Kenneth Maryboy (born May 13,1961) is an American politician for San Juan County,Utah,and was Navajo NationCouncil Delegate. Kenneth is a former San Juan County Commissioner. Maryboy was the third Democrat in a row to have been elected to the Commissioner District 3 position since its inception in 1984 that divided the county into three districts. Kenneth was replaced on the commission in 2015 by Rebecca M. Benally
Kenneth Maryboy is the brother of Mark Maryboy who served the Navajo Nation Council Delegates for 16 years and also served as the San Juan County Commissioner for four terms. Kenneth also shares the same Navajo Nation council representation as Davis Filfred,in the Utah Section of the reservation.
He also works alongside Rebecca M. Benally and the San Juan School Board for the Utah Navajo student curriculum,and Bruce Adams for the San Juan County affairs.
Maryboy was once again reelected during the 2010 National Midterm/Navajo Nation Elections in the positions of San Juan County Commissioner District Three and as a Council Delegate in the newly reduced 24 member Navajo Nation Tribal Council respectively.
Early life
At age 18,he was living with his mother and younger brother on the reservation near Bluff,Utah. They were barely making ends meet on his meager wages as a welder. Although times were rather harsh,Kenneth managed to improve his skills at Welding,as time progressed he learned to Electrician's trade and from there advanced to other markets which were in demand of his skills
Later in life Maryboy,known as a "Medicine Man" among people living on land encompassing the Four-Corners Region of the United States,ministers to the physical,mental and spiritual needs of his people. Maryboy bridges the gap between the old ways of the Navajo,and the current life in America.
He also was routinely desired for a natural another talent,which was an Announcer. During Rodeo seasons he would be asked to announce for many different events and venues.
Kenneth Maryboy,a rodeo announcer,along with the KTNN Sports Director,L.A. Williams did the play-by-play for their first Suns game. This was a first amongst Navajo Broadcasting stations to be affiliated with a Major League Basketball team.
Navajo Santa
Invoking his own happy childhood memories of the celebration of Christmas at St. Christopher's Mission,Maryboy created a program,the Navajo Santa,to help serve his people with the spirit of Christmas all year long. He adapted the concept of Santa Claus to meet the needs of the Native Americans who are among the most impoverished people in the U.S. The program provides gifts of food,clothing,blankets,and toys,medical care,and other services. He provides hope for everyone served by his joyful program. Archived 2008-03-17 at theWayback Machine
December 2007 Navajo Santa Event
"I would like to see that the understanding and the caring will continue on—that people will understand togetherness and what caring means to other people I still envision a lot more things that I might be able to do,not only in the Navajo Nation but maybe in a broader area as well where there is need."
A non-profit organization,Navajo Santa was created to bring food,blankets,warm clothing,toys,and other necessities to Navajos in need on the reservation in southeastern Utah. Entirely volunteer supported,Navajo Santa provides an exchange of culture and support between Navajos and non-Navajos.Archived 2008-03-17 at theWayback Machine
Kenneth is now 49 and commissioner for San Juan County. His solo Christmas Eve visits have grown into an annual Navajo feast with gifts of clothing,tools and toys for over 700 people. Kids who can't make it to the event because they're sick or lack transportation get a personal visit from Kenneth or one of his elves.
"My grandfather taught me that you learn to be a man and a warrior by sharing and by keeping promises," he says.
Caring Institute Award
On November 18,2002,Kenneth went to Washington,D.C.,to receive the Caring Institute Award,an honor previously given to Mother Teresa,President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter,and this year to Paul Newman. Other winners include former Senator Bob Dole and Reverend Billy Graham.
Navajo Nation Council Delegate
Council Delegate Maryboy informing his supports of former Navajo Chairman Peter MacDonald's endorsement of his reelection campaign
In 2000,Maryboy was elected into the legislative body of Navajo Nation Government as a Navajo Nation Council Delegate for the Mexican Water,Aneth and Red Mesa Chapters. These areas expand the Arizonan and Utahn borders with a constituency of nearly 10,000 people.
