July 29, 2026 9:43 pm
CRIT Nation, Parker, AZ
July 29, 2026 9:43 pm
CRIT Nation, Parker, AZ
Click the links below to download a form
Direct Deposit Authorization Form
General Welfare Application_09242024
General Welfare Application Minors_09242024
PLEASE READ CAREFULLY
Dear Tribal Member:
Tribal Council has approved a 2024 General Welfare Assistance payment of $2,000.00 for each CRIT Tribal Member. CRIT Tribal members, both minors and adults, who are enrolled with CRIT as of November 1, 2024 are eligible to receive assistance. Tribal Members MUST submit an application to receive a General Assistance Payment for 2024.
Click the links below to download a form
Direct Deposit Authorization Form
General Welfare Application_09242024
General Welfare Application Minors_09242024
This 2024 General Welfare Assistance payment replaces the annual Tribal Distribution Payment. The benefits to the membership are that the General Welfare Assistance payment is NOT income subject to federal taxes and should not impact eligibility for benefits such as SSI and food stamps. You will not be issued a 1099 for this payment. Please review the General Welfare Plan for more information.
Tribal Members will receive their General Welfare Assistance payment by mail or by direct deposit into a bank account after submitting their application. Parents or legal guardians may request direct deposit for their eligible minor tribal member children into an account owned by the parent or the child. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SUBMIT A NEW DIRECT DEPOSIT FORM WITH YOUR APPLICATION IF YOU INTEND TO RECEIVE YOUR GENERAL WELFARE ASSISTANCE PAYMENT IN SAME BANK ACCOUNT AS YOU RECEIVED YOUR 2023 GENERAL WELFARE ASSISTANCE PAYMENT.
The General Welfare Assistance payment will be mailed or direct deposited as follows:
Application and Forms Due Date Payment Issued
Must be received by Accounting:
October 18, 2024 November 21, 2024
November 22, 2024 December 19, 2024
December 20, 2024 January 16, 2025
After December 20, 2024 Payments issued monthly on a rolling basis
and before December 31, 2025
If you want to receive your General Welfare Assistance payment by direct deposit, you must submit the attached Direct Deposit Authorization Form along with a voided check to CRIT Accounting. If you do not have a direct deposit authorization form on file from last year, or do not submit one for 2024 with your application, your payment will be mailed to the address on your application. The mailing address you provide on the application will be used to update your address with both enrollment and accounting. You may have already received written notification along with an application and a self-addressed stamped envelope for your use to return the forms or the forms can be dropped off in person at Tribal Administration. Additionally, the application and forms can be emailed to GWA@crit-nsn.gov.
Please note that the checks for eligible minor tribal members will be issued in the name of the child and not the parents. Parents or guardians must submit proof of their right to receive the distribution on behalf of their child by submitting an application with a copy of the birth certificate listing the parent(s), and if applicable, a court order establishing legal custody and placement before checks will be mailed or the payment directly deposited.
Checks will not be issued to the parent(s) if they do not have the care and custody of their children. Guardians and custodians of minors who are not the child’s legal parent shall be required to provide a court order indicating their status. Payments for children in the physical care and custody of CRIT Social Services or other state or tribal agencies shall be held in an account established by CRIT Accounting.
Tribal Members must apply for the 2024 General Welfare Assistance Payments no later than December 31, 2025 after which a 2024 payment will not be available.
Please be advised that if you are in default on a debt you owe to the Colorado River Indian Tribes or its enterprises, you may voluntarily agree to apply your General Welfare Assistance to the loan or other outstanding debt in default. If you have any questions about outstanding debts in default please contact Tracey Quillen at (928) 669-1239.
If you have any questions regarding General Welfare Assistance or you have an agency incorrectly treating this payment as income please contact the Office of the Attorney General at (928) 669-1271.
Click the links below to download a form
Direct Deposit Authorization Form
Follow this link for more information including how to apply.
