The city of Snoqualmie, Washington recently responded to the Snoqualmie Tribe’s racial discrimination lawsuit filed December 9 in federal court against the City of Snoqualmie, its mayor and city council members. In a press release, city officials denied allegations that the city discriminated against the tribe and terminated the tribe’s agreement to provide medical, fire, emergency and sewer service to the Snoqualmie Tribe’s Casino, which does not expire until November 30, 2016. City officials also said they did not attempt to violate the tribe’s constitutional or federally protected rights.
The press release stated the tribe has other options regarding the casino’s provider of sewer treatment services, and that for two years the city has tried to work with the tribe to find a mutually beneficial, long term solution to the situation. The city signed a one-year extension the tribe requested, and, the press release said, the tribe breached a portion of the agreement when it signed a new EMS contract with Eastside Fire and Rescue, effective January 1, without giving the city six months notice. Also, city officials said they had requested several meetings with the tribe which were declined or not answered.
Furthermore, the city contends, the tribe has been using more sewer capacity than the seven-year-old agreement spelled out, and it has not paid for the required infrastructure upgrades. An outside auditor also recommended sewer rate increases for all users, not just the casino, which, like other businesses outside the city, would pay a higher rate.
But, said Tribal Council Chairperson Carolyn Lubenau, the city threatened to cut off sewer service when it challenged the changes. “We were bombarded with threats. The very first meeting I had with the mayor in his office he just literally said, ‘I could just reach over at any time and turn that off.’ And he said it over and over again,” Lubenau claimed. “We’re being singled out as a Native American tribe to produce more, pay more for a service that everyone else is being given equally.”
Another issue is the Snoqualmie Tribe’s application to have land it owns taken into federal trust. The city has formally asked the federal government to deny the application, claiming the tribe wants to put its own sewer plant or septic system on that property and direct the runoff into a creek that feeds directly into the Snoqualmie River. Snoqualmie Tribe Executive Director of Governmental Affairs Jerry Lamm said, “That is so absurd and those are blatant lies. Again, this is an example of the city, and especially Mayor Larson, fighting the tribe on any and everything that it can.”
