CFO of $113M Ho-Chunk tribal business quits

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By ANNA JO BRATTON / The Associated Press

The chief financial officer of the $113 million economic development vehicle of Nebraska’s Winnebago Tribe has stepped down.

Don McEntaffer’s resignation comes a week after an Associated Press story about a financial review that said Ho-Chunk Inc. appears to be in poor financial condition and isn’t generating enough cash to pay off its debt.

Ho-Chunk officials said political factors motivated the review by Deloitte Financial Advisory Services in Los Angeles and tinged the outcome.

McEntaffer declined to comment Thursday when reached at home by the AP.

Ho-Chunk spokeswoman Janice Jessen said McEntaffer left last week to pursue other opportunities.

Jessen said McEntaffer, who is not a member of the tribe, didn’t leave because of the review, but said the ongoing political upheaval on the reservation can be draining. She said the position has been tough the past few months.

Jessen said the company’s chief operating officer, Annette Hamilton, will be the acting CFO until a replacement can be found, perhaps from within the company.

McEntaffer was with Ho-Chunk about four years.

The financial review was requested by the Winnebago tribal council, which appoints Ho-Chunk’s board of directors.

Deloitte said the company and its subsidiaries keep taking on long-term debt even as net income decreases and that the company is dependent on borrowing more money to stay afloat.

Deloitte also questioned the company’s accounting practices and said its annual reports don’t accurately reflect its actual condition.

Lance Morgan, CEO of Ho-Chunk, has said the company’s debt — about $13 million — is high but manageable, and the company hasn’t missed any payments and is generating the cash needed to pay the debt.

He said the company’s 2007 annual report will show Ho-Chunk had its best year ever.

Ho-Chunk posted revenues of $113 million in 2006 and recorded $660,000 in net profits. The company employs nearly 600 people in six states, Mexico, Iraq and Afghanistan.