Upon election,Kenneth positioned himself in the Navajo Economic Development committee where he serves as the Vice Chair for the Navajo Nation Nation Council.
Navajo Nation Council reduction
On Dec. 15,2009,Tribal members voted to reduce the Navajo Tribal Council from 88 to 24 members,and the Navajo Nation Supreme Court ordered immediate implementation of the redistricting in a May 28,2010 decision. With this Navajo Nation-wide action,it resulting in pitting Councilman Maryboy against fellow Councilman,Davis Filfred during the November 2,2010 General Elections.
Councilman Maryboy defeated Councilman Filfred for a newly redistricted "Shiprock Agency" section on the Navajo Reservation.
In October 2010,Navajo tribal officials,were charged in an investigation of slush funds just weeks before the November election. Not Guilty was what was pleaded for the Councilmen charged for fraud,conspiracy and theft.
Washington D.C.-based Special prosecutor Alan Balaran reported results on the investigation in which he filed criminal complaints against current Vice President/President-Elect,Ben Shelly,and at least 77 members of the 88-delegate Council as part of a sweeping investigation into the use of discretionary funds that Davis Filfred and Maryboy were named in as well.[1]
2014 Navajo Presidential Campaign
Kenneth Maryboy was one of Seventeen Candidates Campaigning for Navajo Nation President,He lost the Primary against Chris Deschnee and Joe Shirley JR.,placing fifth with 3,738 Votes.
San Juan County Commissioner
Commissioner Kenneth Maryboy (2010)
In November 2006,Kenneth Maryboy was elected as the San Juan County Commissionership for District 3. The commissionership delegates handle county issues in Monticello,Utah. The San Juan County Commissioner seat is a three person council which oversee's the needs and issues for San Juan County's residents.
Commissioner Maryboy won a bid to the Commissionership nomination after an extensive primary battle between himself and Andrew Tso of Montezuma Creek,Utah during the 2010 San Juan County Primaries.[2]
2010 Primary Election results
San Juan County,Utah
County Commission Dist #3
Kenneth Maryboy DEM
Bluff 85
Montezuma Creek 97
Aneth 69
Mexican Hat 47
Red Mesa 43
Early Voting 1
Canvass 6
TOTAL 348
Andrew Tso DEM
Bluff 21
Montezuma Creek 45
Aneth 77
Mexican Hat 3
Red Mesa 23
Early Voting 4
Canvass 4
TOTAL 177
Commissioner Maryboy shortly after taking the Oath for Commissioner
San Juan County 2010 General Election
After successfully defeating Andrew Tso,Maryboy went on to be reelected to his particular county office,unopposed,in the 2010 San Juan County General election.[3]
Commissionership issues
Conflicting dual-elected positions issues
After being elected as the San Juan County Commissioner and as the Navajo Nation Council Delegate,questions arose as to the Legitimacy and the Ethical position as an elected official of both seats. Members elected to maintain service to two governments bodies was a hot button issue;Kenneth Maryboy fell exactly in this position which was the subject of concern.
Following the October 16,2007 Navajo Nation Council vote,granting delegates to maintain service as Councilmen &County Representatives,Maryboy to was allowed to maintain his positions as both the San Juan County Commissioner and Navajo Nation Council Delegate for the Aneth,Red Mesa,and Mexican Water Chapters Archived 2008-08-30 at theWayback Machine
The Navajo voice of San Juan
Kenneth Maryboy has to balance his role as a Navajo leader with duties as a San Juan County commissioner,taking office in January. His brother,Mark Maryboy,made history when he was elected in 1986 as the first American Indian county commissioner,also in San Juan,in Utah's history. The county has had one Navajo county commissioner ever since.
"More than 55 percent of registered voters in San Juan County are Native Americans,and they need to be represented,which is something that maybe Anglo commissioners had not had that perspective before." - Bruce Adams (San Juan Commissioner Dist. 1)
Utah Navajo issues
Utah Navajo Strip:located in Southeast Utah
Historically,Utah Navajos were ignored not only by the county and state governments but also by the Navajo Nation.
