ANVCA Quarterly Newsletter - September 2018
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A message from the Executive Director:
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It is my favorite time of year; AFN time! ANVCA staff and board looks forward to seeing all of you at the upcoming
Alaska Federation of Natives - Innovation in the Past, Present, and Future. Each year I am reminded of the power of unification of Native peoples and those that share our vision for Alaska. With so many important issues before us, this unity is paramount to getting everywhere we need to go.
It is an election year at the highest levels of State and Federal government. Alaska Natives have already demonstrated the power of our voice in elections past, and this year should be no different. We encourage all of our members to get out the Native vote in 2018! Watch for upcoming announcements from AFN about important forums where you can interact with potential representatives during the convention.
ANVCA has been watching the rhetoric surrounding campaigns on both the local and federal levels. We remain vigilant in recognizing that we must be flexible in our work as we seek to make progress no matter who is occupying representative seats in the legislature. We look forward to working with whomever ends up representing your districts, as our legislative priorities will never waver. At ANVCA,
our mission is:
to promote the success of village corporations and the protection of our Native lands.
We have many reasons to celebrate in 2018, after another successful fly-in both to Juneau and Washington DC in 2018. We have carried the priorities and collective voices for the 176 villages that we work to advance. These messages were heard, and significant actions were taken! We want to take a moment to thank our elected representatives for working with us in the last legislative session to lift legal liability for prior contamination on Alaska Native lands that were transferred to Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) through ANCSA. We should have never received contaminated sites and the liability that came with this contamination as part of our land claims settlement. As we continue this work, we invite those ANCs who may have received one of these sites to get involved; join the
working group as we continue to document what's out there and work to prioritize the clean-up of these sites.
Thank you to the over 30 individuals who traveled to Washington DC last month as part of our Annual Legislative Fly-In! ANVCA staff worked diligently to ensure that all four teams had meaningful conversations with congressional staff and important agency representatives. I invite you to explore the 2018 Legislative Fly-In Re-Cap to learn more about the various topics and team objectives. Most of all, a giant thank you to our amazing ANVCA Staff for pulling together an impressive amount of materials and agenda for our participants; you can all be proud of the work your team is doing on your behalf!
The organization continues to gain strength and momentum, and the ANVCA board has challenged our staff with some aggressive targets to ensure sustainability now and into the future. We have enjoyed a steady increase in paid memberships. In fact, we have experienced over 140 percent growth in that area! However we still have a long ways to go. We have made some changes in our membership dues to make sure that each Village has a level at which they can comfortably participate. The goal for ANVCA is to get to 100 percent participation from the 176 villages we represent.
If you're not sure if you have paid your 2018 dues or if you'd like to become a paid member,
visit our membership pages on our website. You will be listed as "affiliate" if you are not currently a dues paying member. Dues-paying Members get access to all of our annual meeting and fishnet presentation materials, first dibs on exclusive business deals, and many other benefits!
Finally, now is the time of year that ANVCA develops its strategic and legislative priorities for 2019. If you have an idea or an issue you want us to consider, please reach out to us at (907) 222-5258 or via email at
[email protected]. We look forward to hearing from you!
Hallie L. Bissett
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A big thank you to our Caribou, Salmon, and Moose Partners!
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And our continued thanks to our Denali Members!
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Welcome New Paid Members!
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Welcome to our New Partners!
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Upcoming Events in 2018
October 9
8:30 - 3:30
Dena'ina Center
Anchorage, AK
October 11 & 12
9am - 5pm
Egan Center
Anchorage, AK
October 17
All-Day
AFN/NCAI Tribal Conference
Egan Center
Anchorage, AK
October 18 - 21
Dena'ina Center
Anchorage, AK
October 19
12:30 - 2:00
ANVCA ALL VILLAGES MEETING
Dena'ina Center
Room 2 - Kahtnu Room
Anchorage, AK
October 25
11:30 - 1:00
ANVCA Fishnet - Cybersecurity for ANCSA Corporations - a special training with CIRI IT and the FBI Cyber Crimes Unit
CIRI Fireweed Business Center
Anchorage, AK - registration details to come soon
November 13-15
All Day
Native American Contractors Association 2018
Information at the bottom
Washington, D.C.
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2018 Legislative Fly-In: A Recap
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55 meetings. 3 days. Four topics with many asks. 32 participants representing over 10 Member and Partner organizations. An all-group, all-Alaska Delegation meeting. Four receptions.
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Bureau of Indian Affairs to explore halting issuance of Certificates of Degree of Indian Blood
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The Bureau of Indian Affairs issued a survey on September 6, 2018. Responses are due by November 7, 2018. This online survey is to ascertain the necessity for the Bureau of Indian Affairs to continue issuing Certificate of Indian Blood Cards. The Bureau of Indian Affairs intent for the survey is to attain and understand the need for this service from our Tribal Leaders.
