On July 2, the tribal council of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde held a special meeting to allow their citizens an opportunity to testify for or against a proposed emergency enrollment ordinance whereby the Council sought to delegate its constitutional authority to involuntarily dismember citizens. At issue was whether or not the Council should give the enrollment committee the power to make the final decision. The committee, made up of tribal members selected by the Council, had already studied the situation and recommended the dismemberment of over 80 citizens. At the conclusion of a nearly three-hour discussion, the Council narrowly adopted the ordinance and set into motion an expedited process. Exactly three weeks later, on July 24, the enrollment committee would follow up on its earlier recommendations and vote to formally dismember 86 tribal citizens--both living and deceased members.

As I sat in my office and watched the July 2 Grand Ronde meeting on my computer screen, I was struck by a number of thoughts. First, the testimony of the family members facing dismemberment and that of their allies was riveting and intellectually compelling as they described their clear genealogical connection to Chief Tumulth, a signer of the 1855 treaty. Second, these individuals were profoundly dismayed at the Council's last minute attempt to abdicate its express constitutional authority to an inferior administrative unit--a tribal committee. Third, they were concerned about the loss of checks and balances reflected by the Council's proposed action. And they astutely suggested that the so-called "emergency" action was a mere smokescreen designed to protect the chances of several Council members up for reelection.

In contrast, those in favor of the ordinance, argued with equal fervor that the decision to introduce the measure was indeed an emergency because the disenrollment issue had become so contentious and divisive that it was eclipsing other tribal business. They also maintained that it was well within their power to delegate this authority because the enrollment committee's members were professional and had acquired expert knowledge of each disenrollee's case. And they further emphasized that checks and balances remained in place because disenrollees could appeal their loss of citizenship to the tribal court where they would have a chance to contest the committee's decision.