Located in the Four-Corners regions of the United States,the narrow Utah strip that is home to 8,000 of the Navajo Nation's 300,000 citizens. San Juan County officials long believed Utah Navajos were primarily the responsibility of the tribe. The Council,on the other hand,held that their Utah kin could fend for themselves after a 1933 federal mandate awarded them 37.5 percent of royalties from the rich oil fields near Aneth on Utah's portion of the reservation.
Utah Navajo Trust Fund
Utah Navajo:Northernmost section of the Navajo Nation (in Orange)
But between 1933 and 1990,the Utah Navajo Oil Trust Fund was plundered of $150 million,according to a Utah legislative auditor's report. The Navajos' lawsuit against the state is still pending. The State of Utah is the only state in the Nation administering a trust fund for the benefit of American Indians whose lands are within state boundaries. The Utah Navajos have sought to have a more active role in the distribution of the royalties and this would present that opportunity. Legislative leadership has committed to provide a way to make the transition process as seamless as possible for the beneficiaries.
Trust Fund to Sunset
Currently since,Utah's Navajo Trust Fund statute is set to sunset in 2008. Utah Governor Jon Huntsman and Legislative Leadership in 2007 have joined together in asking Congress to create a new disbursement system for the royalties. The Utah Legislative leadership are now actively working with the Utah Navajo Element in regards to controlling of these royalties.
Utah Senate Minority Leader Mike Dmitrich saying Our congressional delegation must create a vehicle to distribute these monies in a way that all of the Chapter Houses have input.
Kenneth Maryboy and Davis Filfred have been active in the Utah Navajo Trust fund as well as helping the transition between Utah's Primary role in control the Utah Navajo Trust to the Utah Navajos themselves.
Lack of Navajo Nation infrastructure on Utah Navajo land
According to Kenneth's he feels his position and mission for his constituents are to help bring basic services to the people in his district. In fact,the Navajo Nation services which are not on the Utah side of the reservation include:
•Navajo Division of Public Safety Locations:30 in Arizona,13 in New Mexico
•Emergency Medical Services:9 in Arizona,4 in New Mexico
•Fire and Rescue Services:6 in Arizona
•Criminal Investigation Section:5 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Corrections:4 in Arizona,3 in New Mexico
•Victim Assistance:2 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Police Districts:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Office of Chief Prosecutors:3 in Arizona,4 in New Mexico
No Navajo Nation Health,Education and Welfare offices are in Utah: •Division of Health:22 in Arizona,11 in New Mexico
•Navajo Area Agency on Aging:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Behavioral Health Services:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Communicable Disease Program:5 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Food Distribution Program:5 in Arizona,3 in New Mexico
•WIC Program:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Division of Dine Education:17 in Arizona,8 in New Mexico
•Office of Dine Youth:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico,
•Dept. of Head Start:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Office of Special Education/Rehabilitation:5 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Office of Scholarship/Financial Assistance:4 in Arizona,2 in New Mexico
•Division of Social Services:12 in Arizona,9 in New Mexico
Recently Counsel Delegates Kenneth Maryboy,Davis Filfred,and Former Counsel Delegate Mark Maryboy have been actively working to ensure that the Aneth Oil Royalties stay with the Utah Navajo people.
However such causes are not without competition,the Navajo Nation itself has been working counter to the Utah Navajo people in taking over the Aneth Oil Revenues. It presents a significant problem with a line of issues Kenneth is up against.
On June 16,2008,Kenneth Maryboy,Mark Maryboy,Davis Filfred,and the honorable Phil Lyman of Blanding,Utah will travel to Washington,D.C. to present a working model of how an easy transition from the State of Utah handling Utah Navajo royalty money,to a functioning Utah Navajo organization before Congress.
Also,December 8,2009,The U.S. Senate Indian Affairs Committee conducted two hearings that Wednesday morning. The back-to-back hearings which took place in Room 628 Dirksen Senate Office Building,in Washington,D.C.
