Osni Ponca LLC

Osni Ponca, LLC is the primary economic development vehicle for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska whose purpose is to engage in economic development activities for the benefit of the Tribe and its members. It was established as an economic holding company by charter of the Pawnee Tribe in 2012.

Osni Ponca, LLC operates with a corporate staff and board of directors.

Osni Ponca, LLC is charged with maximizing the competitive advantages of the Ponca Tribe’s sovereign status and associated rights of sovereignty to attract investments and build capital for the tribe. However, it must maintain the cultural values of the Ponca people.

The primary purpose of Osni Ponca LLC is the creation of a tribal economy and employment opportunities for tribal members. It does this by creating or investing in companies. In 2014, Osni Ponca LLC had five companies including a tobacco smoke shop in Carter Lake, Iowa, a convenience store and gas station in Bloomfield, Nebraska, a fireworks distribution company which sells to other Native American tribes, a janitorial and business services company, and a retail store which sells Native American artwork, pottery, jewelry, designer handbags, fashion accessories and more. These are all based in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Tax and other revenue generated by these businesses are for the use of the tribal government in providing services to the tribal membership. The Ponca Tribe has no reservation in Nebraska, however, the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska is a federally recognized tribe headquartered in Niobrara, Nebraska through the Ponca Restoration Act which established a fifteen-county service delivery area across Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. Osni Ponca, LLC offers resources and opportunities in the rural and urban economies to Ponca tribal members living within the Nebraska counties of Boyd, Burt, Douglas, Hall, Holt, Knox, Lancaster, Madison, Platte, Sarpy, Stanton, and Wayne, and Pottawattamie and Woodbury counties in Iowa. Osni Ponca LLC also has a charitable mission, giving back to the community in the form of donations and grants.

In 2001, the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska (PTON) chartered the Ponca Economic Development Corporation (PEDCO) as a tribal corporation responsible for providing the Tribe with sustainable capital investment opportunities. PEDCO operated outside of the political processes of the Tribe and provided oversight responsibility for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska’s economic development activities. In order to remain free of the political process and at the direction of the PTON’s Tribal Council, PEDCO successfully negotiated its own Self-Determination (638) Contract with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. With the chartering of Osni Ponca, LLC, PEDCO’s mission changed to become the non-profit community development corporation for the Ponca Tribe of Nebraska.

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