Meeting Summary Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission September 21, 2018 On September 21, 2018, I had an opportunity to visit the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) to introduce myself to the Commission and meet with several staff members including Rob Lothrop - Policy Development Manager, Jim Heffernan - Policy Analyst, and Jamie Pinkham - Executive Director. It was a productive and informative meeting and the start of what I hope will be ongoing dialogue and a collaborative relationship. CRITFC really is an impressive organization. Rob gave me a tour and provided an overview of what treaty fishing rights mean for the Tribes that comprise the Commission (Yakima, Umatilla, Warm Springs and Nez Perce), how the Commission was formed, and the breadth and depth of the services that CRITFC provides. Towards the end of the monthly Commission meeting, I was invited to the table to introduce myself and answer questions. The group was very kind and gracious, and Seattle City Light is generally held in high regard. Afterwards, I met with Jim, who talked about Columbia River Treaty negotiations and the challenges of translating high level policy positions where alignment of interests is quite high into very specific and complex system management issues. At a very high level, stakeholders to the treaty negotiations are concerned about continued assured flood risk management, the importance of tribal involvement and representation in the process, incorporating ecosystembased function in the new treaty’s terms, and the value of navigation. Seattle City Light’s work on the CRT negotiations (Robert Cromwell) was specifically called out and appreciated. Over lunch, Executive Director Jamie Pinkham and I talked about a host of topics. We touched on BPA issues, Northwest RiverPartners and Sea Lion Legislation that is working its way through Congress, but mostly we just focused on getting to know each other a bit. Takeaways from the time spent at CRITFC and a subsequent review of materials provided, include the following: • • • • Tribes are natural resource co-managers with state and federal governments and that includes co-management of ceded lands. To help coordinate natural resource management; and protect and implement the treaty rights of its member tribes, two intertribal commissions were established - CRITFC and the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, which serves 20 tribes in western Washington. Tribes have a sovereign right to govern their members and manage their territories. Tribal sovereignty is explicitly recognized in the U.S. Constitution. Tribes also have sovereignty over the exercise of treaty harvest rights and this has been tested many times in the Courts. Sovereignty means a true government-to-government relationship.