Chapter 9.04 RECALL OF TRIBAL COUNCIL MEMBERS

The Tribal Council has determined that the best interests of the Tribe require an orderly process in which the Constitutional provision for removal of Council members may be carried out. The purpose of this chapter is to provide that orderly process.

If a Tribal member does not agree with a proposed or enacted ordinance or resolution already enacted by the Tribal Council, he or she may try to have the proposed or enacted ordinance or resolution to be of no effect or repealed by using the process called referendum which is located in Chapter 9.08 PTC. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.10.010]

Subchapter 2. Petition

9.04.020 Initiating recall proceedings.

Whenever any legal voter of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians desires to demand the recall and discharge of a Tribal Council member, he or she shall prepare a printed or typewritten statement reciting the reason the recall petition is being filed. The statement shall set forth the act or acts complained of, if any, the mailing address of the petitioner and be signed by him or her in the presence of the Tribal Council Secretary.

Should a person demand a recall and discharge of a Tribal Council member for no reason whatsoever (under our Constitution no cause for recall is required) he or she shall so indicate on the printed or typewritten statement. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.20.010]

9.04.030 Petition – Where filed.

Any person making a statement shall file it with the Tribal Council Secretary who shall promptly serve a copy on all Council members. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.20.020]

9.04.040 Petition form.

The recall petition shall contain the following information:

(a) The heading shall read “PETITION FOR RECALL.”

(b) The body of the petition shall be substantially in the following form:

All columns below must be complete for a voter’s signature to be valid. In addition, a signature will not be valid if it appears on more than one petition.

PETITION FOR THE RECALL OF (here insert the name of the Council member whose recall is petitioned for).

We, the undersigned members of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, being duly enrolled, respectfully direct that a special election be called to determine whether or not (here insert the name of the Council member whose recall is petitioned for) be recalled and discharged from office because (here insert the reason for the recall petition), in that he or she (here insert a description of what happened) and each of us for himself or herself says: I have personally signed this petition; I am an enrolled member of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, aged 21 or older; my address is correctly stated and to my knowledge I have signed this petition only once.


Petitioner’s Signature	Print name	Residence address Street and number	City	State

(There follow 20 numbered lines divided into columns as below)

1.__________________________________________________________________________

2.__________________________________________________________________________

3.__________________________________________________________________________

etc.

DATE/TIME RECEIVED ___________ DATE/TIME OF EXPIRATION ___________

NUMBER OF SIGNATURES REQUIRED as verified by the Election Committee chairperson: __________________.

SIGNATURE OF PETITIONER: _______________________________.

SIGNATURE OF PETITION CARRIER: __________________________.

SIGNATURE OF TRIBAL COUNCIL SECRETARY: _________________.

[Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.20.030]

9.04.050 Petition size.

Each recall petition at the time of circulation, signing and filing with the Tribal Council Secretary shall be stamped with the date of submittal and with the prescribed warning, title and form of petition on each sheet, and a full, true and correct copy of the original statement filed against the Council member referred to therein, printed on a sheet or sheets of paper of like size and quality as the petition, firmly fastened together. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.20.050]

Subchapter 3. Signatures

9.04.060 Number of signatures required.

When the person(s) demanding the recall of a Council member has secured sufficient signatures upon the recall petition he or she may submit the same to the Election Committee. The number of signatures required for an election to be called is one-third of the total voting membership of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, such total being determined as of the date the petitioner’s printed or typewritten statement is filed with the Tribal Council Secretary. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.30.010]

9.04.070 Rescinding signature.

A voter who has signed a petition may rescind his or her signature from the recall petition, provided a written request is submitted to the Election Committee before the expiration of the time for filing. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.30.020]

9.04.080 Filing supporting signatures – Time limit.

The sponsor(s) of a recall demanded of a Council member shall have a maximum of 90 days in which to obtain and file supporting signatures after filing the printed or typewritten statement with the Election Committee. Any petition with supporting signatures which is filed after the ninetieth day shall be invalid. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.30.030]

Subchapter 4. Verification

9.04.090 Verification date.

Upon the filing of a recall petition with the Election Committee there shall be stamped on each petition the date of filing and each petition shall then be numbered sequentially, e.g., 1 of 28, 2 of 28. The Election Committee shall then notify the person(s) filing the petition and the Council member whose recall is demanded of the date when the recall petitions will be verified, which date shall not be less than five or more than 10 days from the date of its filing. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.40.010]

9.04.100 Verification of signature.

Upon the filing of a recall petition, the Election Committee shall proceed to verify the names of qualified voters on the petition. The verification of signatures on the petition may be observed by persons representing the advocates and opponents of the proposed recall. The Election Committee may limit the number of observers to not fewer than two on each side, if, in its opinion, a greater number would cause undue delay or disruption of the verification process. If the Election Committee finds the same name signed to more than one petition, it shall reject all such signatures. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.40.020]

