Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona

ITCA administers federal, state, and private grants on issues such as health, research, and environmental quality in Native American communities. ² ITCA received a $1,156,250 grant from the Department of Health and Human Services in 2020 and distributed $8,733,123 of grants in 2018. ^{3 4}

In 2019, ITCA received a $100,000 Census Equity Fund Grant from the left-leaning New Venture Fund (NVF). ⁵ This project was a part of the left-of-center 2020 Census Project’s Democracy Funders Collaborative Census Subgroup, and the project identified Arizona as a “priority state.” ^{6 6}

ITCA worked with the Native Vote campaign, sponsored by the left-of-center National Congress of American Indians. ⁷ Through the campaign, ITCA partnered with All Voting Is Local, Election Protection Arizona, and Living United for Change in Arizona during the 2020 election cycle to promote left-of-center policy, including expanded access to mail-in voting. ^{8 9}

History and Leadership

ITCA was established in 1952 for Native American tribes to address common concerns at the state level in Arizona. The council established the Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. (ITCA) as a nonprofit to promote policy development in 1975. ¹ ITCA first gained tax-exempt status in 1977 and has since grown to include 21 member tribes across Arizona. ^{10 1}

Members of the ITCA are represented by the top elected officials from their respective tribes. ¹¹ Bernadine Burnette sits as ITCA’s President, and Maria Dadgar works as the organization’s executive director. ¹²

Activities and Funding

Inter Tribal Council of Arizona administers more than 20 federal, state, and private grants addressing issues including  health, research, and environmental quality in Native American communities. ² ITCA received a $1,156,250 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2020. ³

In addition to these activities, ITCA received a $100,000 Census Equity Fund grant from the center-left New Venture Fund (NVF), whose parent organization is the “dark money” Arabella Advisors, in 2019. ⁵  This project was a part of the left-of-center 2020 Census Project’s Democracy Funders Collaborative Census Subgroup, which identified Arizona as a “priority state” for its advocacy work. ^{6 6}

ITCA also has close ties with Native Vote, a project of the National Congress of American Indians. ⁷ Waquin Preston of ITCA worked as project coordinator for Native Vote’s Arizona efforts in the 2020 election cycle. ¹³

During this cycle, ITCA partnered with All Voting Is Local, Election Protection Arizona,⁸ One Arizona,¹⁴ and the left-of-center immigration advocacy organization Living United for Change in Arizona to promote left-leaning policy, including expanded access to mail-in voting. The coalition also worked to increase Native American voter turnout. ⁹

In 2019, ITCA conducted voter education, voter training, and voter registration campaigns with left-of-center organizations including Native Vote, Election Protection, All Voting is Local, the United National Indian Tribal Youth, One Arizona, the Phoenix Indian Center, and Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law^{15 16}

In 2018, ITCA distributed $8,733,123 in grants, including $225,564 to tribal organizations located in California, Nevada, and Utah, despite being an organization designed to represent Arizona tribes. ⁴

In 2012, ITCA sued Arizona to challenge the state’s citizenship requirement for voter registration. The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately ruled the requirement to demonstrate citizenship in order to register to vote unconstitutional in Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc. ¹⁷