The Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona (ITCA) is a left-of-center Native American activism and grantmaking organization founded in 1952. ITCA is comprised of 21 member tribes across Arizona. ¹

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 7}

ITCA worked with the Native Vote campaign, sponsored by the left-of-center National Congress of American Indians. ⁸ 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. ^{9 10}

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. ¹¹ ITCA first gained tax-exempt status in 1977 and has since grown to include 21 member tribes across Arizona. ^{12 13}

Members of the ITCA are represented by the top elected officials from their respective tribes. ¹⁴ Bernadine Burnette sits as ITCA’s President, and Maria Dadgar works as the organization’s executive director. ¹⁵

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. ¹⁶ ITCA received a $1,156,250 grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2020. ¹⁷

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. ¹⁸  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. ^{19 20}

ITCA also has close ties with Native Vote, a project of the National Congress of American Indians. ²¹ Waquin Preston of ITCA worked as project coordinator for Native Vote’s Arizona efforts in the 2020 election cycle. ²²

During this cycle, ITCA partnered with All Voting Is Local, Election Protection Arizona,²³ One Arizona,²⁴ 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. ²⁵

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^{26 27}

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. ²⁸

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. ²⁹

1. “About ITCA.” Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://itcaonline.com/about-itca/.
2. “Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health. HHS.gov. December 7, 2018. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/content.aspx?ID=9650&lvl=2&lvlid=51.
3. “RCD FY2020 Grant Awards.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Community Services. September 24, 2020.  https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ocs/grant-funding/rcd-fy2020-grant-awards.
4. “Inter Tribal Council of Arizona Inc.” Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. (Form 990). 2018. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/860343181/09_2020_prefixes_84-91%2F860343181_201909_990_2020092217320632.
5. “New Venture Fund.” Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. (Form 990). 2019. https://newventurefund.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/NVF-2019-Form-990-Public-Disclosure.pdf.
6. New Venture Fund’s 2020 Census Project. Census Equity Fund. Request for Proposals, July 2019. https://kingcountyallianceforhumanservices.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/census-equity-fund-rfp-july-2019-final.pdf.
7. New Venture Fund’s 2020 Census Project. Census Equity Fund. Request for Proposals, July 2019. https://kingcountyallianceforhumanservices.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/census-equity-fund-rfp-july-2019-final.pdf.
8. “About Native Vote.” Native Vote. Accessed March 28, 2021. http://www.nativevote.org/about/.
9. “Media Advisory: Virtual Town Hall to Mobilize Native American Voters in Arizona.” All Voting is Local. September 24, 2020. https://allvotingislocal.org/press-releases/media-advisory-virtual-town-hall-to-mobilize-native-american-voters-in-arizona/.
10. Media Advisory: Voting Rights Leaders to Assess Arizona Primary, Urge November Election Reforms.” All Voting is Local. August 3, 2020. https://allvotingislocal.org/press-releases/media-advisory-voting-rights-leaders-to-assess-arizona-primary-urge-november-election-reforms/
11. “About ITCA.” Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://itcaonline.com/about-itca/.
12. “Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona Inc.” GuideStar. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://www.guidestar.org/profile/86-0343181.
13. “About ITCA.” Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://itcaonline.com/about-itca/.
14. “About ITCA.” Inter Tribal Council of Arizona. Accessed March 29, 2021. https://itcaonline.com/about-ica/
15. “Inter Tribal Council of Arizona.” Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. (Form 990). 2019.
16. “Inter Tribal Council of Arizona, Inc.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health. HHS.gov. December 7, 2018. Accessed March 28, 2021. https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/omh/content.aspx?ID=9650&lvl=2&lvlid=51.
17. “RCD FY2020 Grant Awards.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Community Services. September 24, 2020.  https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ocs/grant-funding/rcd-fy2020-grant-awards.
18. “New Venture Fund.” Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. (Form 990). 2019. https://newventurefund.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/NVF-2019-Form-990-Public-Disclosure.pdf.
19. New Venture Fund’s 2020 Census Project. Census Equity Fund. Request for Proposals, July 2019. https://kingcountyallianceforhumanservices.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/census-equity-fund-rfp-july-2019-final.pdf.
20. New Venture Fund’s 2020 Census Project. Census Equity Fund. Request for Proposals, July 2019. https://kingcountyallianceforhumanservices.files.wordpress.com/2019/08/census-equity-fund-rfp-july-2019-final.pdf.
21. “About Native Vote.” Native Vote. Accessed March 28, 2021. http://www.nativevote.org/about/.
22. “Arizona.” Native Vote. Accessed March 28, 2021. http://www.nativevote.org/arizona/.
23. “Media Advisory: Virtual Town Hall to Mobilize Native American Voters in Arizona.” All Voting is Local. September 24, 2020. https://allvotingislocal.org/press-releases/media-advisory-virtual-town-hall-to-mobilize-native-american-voters-in-arizona/.
24. “Native Vote: Broadening the Electorate.” One Arizona. April 1, 2019. https://itcaonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/NV_March2019.OneArizona_F.Oaxaca.pdf.
25. Media Advisory: Voting Rights Leaders to Assess Arizona Primary, Urge November Election Reforms.” All Voting is Local. August 3, 2020. https://allvotingislocal.org/press-releases/media-advisory-voting-rights-leaders-to-assess-arizona-primary-urge-november-election-reforms/
26. 2018 Native Vote Election Protection Recap. Native Vote: Brodening the Perspective. March 1, 2019. PowerPoint Presentation. https://itcaonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/NV_March2019.EPrecap_P.Ferg_.pdf.
27. “Native Vote – Broadening the Perspective.” ITCA Online. March 1, 2019. https://itcaonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/NV_March2019.ITCA_A.Castillo.pdf.
28. “Inter Tribal Council of Arizona Inc.” Return of an Organization Exempt from Income Tax. (Form 990). 2018. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/860343181/09_2020_prefixes_84-91%2F860343181_201909_990_2020092217320632.
29. “Arizona v. Inter Tribal Council of Arizona.” Oyez. June 17, 2013. https://www.oyez.org/cases/2012/12-71.