Senate Bill 1690
The first hearing was on Senate Bill 1690,which would transfer trustee authority and resources for the Utah Navajo Trust Fund from the state of Utah to the Utah Dineh Corporation Inc. The second hearing is an oversight hearing to examine the chronic backlog of Indian land transaction decisions at the Interior Department. The backlog effectively blocks many tribes from using their lands,often for years,until those decisions are made.
Locally,the biggest issue is an emotional tussle over a trust fund that holds royalties from oil and gas leases in and around Aneth. That fund's assets doubled to more than $52 million this year when Utah agreed to settle a lawsuit over alleged abuses during the decades that the state oversaw it.
Utah gave up its oversight role two years ago,and no projects to benefit the Utah Navajos —many of whom have no electricity or running water —can be initiated until Congress picks a new trustee. The Navajo Nation,which receives 62.5 percent of the royalties,wants control of the whole fund.
Navajo Nation Delegation to Utah State Legislature
On Jan. 27,2009,a Navajo delegation attended Indian Caucus Day. Utah Navajo Delegates Maryboy and Davis Filfred attended the Indian Caucus Day at the Utah State Capitol to advocate on behalf of Navajo constituents living in the state of Utah.
Elected leaders from the Utah's five tribes met with former Utah State Gov. Jon M. Huntsman Jr.,Gov. Gary R. Herbert,Attorney General Mark Shurtleff and a number of program directors to emphasize the importance of maintaining adequate funding for programs which provide direct services to tribal citizens.
Thestate of Utah announced major budgetary problems for the upcoming fiscal year and has proposed possible cuts of 15 percent for state agencies. At the caucus,tribal leaders urged Utah state leaders to recognize the limitation in state services currently available to Utah tribes and asked for specific programs to be maintained,despite the economic challenges faced by the state.[5]
Kenneth Maryboy went on to state,"With proposed budgetary cuts,it is important as tribal leaders that we are clear about what state programs we believe are most important to retain. It is also pertinent we are clear about what our goals are in terms of strengthening state and tribal relations."[6]
Life away from politics
Currently,although politics does take up much of Kenneth's time,he has found hobbies and activities to help balance out the fast pace public service life. With his family collectively joining him,Kenneth spends time with ATVs and hunting as a side passion. The Maryboy family is quite closely involved with many outdoor racing venues such as mudbogging and drag racing. In fact the Maryboy family runs a racing club called Whiterock Racing.
As with most Western Democrats,Kenneth enjoys a sustaintial amount of time utilizing his time with taking advantage of the immensely rural southwestern environment with such activities like hunting and fishing. The southern Utah area is filled with a variety of outdoor activities for most people who reside in the area and Kenneth maintains that tradition as most Utans do.
Many southern Utahns enjoy the offers that Lake Powell has to provide. Kenneth and his family enjoy the many opportunities that the lake does provide that many other Utahns and Southwestern Americans take advantage of as well.
Related Research Articles
San Juan County is a county in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census,the population was 14,518. Its county seat is Monticello,while its most populous city is Blanding. The Utah State Legislature named the county for the San Juan River,itself named by Spanish explorers.
Window Rock,known in Navajo as Tségháhoodzání,is a census-designated place (CDP) that serves as the seat of government and capital of the Navajo Nation,the largest territory in North America of a sovereign Native American nation. The capital lies within the boundaries of the St. Michaels Chapter,adjacent to the Arizona and New Mexico state line. Window Rock is the site of the Navajo Nation governmental campus,which contains the Navajo Nation Council,Navajo Nation Supreme Court,the offices of the Navajo Nation President and Vice President,and many Navajo government buildings.
Aneth is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Juan County,Utah,United States. The population was 598 at the 2000 census. The origin of the name Aneth is obscure.
Montezuma Creek is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Juan County,Utah,United States. The population was 335 at the 2010 census,a decrease from the 2000 figure of 507.
