Tribe paves way for Desert Rock
Desert Rock right of way passes Council in hard-won victory

The Navajo Nation Council voted 71-8 for legislation to pass rights of way for the Desert Rock Power Plant at the council chambers on Friday in Window Rock, Ariz. Leigh T. Jimmie/For the Independent

Copyright © 2009
Gallup Independent
By Kathy Helms
Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — The Navajo Nation Council handed President Joe Shirley Jr. a victory Friday by approving rights of way legislation for the Desert Rock power plant, 71-8, with a directive that all 110 chapters receive 15 percent of any money that would go into the general fund as a result of the rights of way.

The victory did not come easy, however. Delegate Leonard Tsosie offered four amendments, the first dealing with sovereign immunity. In the interest of protecting the Nation’s sovereignty, Tsosie’s amendment would have made it mandatory that any entities assigned rights of way by the energy company first would have to go before Council, which then would decide a limited waiver of sovereign immunity.

The first amendment originally passed, 39-36, by simple majority vote. A second amendment which would have provided the Nation receive the full $11 million fee for the rights of way or have the amount applied toward partial ownership of the plant, rather than the $3.5 million agreed to, failed 23-53.

An amendment calling for the president to negotiate the use of power generated from Desert Rock for the benefit of Navajo people and businesses in a manner subject to the approval of Council, failed 22-56. The fourth amendment which called for Desert Rock and Diné Power Authority to share revenues with the Nation from any potential sale of carbon credits failed, 29-47, after a number of delegates said that such a matter should be negotiated later in separate legislation.

After Tsosie’s first amendment passed, Nathan Plagens of Sithe Global/Desert Rock Energy Co., slapped his hat on his head and walked out of the chamber, obviously disappointed. Delegate Tom Lapahe called the amendment a “deal-killer.”

Shortly thereafter, Shirley and his staff entered the Council chamber.

Next, Delegate Katherine Benally tried to get language added which had been approved Friday morning by the Western Agency Caucus, calling for 15 percent of any monies received as a result of the rights of way to be distributed among affected chapters in Western Navajo Agency.

Kee Allen Begay said he thought all 110 chapters should get something for the rights of way, while Omer Begay said they were trying to divvy up money before it was even in the coffers. When the debate bogged down over whether the language was a directive or an amendment and Roy Laughter, who made the motion during caucus debate, said he wanted to withdraw his motion, Speaker Lawrence T. Morgan ruled the whole thing out of order because of dispute between the caucus members.

With Shirley looking on, Raymond Joe, on a second by Cecil Eriacho, then made a motion to recall Tsosie’s first amendment, saying it was “a deal-breaker.” The amendment failed, 21-56, on the revote, with 11 delegates either absent or not voting. The rights of way legislation then passed 71-9, with nine delegates not voting.

Afterward, Tsosie said, “This represents a deal-killer for the Navajo people because we removed the sovereignty and totally gave it to Desert Rock. I disagree with Mr. Lapahe. It’s a good thing for Desert Rock Energy Co., a non-Navajo company, and it’s scary on what the Council did. We took an oath to protect the Navajo Nation. We removed the sovereign immunity of the Navajo Nation — that means the people.”

He said he hopes the Navajo people will look at how their delegates voted and hold them accountable.

“The president of the Navajo Nation knows better. Soon after the amendment was adopted, they descended on the chamber to try to change this, and he was actually siding with the company and not the Navajo people. That’s more scary,” Tsosie said.

When asked why the amendment was a “deal-killer,” Plagens said, “You’re up for a raise at work. Would you want your raise to go before 88 elected politicians to vote on your raise? Let’s look at the same analogy. We’re trying to do business. The banks who loan us the money want us to be able to do business, and if we can’t do business, if we have to go before 88 elected officials every time that we want to do business with somebody, then we’re not going to get anybody to loan us the money.

“Basically what was attempted was to give the Council the authority to approve each entity that Desert Rock does business with on a case-by-case basis.”

DPA General Manager Steven Begay was happy with the outcome. “I’ve been working on this close to 10 years, and this was the fourth piece of legislation that we needed. It’s like the fourth leg to a chair — the lease, the tax, and the water are the other three legs, and this right of way is the fourth leg. This project stands on firmer ground to push toward development.”

Herbert Pioche of DPA’s board of directors said the project is for the benefit of the Navajo Nation, “for Navajo people for many, many generations. We don’t own not 1 percent of the two power plants that are on the reservation. This will be the first time to have an opportunity to have ownership in this new power plant.”

Steven Kee, a resident of Ganado, disagreed with the benefits to the Navajo people. “What the Navajo Nation Council has acted on with Desert Rock, to me, this is just like genocide to the Navajo people, even from our newborns to our elderlies. We need clean air.”