Letter to the Editor

Letter to the Editor,

Open Letter to Barbara Montour, Chief Financial Officer

2015 Draft SRMT Operating Budget

After attending the 2015 Budget presentation on Nov. 12, 2014, I must admit that I am still left in a state of confusion about the financial situation of the Tribe.

I commend you and Tsiorasa Barreiro with presenting a more informative presentation of where and how revenue is received and spent. I must say, however, that I still feel that the Tribe is still less than honest with membership with disclosure of how much money the Tribe has. Your presentation showed that we can anticipate to earn more in interest income than the casino shows as a net profit. Based on your presentation, I can understand why Council would feel that a $200 a month benefit to seniors 62 and older would not be achievable, however, when I hear about an addition to Health Services and a new Administration Building, I can’t help but wonder on what financial statements the bank(s) are expected to base their approval of loans on when we show such a small margin of profit.

Therefore, I once again request a more detailed audit report on our Casino.

Ruth Bell, Tribal Member