PABLO — The Tribal Council looked to a familiar face when choosing E.T. Moran as its next chairman on New Year’s Day.

The appointment moved Moran from the vice-chairman spot into the top position. A native of the area, Moran has served on the council since 2007 and is a former Bureau of Indian Affairs superintendent who was long  based on the Flathead Reservation.

He said last week he will use this familiarity and strong communication principles to move the council forward through top issues facing the tribes this year.

“I believe we (council members) all have a responsibility, and if we can do it as a team, we can get a lot more done,” Moran said. “We have to communicate, all the members need to know what’s going on to make things go.”

One of the biggest challenges will be completing a water rights compact currently being negotiated by the tribes with the federal and state governments. This sits at the top in part because of the timeline attached to it, Moran said. He attends the monthly meetings and will continue to do so.

A draft of the compact must be completed and sent to the Montana Legislature for approval by 2013.

Deciding the future of Kerr Dam and answering questions about its lease agreement with PPL is another major issue that will need attention, Moran said.

Energy and natural resources are also on his list, as managing forestry resources has always been important to the community.

“We have to work on lands and see what can happen there,” Moran said.

As with any governmental entity, Moran also mentioned the recession as a challenge, especially when many markets tied to natural resource product sales continue to sag.

“The economy is tough right now and I don’t know when it will get better, but we have to prepare ourselves for that,” he said.

Moran did not comment on the pay raise he will receive as the chairman. Many tribal members were upset about the council’s August vote to raise the chairman’s pay to almost $112,000 a year.

“That was an action of the Tribal Council and I don’t have a comment,” he said.

Outgoing chairman James Steele Jr. will remain on the council.

Moran said he would work to meet with members and elders throughout the reservation to hear their concerns.

The appointment did came as a surprise in many ways, Moran said, but had always been a dream of his.

“I think that sometimes, things happen that we don’t expect to happen,” he said. “But like I tell my kids sometimes, you ask the Creator for different things at different times, sometimes they’re answered at different times in different ways.”

Moran and his wife, Audi, live in Pablo. Between them, they have nine children.

He lists spending time with his 20 grandchildren and golfing as things he likes to do for fun. Moran served in the Marines for more than nine years before returning to the area in 1967 and working as the Tribes’ first credit manager.