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From our friends at the Bureau of Land Management:
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Greetings Bering Sea-Western Interior (BSWI) Resource Management Plan (RMP) e-mail list!
As we previously shared with you on June 18, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is streamlining to reform our planning and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) processes. In Secretarial Order 3355, the Secretary of the Interior set page and time limits for environmental impact statements (EISs) such as the BSWI RMP. As a result of this streamlining effort, we have an accelerated timeline for completion of the Bering Sea – Western Interior Resource Management Plan.
In early November, we expect to have the draft document available and intend to hold community meetings during November with the public comment period ending in January, 2019. Many of you with a postal address on file have already received the attached Newsletter #6 outlining further details in a revised timeline. As meetings are scheduled, we will send out further notification so you are able to attend one near you. You can also visit our
website to find future meeting dates and times.
As always, thank you for your continued interest in the BSWI planning process!
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Protect Yourself from Scams
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From time to time, Sitnasuak Native Corporation (SNC) Shareholders are contacted by individuals claiming to be SNC representatives, telemarketers and others requesting financial or other personal information.
SNC does not ask a Shareholder for personal information over the telephone.
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Airport and Infrastructure Expansion in Old Harbor
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To benefit their community, the City of Old Harbor, Old Harbor Native Corporation, and the Alutiiq Tribe of Old Harbor have worked collaboratively on a multi-pronged economic development effort that incorporates improved infrastructure.
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Our Drinking Water is At Risk
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The Navy spilled approximately 500,000
gallons of fuel on UIC lands and buried contaminants over a period of decades before the land was conveyed to UIC. These spills contaminated the land and one of the few sources of drinking water.
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Supporting and Helping Shareholders in their Time of Need
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Are you looking for a way to provide a benefit to your shareholders and support them during times of need? Many village corporations are offering shareholders a burial benefit or a life insurance policy.
According to a LIMRA Life Insurance Barometer Study in 2013, 85% of consumers agree that most people need life insurance but only 62% say they have it.
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Contaminated Lands Partnership Group
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The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) Contaminated Lands Partnership Group formed in response to a recommendation from the 2016 BLM Report to Congress, which called to establish a formal contaminated lands working
group.
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False Claims Act and Government Contracting
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For all Native Corporations involved in government contracting or that otherwise receive payments from the government, a development out of the Ninth Circuit makes relators—i.e., whistleblowers—in False Claims Act (FCA) cases more likely to qualify as an original source under the FCA and thus their cases may survive the public disclosure bar.
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Revenue Recognition for Private Companies
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Alaska Native Village Corporations Must Be Compliant by January 1, 2019. The revenue recognition countdown for private companies has begun. Compliance with the far-reaching changes to the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (FASB) revenue recognition standards is already mandatory for public companies. For private companies, the deadline is fast approaching: numerous calendar-year entities must implement the new ASC-606 requirements by January 1, 2019.
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Velocity Ku: Blazing Fast Internet
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Microcom, the Alaskan communications company with over 30 years in the business, has recently launched Velocity Ku, a new service that provides high speed internet to the furthest reaches of the 49th state. For the first time, Alaskan businesses and homeowners outside of fiber optic, cable, and DSL service areas have access to internet download speeds up to the FCC approved definition for broadband service: 25 megabits per second.
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Traveling to Anchorage for AFN?
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Six years ago, Alaska Airlines created Club 49, a loyalty program just for our fliers in Alaska. Part of our industry-leading Mileage Plan™ program, this club is special, just like you, with benefits that make life in Alaska a little bit easier. And less expensive. The program itself is free to join, Alaskans have saved over $20 million last year by taking advantage of their Club 49 benefits.
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Oil Exploration in the North
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ConocoPhillips is proud to be Alaska’s leading oil and gas exploration company and to be a leader in responsible exploration and development in Alaska for over 50 years. We operate Kuparuk and Alpine fields on the western North Slope and hold significant interest in the Prudhoe Bay field and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System.
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Blazing trails in Washington: A profile of our Partner in Washington, D.C., Tami Buckner
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After a successful “Fly-In” to Washington, D.C. some of us at the ANVCA upon our return to Alaska and getting back into the “swing of things,” just wanted to recognize some of our partners. We often talk about our “partner companies” and how important they are, but we often do not talk about the actual people (or teams of people) behind those partner organizations.
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Book Hotels at Kimpton: George for NACA 2018
The Kimpton: George
15 E Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
The George is located just blocks away from the conference and walking distance to Capitol Hill. The hotel is delighted to welcome NACA 2018 conference attendees and has offered special accommodations to show their support.
Just for you...
- Complimentary wireless internet throughout the hotel.
- Complimentary wine hour daily from 5pm to 6pm in hotel lobby.
- Welcome amenities on the day of arrival.
- Amenity fees ($26.39 after-tax) waived (fees waived at check-in)
- Room rates at just $289/night
Attendees may also call the reservations line at 1-800-KIMPTON and mention the NACA Advocacy Conference to receive the group rate.
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