This position is located with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Superintendent, Colorado River Agency in Poston, Arizona.
The Colorado River Indian Tribes Tribal Council has made a historic decision to protect the lifeblood of their Reservation. On November 6, 2025, the Council unanimously approved Resolution No. R-375-25, which proclaims the personhood status of the Colorado River under tribal law.
This resolution acknowledges the Colorado River as a living entity whose health and well-being are intrinsically linked to the well-being of the Colorado River Indian Tribes (CRIT) members. The Tribes’ deep-rooted connection to the river spans centuries, providing cultural identity, spiritual strength, food systems, and economic stability that continue to shape their community life today.
The resolution emphasizes the central role the river has played in defining the identity of the CRIT. It highlights that CRIT’s ancestors have preserved and protected these lands since before the establishment of the Colorado River Indian Reservation in 1865.
The Council underscores the crucial role the river plays in sustaining traditional practices, wildlife, and agriculture, including the federal irrigation systems authorized as early as 1867. Today, the Colorado River Indian Irrigation Project stands as a cornerstone of the tribal economy.
The resolution underscores significant legal milestones that acknowledged CRIT’s water rights. In the landmark 1964 and 2006 Arizona v. California U.S. Supreme Court decisions, the Tribes secured 719,248 acre-feet of water annually, ensuring their access to the river for generations to come.
By granting personhood to the River, the Tribal Council reaffirmed its sovereign duty to honor and protect it. This status mandates that the River’s well-being must be a priority in governance and decision-making moving forward.
As part of the resolution, the Attorney General and their staff will develop legal safeguards and propose updates to the CRIT Water Code and other relevant regulations. These updates may include the potential designation of the river as a protected cultural landscape.
Council members recognized that protecting the river is not merely a legal obligation but a continuation of cultural beliefs passed down through generations.
Through this declaration, CRIT demonstrates its unwavering commitment to stewardship. The resolution concludes with a resolute message: the Colorado River is, and will always remain, a vital entity deserving of respect, care, and protection for all future generations.
Article Written by CRIT Media Reporter Ariana Romero
News Update November 12, 2025
Negotiations over the future of the Colorado River have reached a standstill after all seven basin states failed to meet a key federal deadline. Reports from 12News and 8NewsNow confirm that the states were unable to agree on a new water-sharing plan, leaving the situation unresolved as the river continues to decline.
High Country News explains that the biggest disagreements involve how much each state should give up in the future. The upper Basin states want fewer mandatory reductions, while the Lower Basin states, including Arizona, say they have already taken the deepest cuts and cannot continue to absorb the majority of the impacts.
With no agreement in place, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs has asked the Trump administration to intervene. She stated that Arizona has made significant sacrifices and cannot carry the weight of the reductions while other states refuse to commit to measurable cuts. If the states cannot reach a plan soon, the federal government may create one for them.
For the Colorado River Indian Tribes, the outcome of these negotiations has major importance. CRIT holds valuable senior water rights and relies on a stable and fair management plan to ensure long-term security for the community and the region.
For more information, you can read the news articles with the links below.
High Country News
https://www.hcn.org/articles/why-colorado-river-negotiations-are-so-difficult/
12 News
/wednesday-is-deadline-for-7-state-including-arizona-to-negotiate-the-colorado-river
Robert Esquerra started his career with the Colorado River Indian Tribes on October 18, 1999 as a EMT with CRIT Fire Department. In March of 2002 he went to Head Start as their maintenance worker. He then transferred to CRIT’s Department of Health and Social Services as a driver.
In 2004, Esquerra returned to the CRIT Fire Department as an EMT/Firefighter. In 2006 he was promoted to Captain for the Fire Department and in 2012 Esquerra was promoted to Assistant Fire Chief, the position he still holds today.
The Tribal Council and Human Resources Department thank Robert Esquerra for 25 years of continued service to the Colorado River Indian Tribes.
