Leadership

Robert Miguel, Chairman
Lemuel Vincent, Vice Chairman
Delia M. Carlyle, Council Member
Lisa Garcia, Council Member
Octavio Machado, Council Member

(updated November 2022)

Contact Information

Address: 42507 W. Peters and Nall Road

Maricopa, AZ 85138

Phone:    520-568-1000

Director of Health Education: Marc Matteson mmatteso@ak-chin.nsn.us

 

Website

GOVERNANCE:  In August 2016, voters approved new amendments to the Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution. All council seats were elected in November, 2016. Beginning in January 2017, all seats were 2-year terms; thereafter 4-year terms, with an 8-year term limit.  Prior to the 2016 amendment, the council selected the Chair and Vice Chair. Now, the Chair and Vice Chair are voted in by the Ak-Chin Community. The legislative council meets on the first and third Wednesday of every month. The Ak-Chin Indian Community is located in Congressional District 1; Legislative District 11.


CONSTITUTION:  To view the Ak-Chin Indian Community's original Constitution, see: Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution and Bylaws, adopted 1961. 

Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution & Bylaws (Adopted 1961)

Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution & Bylaws (Adopted 1961)
view | download 83.35 KB

To view the 2016 voter-approved Constitution, see: 2016 Amended Constitution file below.

Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution (2016 Amended)

Ak-Chin Indian Community Constitution (2016 Amended)
view | download 94.06 KB

COMMUNITY PROFILE: The Ak-Chin Indian Community consists of both Tohono O'odham and Pima Indians in the Sonoran Desert of south-central Arizona. The O'odham translation of Ak-Chin means "mouth of the wash" or "place where the wash loses itself in the sand or ground." According to the Ak-Chin, this term refers to a type of farming that relies on washes or seasonal floodplains for irrigation. The Ak-Chin Indian Community was established in May 1912 through an Executive Order from President Taft. The originally-established 47,600-acre reservation was reduced to less than 22,000 acres in 1913. In 1961 the Tribe's government was formally organized, and the Ak-Chin are currently governed by a five-member Tribal Council.

According to the 2018 Census, approximately 1,348 individuals live on Ak-Chin Indian Community tribal land in Arizona. This land is located in the Santa Cruz Valley 58 miles south of Phoenix, Arizona. All of the land within the Ak-Chin Community is held in trust by the United States government. The land area consists of 32.78 square miles, with 16,000 of the 21,840 acres dedicated to agriculture/farming. This makes the Ak-Chin community one of the largest farming communities in the United States. 

The Ak-Chin Indian Community runs the Ak-Chin Him Dak Eco-Museum, the first of its kind in America.  The museum was established to preserve, protect, promote, and teach all aspects of Ak-Chin heritage. The museum hosts two yearly celebrations, the annual Him-Dak Celebration in April, and Native American Recognition Day in September.  The Community also operates Harrah's Ak-Chin Casino and Resort, Ak-Chin Pavillion, and Ak-Chin Farms.

 

Ak-Chin Indian Community Reservation

Arizona

United States

Total Population*  1,348 6,946,685 322,903,030
Number of Households 372 2,524,300 119,730,128
Average Household Size 3.56 2.69 2.63
Median Age 25.3 37.4 37.9
Population Under Age 18 31.5% 23.5% 22.8%
Population Over Age 65 4.2% 16.7% 15.2%
Speaks a Language Other Than English in Household 22.4% 27.2% 21.5%
Married-Couple Households 28.5% 57.0% 58.6%
Owner-Occupied Housing Units 10.2% 63.6% 63.8%
Age 25+ with High School Degree or Higher 66.3% 86.8% 87.7%
Median Household Income $20,025 $56,213 $60,293
Below Federal Poverty Threshold 37.2% 16.1% 14.1%
Households with at Least One Computing Device 56.2% 89.9% 88.8%
Households with a Desktop/Laptop 32.8% 79.7% 77.9%

*All statistics are from the 2014-2018 American Community Survey, 5-year estimates.