Ryan Smith Sr. of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, right, takes the oath as CRITFC’s 2026-27 chair, administered by outgoing chair Ashton Picard of the Nez Perce Tribe, left, Thursday at the commission’s July meeting on the Warm Springs Reservation. ▣ J. FiveCrows/CRITFC
WARM SPRINGS, Ore. — Ryan Smith Sr. of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs (Warm Springs) was sworn in Thursday as the 2026-27 chair of the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC), by outgoing chair Ashton Picard of the Nez Perce Tribe. The swearing-in ceremony was held at the opening of the commission’s July on-site meeting on the Warm Springs Reservation.
As chair, Smith presides over CRITFC commission meetings where the four CRITFC member tribes, Warm Springs, Umatilla, Yakama, and Nez Perce work together on the shared work of salmon and lamprey restoration, treaty-reserved fishing rights, climate resilience, and First Foods protection across the Columbia River Basin.
Picard, who was sworn in as chair a year ago at the commission’s July 2025 meeting in Lapwai, Idaho, spent his term working alongside representatives from all four member tribes on shared Columbia Basin priorities. Looking back on the experience, Picard said serving as chair gave him a deeper appreciation for the institutional knowledge that underpins CRITFC’s work. Picard said during his swearing-in last summer, “There are staff who have committed 30, 40, even 50 years of their lives protecting the fish.”
“This past year showed me just how much this commission carries, not just the science and the policy, but the responsibility to our elders and the generations still to come,” Picard said. “I’m proud of the work our tribes accomplished together, and I’m confident Chair Smith and Warm Springs will carry that work forward. The salmon, the lamprey, the river, they don’t wait for one tribe or one term. That’s why we do this together.”
The other CRITFC officers elected for the 2026-2027 term were Corinne Sams (Umatilla), vice-chair; Jeremy Takala (Yakama), secretary; and Ashton Picard (Nez Perce), treasurer. The election of CRITFC officers takes place every June with the seats rotated among the four member tribes.
Warm Springs CRITFC commissioners and tribal council members gather Thursday at the commission’s July meeting on the Warm Springs Reservation, following Smith’s swearing in as CRITFC’s 2026 27 chair. From left are Alvis Smith III, Ryan Smith, Sr., Brigette McConville, Jonathon Smith, Sr., and Bruce Jim, Sr. ▣ J. FiveCrows/CRITFC
Contact: CRITFC Communications Director Jeremy FiveCrows at Croj@critfc.org