Vision for Tribal FINANCIAL Sovereignty

My name is Lacey Horn, and I'm the CEO of Native Advisory. I’m a Cherokee, a Mother, a CPA, and the former Treasurer of the Cherokee Nation. The Creator uniquely endowed me with gifts that allow me to see the big picture, to analyze and intuitively understand the best paths forward, and to use these skills for the benefit of all tribes. 

I honorably served my own tribe as Treasurer for 8 years with a solid track record. As CEO of Native Advisory, I’ve created another track record of successes in helping Tribes increase their sovereignty and self-reliance in the areas of healthcare, food, cultural sustainability, pandemic responsiveness, and more. 

I also volunteer my expertise and time on important boards and advisory committees that advance efforts in Indian Country such as the Native American Rights Fund and the Smithsonian NMAI. 

You’ll find me speaking and creating free content and resources about the work I’m doing – creating evolved best practices, helping Tribes obtain clean audits, advocating for True Tribal Sovereignty, and blazing trails in thought leadership.

Here are some Results from 2020-2022:

• Native Advisory has advised on and secured over $1.1 Billion in funding for Tribal clients
• Clients spent stimulus funding to their advantage - saving lives and languages, while also making permanent enhancements to their Tribal sovereignty and resiliency. 
• Tribal clients were successful in Treasury OIG audits - because their decision-making was solid and their records were complete.
• Clients used ARPA to expand upon their CARES successes, insulating their people from economic harm and the effects of COVID-19
• Enabled Tribes to put their citizens first and while taking care of both their immediate and long-term needs with their stimulus money as well as competitive grant funding
• Clients legally spent all of their CARES Act Relief Fund by the initial 12/30/20 deadline and have solid rationale and support for their justifications, ensuring they’re ready for clean audits ahead.
• Tribal clients made massive advancements in their healthcare, citizen resilience, economic preservation, technological advancements, and food sovereignty. 

Here are some of the things I accomplished with my tribe:

Financial Results

• Doubled the budget from $600M in 2011 to $1.2 Billion in 2019, enabling our economic impact to also double from $1.1B to $2.2B in the same time frame
• Administered $2.3 billion of federal funds with 8 years of clean external, single and agency audits
• Saved $40 million by implementing changes to employee benefits through exercise of tribal sovereignty
• Negotiated an uncollateralized $170 million loan to build a 469,000 sq. ft. Joint Venture healthcare facility and led efforts to cash flow purchase of equipment, as part of an overall $400 million healthcare expansion

Victory Behind the Scenes 

• Established centralized Grant Services Department enabling the Nation to bring in hundreds of millions of dollars in additional funding and expand services to the people
• Authored two major legislative acts, the first modernized our treasury capacity and the second created the Cherokee Nation Sovereign Wealth Fund 
• Implemented Sarbanes-Oxley financial controls voluntarily, appropriate for a $1.2B organization
• Developed contingency plans to enable the Nation to withstand government shutdowns with no effects to jobs or services
• Negotiated agreements preserving tribal sovereignty, including electronic health records, treasury, investment advisory, line of credit, and software agreements
• Enabled funding and project managed cross-functional teams of HR, program staff, IT and others for numerous general welfare programs, physician/provider salary increases, capital projects, cybersecurity, environmental issues, maternity leave and the “We Care About Our Girls, Period!” project providing environmentally friendly products for young girls in health centers

Priceless Bridges to Success

• Fostered strong relationships with legislators, banks, corporate and nonprofit partners, federal and state elected/appointed officials, and Tribal Leaders
• Represented Cherokee Nation in government-to-government consultations 
• Performed Government Relations duties, regularly meeting with members of House, Senate and federal agencies, and   produced meaningful data reports on outcomes of federally funded programs which positively affected appropriations
• Work in enhancing disclosure and transparency resulted in annually receiving three “Excellence in Financial Reporting” awards from the Government Finance Officers Association

When you work with Native Advisory, you'll get the benefits of my expertise - and if you choose, the ability to work with other tribal experts that also share our values.