ARTHUR E. FISHER

Available to Interview:

In-person or via Skype

Available: 4 weeks From Hire Date

SUMMARY

Project Manager – Team Lead: Serve as department head, responsible for leading and coordinating all environmental, design, construction, land use policy and natural resource aspects of major projects authorized on federal lands. Co-ordinate interdisciplinary team of biologists, architects, engineers, environmental analysts and other technical specialists in timely achieving project goals.

Relationship Building: Worked as the primary liaison contact between the United States Department of the Interior (BIA) and tribal governments. Over his five years at the Bureau of Indian Affairs the Candidate established excellent working relationships with the tribal governments of the five Western Oregon Tribes, their memberships, elected tribal councils, tribal departments, department leads, internal staff and tribal committees.

Familiarity with Tribal Governments: Through a combination of formal education concentrating on effective principles of Tribal governance and their practical application, and through long-standing experience working with Tribes as an enrolled member (Siletz CTSI of Oregon), a tribal court judge and as the principal liaison between tribes and the United States, the Candidate has cultivated an unparalleled capacity to effectively relate to, work with and serve as the focal point in interactions between tribes and non-tribal governments, agencies and bureaus.

Key Accomplishments:

oSuccessfully led a project team in a multi-agency effort to successfully deliver a Special Use Authorization by the USFS, which permitted the construction of an in-stream fish weir facility on Forest Service land. The weir was needed to facilitate recovery efforts for the endangered Snake River Sockeye Salmon. The project had a short timeline keyed to species recovery demands, which was met by diligent efforts from all stakeholders. The weir project is currently under construction and on-schedule. Stakeholders included multiple federal agencies, (Depts. of Commerce – NOAA; Interior – USFWS; DOE- Bonneville Power Administration) in addition to state and local entities, NGOs and Tribes. (2016 - 2017)

oProcessed a record-setting number of “fee-to-trust” federal Indian land acquisitions. Established a bureau-wide record by concluding three fee-to-trust land title conversions in less than four months. Served as agency NEPA-realty-environmental coordinator with responsibility for overseeing tribal-federal-public consultations on historic preservation issues, Endangered Species Act, fish and wildlife (BO/BA) considerations, cultural and archaeological preservation, and threatened & endangered species studies. Reviewed environmental Phase I & II contaminant surveys to evaluate and resolve soil and groundwater pollution concerns. Served as Acting Superintendent of the Siletz agency. (2011-2015)

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY

FEDERAL-TRIBAL POSITIONS

Special Uses Administrator: U.S. Forest Service, Sawtooth National Recreation Area. June, 2016 - now. Conduct all land resource permitting for a 750,000-acre National Forest Service Recreational Area. Process and administer land use permits to other governments, utilities, businesses individuals, and non-profits. Conduct environmental, cultural resource, design review, species preservation (ESA), wetlands and other (NEPA-CEQA) land use evaluations.

Realty Officer: U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, (Dept. of Interior) Siletz Agency. Jan, 2011 Dec, 2015.

Manage the United States’ nation-to-nation partnership obligation with the five federally recognized Western Oregon Tribes. Conduct all aspects of the tribal-federal Indian trust relationship, its various relationships and undertakings. Participate in all consultative dialogue with the Tribes.

Description of Tribal-Federal Liaison Duties: Consulted and acted as inter-governmental liaison for all aspects of the United States’ trustee interactions with the five Western Oregon Tribal governments as well as individual tribal member allottees owning trust land resources. Conducted intergovernmental consultations between The United States, tribal governments, their councils and staff, other federal agency officials, state and municipal governments. Negotiated tribal-federal land acquisitions, land use permitting, title-conversions, leases, easements and rights-of-way.

Liaison between the United States and Oregon tribes on the diverse elements of federal-tribal land use projects, including cultural resource protection, NEPA environmental reviews, historic and archaeological resource protection, wetlands, refuges, aboriginal hunting and fishing treaty rights, threatened and endangered species, water/hydrology and impacts on fish and wildlife populations. Negotiated trust project features involving state, federal and local laws and legislation, executive orders, agency regulations and aboriginal treaty rights, in fulfilling the United States’ trust and consultation obligations to tribes.

Facilitated a variety of tribal consultations. Made presentations to tribal councils, tribal staff, state and local officials and other stakeholders on Indian trust resource management matters. Focused extensively on Indian land title, boundary and survey issues. Well acquainted with tribal society, elder-based wisdom and governance principles and culturally-rooted social and governance practice norms.

TRIBAL – LEGAL POSITIONS (non-federal)

Tribal Court Judge, Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians of Oregon (1999 – 2011)

Trial and Appellate Judge. Research, draft, edit and finalize rulings, appellate opinions, orders and decisions that form the Tribal common law. Conduct hearings; interpret tribal constitution, laws and codes. Oversee startup of Community Law Court, Peacemaker Division, using culturally relevant dispute resolution practices emphasizing mediation, culture and tradition. Used historic, cultural resource data and facts, dating to pre-contact, aboriginal era, to prepare Peacemaker Code provisions and write Peacemaker Court Manual. Resigned in 2011 to avoid an appearance of conflict with federal (DOI/BIA) Realty Officer duties involving the Tribe.

Appellate Justice, Pascua Yaqui Tribal Appeals Court. May, 2008 January, 2011

Adjudicate Appellate Court cases. Study, research, analyze, deliberate on and execute orders and rulings. Draft and edit final opinions and decisions. Conducted the full range of trial and appellate judicial tasks.

Legal Director: California Indian Legal Services. (2006 – 2007). Lead and supervising attorney for statewide, non-profit, delivering affordable legal services to California Indians. Left this position for graduate (IPLP) studies at University of Arizona Law.

Appellate Justice, Northwest Inter-tribal Court System (2004-2005)

Served on three justice panels, adjudicating appeals from tribal courts in Washington and Oregon.

EDUCATION

LL.M. Degree (Legal - post-doctoral) - Indigenous Peoples Law and Policy (IPLP) Program. University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law - Tucson, Arizona. The IPLP program concentrates on federal Indian law and policy, tribal governance, treaty consultation and indigenous and tribal governance. (2010)

Juris Doctorate (J.D.) Degree University of California – Hastings College of Law, San Francisco, CA.

Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) Anthropology, University of California – Berkeley, California.

LICENSES - CERTIFICATIONS

Attorney’s License; State Bar of California – Active Status

Federal Security Clearances – Passed thorough clearance scrutiny on two separate occasions since 2010. Prior holder of a high security (fiduciary) clearance.

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