The Rock the Rez tour presented by CRIT ASAP (Alcohol Substance Abuse & Behavioral health services program) CRIT SDP (Special Diabetes Program), kicked off October 28th at Le Pera Elementary.. At Le Pera, the day began with a full court sprint and push up challenge, followed by a hoop shooting contest. The Reservation All-Stars basketball team gave out prizes to those who got the chance to participate. They also showcased their basketball skills on October 28th at the Irataba Hall Gym. The special diabetes program offered participants healthy food options and free tee-shirts.
CRIT Chairwoman Amelia Flores, Vice Chairman Dwight Lomayesva, and Councilmember Bobby Page attended a symposium on the Colorado River held in September in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The symposium’s theme was Bridging Divides for a Resilient Future.
Chairwoman Flores stated that anytime tribal nations can speak about their tribal water rights as conferences like this makes this a historical achievement. She further stated it was an honor to represent CRIT.
Chairwoman Flores was on a panel entitled Paradigm Shift: Inclusive Approaches to Moving Forward. Panelists included (pictured left to right) were moderator: Anne Castle, U.S. Commissioner, Upper Colorado River Commission; Bidtah Becker, Chief Legal Counsel for the Navajo Nation Office of the President and Vice President; Amelia Flores, Chairwoman Colorado River Indian Tribes; Timothy Williams, Chairman Ft. Mojave Indian Tribe; and Lorelei Cloud, Vice-Chair, Southern Ute Tribe.
Vice Chairman Dwight Lomayesva spoke on a panel called Perspective from the Field Agriculture for the Next Century. His panel included moderator Jennifer Gimbel, Senior Water Policy Scholar at the Colorado Water Center; Taylor Hawes, Colorado River Program Director for The Nature Conservancy; and Dwight Lomayesva, Vice-Chair, Colorado River Indian Tribes.
For a second time CRIT Chairwoman Amelia Flores and members of the Tribal Council provided updates, answered questions, and listened to concerns about issues surrounding Colorado River water.
About 80 people attended a meeting in August at the Blue Water Resort and Casino. In opening remarks Chairwoman Flores said, “We ae stewards of our river and that’s why we are here tonight.”
CRIT’s water attorney John Bezdek then updated tribal members on the status of potential water leasing made possible by a new federal law as well as enabling documents recently signed between CRIT, the State of Arizona, and the US Department of Interior. Bezdek stressed that CRIT has made no agreements to lease its water off reservation. Bezdek’s presentation stated, “Any potential lease, water storage agreement, or other off-reservation use of water will only occur, as required in the Referendum, after it has been approved by tribal council majority vote only after a public hearing.
The Tribal Council is working diligently to ensure CRIT would get the best possible price in any water leasing agreement. As drought conditions persist, CRIT water becomes more valuable. That’s one of the reasons CRIT’s Tribal Council, its staff, and its legal team are working to protect CRIT’s SENIOR water rights. Recent legislation has greatly helped in that regard, but more can be done. That’s because agreements that manage the operations of the Colorado River expire in 2026.
Bezdek’s presentation states, “Tribal Council is actively engaged in meetings with federal and state officials as guidelines are developed for Colorado River operations post-2026 to ensure the Colorado River remains a living river while protecting the Tribes’ rights.”
CRIT is also looking at all options to make its irrigation systems more efficient and to hold the BIA accountable for failing to do so.
The BIA irrigation project returns between 47% and 50% of the water diverted back to the Colorado River without being used. Most of the high return flow problems have been identified and solutions have been proposed, however, the BIA is NOT fixing the irrigation project. Leases will provide CRIT with funds to better capture this return-flow and increase project efficiency. This protects CRIT water from being taken in the future.
In response to a question, Tribal Councilmembers Jaymee Moore and Anisa Patch said the Tribal Council has been working to hold the BIA accountable at the local level and are now taking that effort to the next level by going higher up. (more…)