The Navajo Nation,also known as Navajoland,is a Native American reservation of Navajo people in the United States. It occupies portions of northeastern Arizona,northwestern New Mexico,and southeastern Utah. The seat of government is located in Window Rock,Arizona.
The Navajo Nation Council is the Legislative Branch of the Navajo Nation government. The council meets four times per year,with additional special sessions,at the Navajo Nation Council Chamber,which is in Window Rock,Arizona.
The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe is one of three federally recognized tribes of the Ute Nation,and are mostly descendants of the historic Weeminuche Band who moved to the Southern Ute reservation in 1897. Their reservation is headquartered at Towaoc,Colorado on the Ute Mountain Ute Indian Reservation in southwestern Colorado,northwestern New Mexico and small sections of Utah.
The Fallen Man is a crime novel by American writer Tony Hillerman,the twelfth in the Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee Navajo Tribal Police series,first published in 1996.
The Ramah Navajo Indian Reservation is a non-contiguous section of the Navajo Nation lying in parts of west-central Cibola and southern McKinley counties in New Mexico,United States,just east and southeast of the Zuni Indian Reservation. It has a land area of 230.675 sq mi (597.445 km²),over 95 percent of which is designated as off-reservation trust land. According to the 2000 census,the resident population is 2,167 persons. The Ramah Reservation's land area is less than one percent of the Navajo Nation's total area.
Mark Maryboy is a retired American politician for San Juan County,Utah,and a former Navajo Nation Council Delegate for the Utah Navajo Section of the Navajo Tribe. He is the brother of Kenneth Maryboy,who currently serves as the Navejo Nation Council Delegate,in the positions he once stood. He is of the Navajo Indian Tribe.
Albert A. Hale was an American attorney and politician. A member of the Democratic Party,he served in the Arizona Senate from 2004 to 2011 and in the Arizona House of Representatives from 2011 to 2017.
Lawrence T. Morgan is the former Speaker of the Navajo Nation Tribal Council.
Davis Filfred is an American politician for the Navajo Nation Council Delegate in the Utah Navajo Section.
Ben Shelly was the 7th president of the Navajo Nation. He was the first president to have been elected both president and vice president of the Navajo Nation,as well as the first New Mexican Navajo to hold the Navajo presidency.
The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE),headquartered in the Main Interior Building in Washington,D.C.,and formerly known as the Office of Indian Education Programs (OIEP),is a division of the U.S. Department of the Interior under the Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs. It is responsible for the line direction and management of all BIE education functions,including the formation of policies and procedures,the supervision of all program activities,and the approval of the expenditure of funds appropriated for BIE education functions.
The Trail of the Ancients is a collection of National Scenic Byways located in the U.S. Four Corners states of Utah,Colorado,New Mexico, and Arizona. These byways comprise:
The bill to amend the Act of March 1,1933,to transfer certain authority and resources to the Utah Dineh Corporation.,and for other purposes. This bill was introduced on the Senate floor by Rep. Robert Bennett (R-UT) on 21 September 2009. It was referred to the Committee on Indian Affairs. On December 9,2009 Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held hearing 111-538. No further action was taken by the Committee.
The Utah Dineh Corporation is a nonprofit organization which was established in order to maintain the Utah Navajo Oil Reserve revenues in the Aneth Oil Field section of Utah. Much of this area is within the Utah Navajo side of San Juan County,Utah.
Bears Ears National Monument is a United States national monument located in San Juan County in southeastern Utah,established by President Barack Obama by presidential proclamation on December 28,2016. The monument protects 1,351,849 acres of public land surrounding the Bears Ears—a pair of buttes—and the Indian Creek corridor rock climbing area. The Native American names for the buttes have the same meaning in each of the languages represented in the region. The names are listed in the presidential proclamation as "Hoon’Naqvut,Shash Jáa [sic],KwiyaghatʉNükavachi/Kwiyagatu Nukavachi,Ansh An Lashokdiwe"—all four mean "Bears Ears".
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