[HISTORY: Adopted by the Legislature of the Menominee Indian Tribe 10-2-2003 by Ord. No. 03-17; amended in its entirety 12-4-2014 by Ord. No. 14-26. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Accounting system — See Ch. 7.
Leases and mortgages — See Ch. 138.
The purpose of this chapter is to expedite the collection of monies owed to the Menominee Indian Tribe. Nothing in this chapter shall be interpreted to preclude the Menominee Indian Tribe from taking other actions outside this chapter, including but not limited to lawsuits, in order to collect monies owed.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
CONTRACT
Includes any agreement between the Tribe and a person where the Tribe makes a payment to the person for goods or services provided.
DEBTOR
Those persons who meet the criteria of § 44-3 of this chapter.
NET PAY
Gross wages minus legally required deductions for federal, state, and social security taxes.
PER CAPITA PAYMENTS
Tribal payments made or offered to individual tribal members from gaming revenues or any other source. The per capita payment shall be withheld and paid over to the Tribe and credited against the debtor's debt regardless of whether the debtor requests the payment or complies with any procedures related to obtaining a per capita payment.
STUMPAGE PAYMENT
Payments made or offered to Tribal members pursuant to Chapter 340, Forest Management and Development, Article II, Stumpage Assessment, of this Code. The stumpage payment shall be withheld and paid over to the Tribe and credited against the debtor's debt regardless of whether the debtor requests the payment or complies with any procedures related to obtaining a stumpage payment.
[Amended 8-4-2016 by Ord. No. 16-21]
The Tribe shall create a list of persons who are debtors. No person shall be placed upon said list unless the following criteria have been met:
A. 
A tribal employee or agent designated by the director of a department or division of the Tribe, or Tribal Court which is owed money executes a statement listing the name of the person owing money to the Tribe, the amount of money owed to the Tribe, a narrative surrounding how the debt was incurred and for what purpose, and the date on which the debt was incurred. Said employee or agent shall attach to this statement all pertinent documentation; and
B. 
The Property Management and Acquisition Department of the Tribe reviews the above-referenced statement and determines that there is sufficient evidence that said person or persons owe the debt claimed; and
C. 
A letter has been mailed with first-class postage to the person at his or her last known address with the statement referenced in Subsection A above attached requesting the person to either pay the debt in full, make acceptable arrangements to pay the debt to the Tribe, or dispute the debt in accordance with § 44-4 of this chapter; and
D. 
The person has not disputed the debt, in writing, within 10 business days of receiving the letter in Subsection C above, or paid the debt in full, or made acceptable arrangements to pay the debt, or the person has disputed the debt but has been determined to owe money to the Tribe pursuant to § 44-4 of this chapter.
Any person who disputes the amount of money alleged to be owed to the Tribe pursuant to § 44-3B through E of this chapter may ask the Loan Fund Committee to review the disputed amount and make a determination as to the amount of money owed the Tribe, if any. The person disputing the debt may bring any relevant evidence to the attention of the Loan Fund Committee and may request a hearing before the Loan Fund Committee for the purpose of presenting his or her argument. The employee or agent of the Tribe who signed the statement in regard to the debt shall attend this hearing.
The list of debtors created pursuant to § 44-3 of this chapter shall be maintained by the Property Management and Acquisition Department. Said Department shall remove any person from the list who has paid his or her debt in full or has made acceptable arrangements to pay the debt. Any person removed from the list shall be placed back on the list if he or she fails to meet his or her obligations under said arrangement. Tribal departments shall provide the Property Management and Acquisition Department updated information regarding such debts and debtors in a timely manner. The list of debtors shall be provided to all tribal employees or agents who need the information in order to comply with this chapter.
No debtor shall be eligible to enter into a contract to provide goods or services to the Tribe for any purpose unless he or she has:
A. 
Paid the debt owed in full;
B. 
In regard to a contract where the Tribe is paying the debtor for services performed, agreed to a clause in said contract authorizing the Tribe to withhold the lesser of the total amount due the Tribe, or 25% of the cost of the contract that is related to services performed; or
[Amended 8-4-2016 by Ord. No. 16-21]
C. 
In regard to any other contract, has signed a pay back agreement or wage assignment on terms acceptable to the tribal department or division.
No debtor shall be hired as an employee of the Menominee Indian Tribe or continue in such employment unless he or she has:
A. 
Paid the debt owed in full; or
B. 
A signed wage assignment or other pay back agreement in place and is current on the payments required pursuant to that assignment or agreement.
The Tribe shall withhold 20% of the net pay of any debtor employed by the Tribe unless such a withholding would violate applicable federal law. Said amount shall be applied toward the debtor's debt and withheld until the debt is paid in full. Withholding may be done pursuant to a wage assignment for an amount and in a form acceptable to the Tribe in lieu of this section if the debtor agrees to such a wage assignment.
The Tribe shall withhold any per capita payment due the debtor and apply that amount toward the debtor's debt, except withholding of any per capita payment shall not apply to any tribal member that is 66 years of age or older, or unless that payment is due a third party pursuant to Chapter 368, Health and Family, Article III, Financial Support of Children, of this Code.
The Tribe shall withhold any stumpage payment due the debtor and apply that amount toward the debtor's debt, except withholding of any stumpage payment shall not apply to any tribal member that is 66 years of age or older.
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a department or division of the Tribe from writing off bad debt for accounting purposes. Writing off such debt shall not act to remove a debtor from the debtor's list. Departments or divisions of the Tribe which perform significant debt collection activities may forgo placing an individual on the debtor's list if the costs and efforts to do so outweigh the benefit and the department is using other more effective means, such as a collection agency, to collect the debt.
In the event that a debtor owes more than one debt to a tribal department or division, the oldest debt will be paid first regardless of when the debt was placed on the debtor's list.
In any case where the terms of this chapter conflict with the terms of Chapter 7, Accounting System, Chapter 170, Personnel, Article I, Tribal Preference, or Ordinance No. 83-6, Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual,[1] the terms of this chapter shall govern.
[1]
Editor's Note: The Personnel Policies and Procedures Manual is on file at the office of the Administrative Manager.