land ownership that now exists within the reservation boundaries. In 1907, the Lehmi Reservation for the Lehmi Band of Shoshones was terminated. Remaining families were relocated to Fort Hall. In 1936, the tribes approved a constitution and bylaws for self-government under the provisions of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934. The tribes ratified a corporate charter in 1937. As of 1992, 96 percent of the Fort Hall Reservation was once again under Indian control, either through federal trust or ownership by individual tribal members. In 2002, the tribe hosted the Native American 2002 Foundation, a division of the Advisory Committee for Arts and Cultures of the Salt Lake Organization Committee for the 2002 Winter Olympics. The foundation was comprised of representatives of Native nations throughout the country serving to advise the committee on historical, political, and cultural matters pertaining to the depiction of the indigenous people of the United States. In November 2002, the tribe hosted the Tribal Sovereignty Summit. Co-hosts were the Shoshone Paiute tribes and the United Vision for Idaho. The summit served to educate attendants on the historical and contemporary status of the Native nations of Idaho. GOVERNMENT The tribes are organized under the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act, and they operate under a constitution approved on April 30, 1936. The charter was ratified the following year. The tribe is governed by the Fort Hall Business Council. The council includes seven members elected by the general membership to two-year terms. It maintains authority over all normal business procedures, including the development of lands and resources, and all matters of self-government. The tribes operate numerous governmental departments and programs. They include the administration, credit energy, education, employment and training, election board, emergency management and response, enrollment, finance, property management, fire, fish and wildlife, Head Start and early childhood, land alliance, land use, transportation, tribal construction, health human services, T.E.R.O., tribal planning, utilities, and water resources departments, among others. the tribes maintain their own judicial system with a law and order commission providing oversight, a tribal courts system, an attorney's office, and a police department. The federal government maintains authority over crimes that fall under the Major Crimes Act. The tribes may share jurisdiction over such matters. The State of Idaho exercises jurisdiction, under PL-280, over civil and criminal matters on the reservation such as truancy, juvenile delinquency, child welfare, matters of mental illness, public assistance, domestic relations, and matters involving motor vehicles. The tribes maintain jurisdiction over issues of personal property, water rights, ownership of property, treaty rights, and tribal land rights. The tribes are in the process of developing a tribal justice center to house all branches of the judicial system. Fort Hall Total labor force 2000 census 2,363 High school graduate or higher 2000 census 73.3% Bachelor's degree or higher 2000 census 6.3% Unemployment rate 2000 census 16.1% Per capita income 2000 census $11,309 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 1234567890 Total area 522,671.07 acres
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