State of the Nation address highlights successes and challenges

Chief Gary Batton’s 2024 State of the Nation speech went live online Monday, September 2. Since 2020, Chief Batton has opted for a recorded address that can be broadcast easily over Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma (CNO) communication channels to reach more tribal members and others who are interested in the Tribe’s progress.

This year, Chief Batton highlighted several wins, including three new Chahta Spirit stories, as well as some political and economic challenges the Tribe has faced. He began by thanking his family, Assistant Chief Jack Austin Jr. and his family, Tribal Council and associates for their tireless work over the past year.

In housing, Chief Batton reported that the Tribe’s goal of building 600 new homes by the end of FY2025 is going well. By the end of FY2024, over half of those housing units will be complete. When the project is finished next year, the Choctaw Nation will have built over 1,300 homes across the reservation.

The Choctaw Nation Health Services Authority (CNHSA) is one of the largest, most comprehensive programs the Tribe offers. As of June 30, CNHSA facilities had over 850,000 health encounters, including over 4,000 mammograms, over 900 colonoscopies, over 520 cataract treatments and over 8,500 dental cleanings. The hospital at Talihina also welcomed 347 newborns.

Chief Batton encouraged everyone to keep up with their preventative health checks, saying, “I am a huge advocate for prevention and wellness care like mammograms and colonoscopies, which you can have done at Choctaw Nation health facilities.  These procedures save so many lives.”

One of the Choctaw Nation’s current strategic goals is to become the Employer of Choice. Several measures designed to bring in new employees and encourage current employees to stay and grow their careers at the Nation have had an impact on this goal. The total number of CNO associates topped 13,000 in 2024, and over 230 new positions were created between October 1 and June 30, a 5% increase over FY2023.

The Choctaw Nation was also named one of Forbes Magazine’s Best Large Employers, taking top spot in the Government Service Industry and Oklahoma-based Companies and Tribal Nations categories.

Chief Batton opened a discussion on business and revenue by stating that the Tribe has almost 230,000 tribal members now. The Nation’s businesses fund programs and services that help tribal members with housing, education, healthcare and more, but economic factors like inflation and the higher cost of goods have been a challenge.

Chief Batton said, “While the casinos continue to be an excellent source of revenue, the Tribe is not immune to inflation and the higher costs of goods affecting the global community.”

In response to these challenges, the Tribe has focused more on efficiency and effectiveness, as well as streamlining processes and cutting costs to ensure critical operations continue to function.

Tribal leadership has also looked for ways to grow and diversify revenue streams, like partnering with Three Rivers Meat Company in Octavia, Oklahoma, and opening the Choctaw Landing resort property in Hochatown, Oklahoma.

Despite these issues, however, the Choctaw Nation reported a $3.2 billion economic impact on the state of Oklahoma, based on the most recent Economic Impact Report (2021).

On the education front, Chief Batton shared that over 13,000 students received scholarships through Higher Education, the Chahta Foundation and Career Development. The total amount awarded was over $17 million.

This year also saw the largest graduating class from the Adult Education Program. Graduates totaled 167, including several family members who completed the program together.

In addition to helping students meet their educational goals, the Tribe has ramped up efforts to revitalize the Choctaw language and encourage more people to learn to speak Chahta. At the time of the speech on September 2, the Apprenticeship Program was set to graduate 15 new speakers. The Chahta Anumpa Aiikhvna (Choctaw School of Language) also served an average of 3,000 language learners.

“Preserving and protecting the Choctaw language is an issue that is close to my heart. Not only is it important from a historical and cultural perspective, but speaking our language is an act of sovereignty. For so long, our ancestors were discouraged or downright forbidden to speak Choctaw by authorities who did not recognize our inherent sovereignty. When we speak Chahta today, we are saying to those people, ‘I am a member of a sovereign nation, and I will honor my ancestors by speaking our language,'” said Chief Batton.

Chief Batton concluded his annual address by reminding the audience that progress is an ongoing journey and that it is everyone’s shared responsibility to continue walking the path Choctaw ancestors began over a century ago toward a brighter future.