Subchapter 5. Date for Recall Election

9.04.110 Fixing date for recall election.

If, at the conclusion of the verification, it is found that a petition for recall bears the required number of valid signatures of enrolled Tribal members aged 18 or older, the Election Committee shall promptly certify the petition as sufficient and request the Tribal Council to fix a date for the special election to determine whether or not the Council member charged shall be recalled and discharged from office. The special election shall be held within 60 days from the date of certification by the Election Committee. Notice shall be given in the manner required for general elections within the Tribe. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.40.030]

Subchapter 6. Petitions

9.04.120 Ballot synopsis.

When a date for special election is set the Election Committee shall serve a notice of the election on the person(s) who filed the recall petition. The manner of service shall be by certified mail. After having been served a notice of the date of the election the person(s) who filed the recall petition shall prepare a ballot synopsis, not to exceed 200 words in length, which shall be printed on the recall ballot. The ballot shall be printed in such a manner as to assist the petitioner(s) in the preparation of the ballot synopsis. In addition, the petitioner(s) may request the Tribe’s Legal Office for assistance in preparation of the ballot synopsis. The ballot synopsis shall be submitted to the Election Committee within 10 days after receipt of the notice of special election. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.50.010]

9.04.130 Response to ballot synopsis.

Within five days of receipt of the ballot synopsis, the Election Committee shall serve a copy of it upon the Council member whose recall is being sought. The Council member may then submit to the Election Committee a response, not to exceed 200 words in length, to the statement contained in the ballot synopsis. Such response shall be submitted to the Election Committee within 10 days after the ballot synopsis was served upon the Council member. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.50.020]

9.04.140 Destruction of insufficient recall petition.

If it is found that a recall petition does not contain the requisite number of signatures of qualified Tribal members, the Election Committee shall so notify the person(s) filing the petition and, at the expiration of 30 days from the conclusion of the count, it shall cause the petition to be destroyed unless prevented therefrom by the injunction or mandate of the Tribal Court. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.60.010]

Subchapter 7. Conduct, Enforcement, Violation

9.04.150 Fraudulent names.

The Election Committee shall keep a record of all names appearing on the recall petition which are not certified to be qualified voters of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians and shall report the same to the Tribal Prosecutor for possible prosecution. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.70.010]

9.04.160 Conduct of election – Form of ballot.

The special election to be called for the recall of a Council member shall be conducted in the manner as a general election is conducted. The Election Committee shall provide for the holding of a recall election, the necessary officers, ballot boxes, ballots, poll books, supplies and returns as are required for holding a general election. The ballots at any recall election shall contain a full, true and correct copy of the ballot synopsis of the charge, the Council member’s response to the charge, if such has been filed, and shall be so arranged that any voter can, by making one cross (X), express his or her desire to have the Council member recalled from office or retained therein. Substantially, the following form shall be a compliance with the provisions of this section:

RECALL BALLOT


Why Council Member	Why Council Member
__________________	__________________
should be removed:	should not be removed:

He/She did:

When:

Where:


Prepared by: ________________	Prepared by: ________________

FOR the recall of (here insert the
name of the Council Member) ..........................................................____

AGAINST the recall of (here insert the
name of the Council Member) ..........................................................____

[Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.80.010]

9.04.170 Ascertaining the result.

The votes on a recall election shall be counted and the results certified by the Election Committee. If a majority of all votes cast at the recall election is for the recall of the Council member charged, he or she shall thereupon be recalled and discharged from office and the office shall become vacant. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.80.020]

9.04.180 Enforcement provision.

The Tribal Court has jurisdiction to compel the performance of any act required of any Tribal officer or employee or to prevent the performance by any such officer or employee of any act in relation to the recall not in compliance with Tribal law. Any proceeding to compel or to prevent the performance of any such act shall be begun within 10 days from the time the cause of the complaint arises, shall be considered an emergency matter of Tribal concern, take precedence over other cases, and be speedily heard and determined. The decision of the Tribal Court is final and not subject to appeal. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.90.010]

9.04.190 Violations by signers.

Every person who signs a recall petition with any other than his or her true name is guilty of a crime. Every person who knowingly prepares a false statement as to the cause of the recall petition is guilty of a crime as proscribed by the Law and Order Code of the Puyallup Tribe of Indians (PTC Title 5). [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.90.020]

Subchapter 8. Miscellaneous

9.04.200 Severability.

If any provision of this chapter or the application of it to any person or circumstance is held invalid, this chapter shall be given effect without the invalid provision or application and, to this end, the provisions, sections, and subsections herein are declared to be severable. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.90.030]

9.04.210 Repeal of prior acts.

All provisions of any Tribal ordinance, resolution or regulation previously enacted by the Puyallup Tribe of Indians and its Tribal Council which are inconsistent with this chapter or contradictory with its provisions are hereby repealed. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.90.040]

9.04.220 Effective date.

The ordinance codified in this chapter shall become effective on the thirtieth day of August, 1990. [Ord. 300890A (08/30/90) § 1.90.050]