Blackfeet council votes for sweeping constitutional reform

In what may lead to a historic change for Blackfeet people, the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council voted Wednesday to move forward with a complete redrafting of the Blackfeet tribe’s constitution.

The 8-1 vote clears the way for a new form of government that potentially will include the elimination of the current tribal council form of government, the establishment of an independent judiciary, a new legislative branch consisting of 13 elected representatives, and a new voting district map that will expand the influence of member voters outside the immediate Browning area.

“The Blackfeet Tribal Business Council voted today to radically change the form of government that has ruled the Blackfeet Nation for 81 years,” a news release from Council Chairman Harry Barnes states. “The new form will eliminate the ‘Tribal Council.’ A near unanimous vote of 8-1 made history for the tribe.”

“The Blackfeet Nation has operated under laws contained in the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act,” the Barnes news release continues. “While the Blackfeet adopted this form of government, many believe it was imposed on the tribe. What was hailed as ‘a new deal’ for the tribes was viewed as a ‘raw deal’. It was neither traditional nor effective. It allows for collapse of tribal governments. The people had no direct control of the government except through elections every four years. Adverse rulings by judges could get them fired and councils routinely interfered with both the courts and law enforcement.”

For decades there have been repeated initiatives launched for tribal government reform in Browning. Most recently the Blackfeet people voted 2,322 to 400 to change their tribe’s constitution “to provide for reformed government with separation of powers.”

Yet those efforts repeatedly have failed to advance beyond the chambers of the BTBC, universally falling victim to divisions among the elected council members.

Flaws within the Blackfeet Constitution contributed to a near collapse of tribal government between August 2012 and July 2014. Over that period, at least 13 people claimed membership to the nine-member BTBC, scores of tribal employees were either fired or went unpaid, and the Native American Bank, the primary lending institution through which tribal debts and credits were settled, repeatedly declined to recognize BTBC drafts because of uncertainty over who was authorized to access tribal funds.

Passage of a resolution to redraft the Blackfeet Constitution is at least partially attributable to the anger and disgust generated by this time of troubles.

“This proposed constitution of the Blackfeet Nation is the product of our collective efforts on behalf of the citizens of the Blackfeet Nation and for all generations of Ampskapii Piikani from this day forward,” reads a statement from the Blackfeet Constitution Reform Committee.

“The new Constitution allows for three distinct branches of government,” Barnes’ news release states. “Each elected by the people. The executive branch is made up of a president and vice president that must run on the same ticket. They will operate the normal day-to-day business of the tribe. The Legislative branch will consist of 13 individuals elected by district. The Legislature will be charged with promulgating the laws of the nation. The third branch is the judiciary with the chief judge elected at large by the people. They will interpret and apply the law separate and apart from the historical interference of the council.”

“History teaches that for many years after the adoption of the 1935 constitution and by-laws of the Blackfeet Tribe, the Blackfeet People were not satisfied with how government functioned,” the Constitution Reform Committee’s statement continues. “The content of this proposed new constitution is rooted in that historic desire for change and in the Referendum Vote of 2008 wherein 2,322 Blackfeet voted for change which included separation of powers. This document represents the culmination of those years of effort and the vote of the Blackfeet People whose voice spoke loudly and clearly in favor of change.”

To become law, the new Blackfeet Constitution must first be approved by the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, and then by a vote of Blackfeet tribal members conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Blackfeet councilman Joe McKay said throughout the coming months the BTBC will organize a series of meetings intended to inform tribal members about the content of the newly proposed constitution.