On Tuesday, four new members were elected to the nine-person board of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). The board is the governing body of CTUIR, and in coming months it's expected to take on a number of issues, including how to increase housing availability and whether to legalize marijuana on the reservation.
Chuck Sams is communications director for CTUIR. He said the increase in the middle-class population on the reservation has made it difficult for residents to find housing. That's largely because those mid-income tribal members exceed the financial qualifications to live in the more widely available government-subsidized housing on the reservation.
"There's less than 1 percent of availability of housing on the reservation," Sams said, "and land that is sold on the reservation is sold at a premium price."
About a year ago, the board started looking at the effects on the reservation of Oregon's legalized marijuana program. The new board members will be in charge of deciding whether the tribe should allow marijuana to be grown on the reservation and whether to decriminalize pot for medical or recreational use.