Celebrating 35 Years of Advocacy to the Allottees
History of Allotments and SXAA
The history of the San Xavier Allottees Association, Inc. (SXAA) is rooted in the history of the land, water, and people of Wa:k. Long before the Association was established, Wa:k O’odham families lived, farmed, and depended upon the land and water of the Santa Cruz River area.
The Allotment Era
The relationship between Wa:k O’odham and their land changed significantly following federal allotment policies. The General Allotment Act of 1887 established a federal system for dividing tribal lands into individually held allotments.
In 1890, the San Xavier Reservation was divided into 292 individual allotments totaling approximately 41,000 acres. The dissertation identifies San Xavier as the only land base of the Tohono O’odham Nation affected by the General Allotment Act.
This history created a unique system of individual Indian land ownership within San Xavier and established many of the land-related issues that later generations of allottees would have to understand and address. .
Land and Water Are Connected
Water has always been central to the history of San Xavier.
By the 1970s, groundwater pumping by outside users had become an important concern. In 1975, the Nation pressed the federal government to take legal action regarding groundwater withdrawals involving agricultural interests, mining operations, and the City of Tucson.
In 1982, Congress enacted the Southern Arizona Water Rights Settlement Act (SAWRSA). The dissertation describes the settlement as providing 50,000 acre-feet of water annually to San Xavier through the Central Arizona Project, supporting the possibility of renewed agricultural productivity.
The histories of land and water at San Xavier are therefore inseparable. Both remain essential to understanding the circumstances in which the San Xavier Allottees Association was created.
The Creation of SXAA
The San Xavier Allottees Association, Inc. was established in 1991.
Helping Allottees Understand and Use Their Land
Throughout its history, the San Xavier Allottees Association has provided practical assistance to help allottee families better understand their land interests and the processes connected to using, protecting, and transferring those lands.
For many families, owning an interest in allotted land can involve far more than simply knowing where the property is located. Land use may require interaction with different governmental processes, rights-of-way requirements, land assignment procedures, inheritance rules, and other administrative steps. SXAA has served as a resource to help allottees better understand these processes and determine what steps may be necessary to move forward.
Land Assignments and Homesites
One important area of assistance has been land assignments and homesite development. In the beginning, SXAA worked with the San Xavier District to help allottees understand and complete the steps associated with establishing a homestead, including matters involving required rights-of-way. SXAA is in the process of developing its own Planning Department to better manage where the district has failed.
This role is especially important because the San Xavier land base has a unique history. In 1890, the San Xavier Reservation was divided into 292 individual allotments totaling approximately 41,000 acres. That system of individual land ownership created circumstances in which allottee families often must navigate multiple processes before land can be developed or used for a particular purpose.
SXAA's role has therefore included helping families better understand where to begin, what requirements may apply, and what steps may be necessary before a homesite or other land use can move forward.
Preserving Land Through Wills and Probate Education
Using land today is only part of allottee ownership. Another important question is what happens to an allotment interest when an owner passes away.
SXAA has assisted allottees with will-making and probate education, so that families can better understand how land interests may be transferred from one generation to the next. This work includes helping allottees recognize the importance of having a will and understanding the federal inheritance rules that may apply when an individual dies without one.
For allottee families, these decisions can have long-term consequences. Planning ahead can help families understand how ownership interests may pass to children, relatives, or other eligible heirs.
By providing this assistance, SXAA helps allottees consider not only how their land is used during their lifetime, but how their interests may be protected for future generations.
Preparing the Next Generation
SXAA's educational work also reaches young people.
Through its annual youth conference, the Association has taught youth what an allotment is, why allotted land is important, and how young people may be connected to land through their families.
This work recognizes that the future of allotted lands depends upon future generations understanding what they may inherit. Learning about allotments before becoming a landowner helps young people develop a stronger understanding of land ownership, responsibility, and the importance of protecting family land interests.
In this way, SXAA's work extends beyond solving immediate problems. It helps prepare the next generation to become informed landowners.
Reaching Allottees Wherever They Live
Not all San Xavier allottees reside in the San Xavier District. Some may live elsewhere within the Tohono O'odham Nation, in Tucson, Phoenix, other parts of Arizona, or in different communities.
SXAA has conducted outreach beyond the District to help maintain connections with allottees regardless of where they live.
This is important because an individual's connection to allotted land does not end when they move away from San Xavier. A person living hundreds of miles away may still hold an ownership interest, inherit land, participate in probate, or need information concerning the use or protection of an allotment.
SXAA helps bridge that distance by providing information and maintaining contact with allottee families..
Education as Advocacy
SXAA's annual meetings and community outreach have also served an educational purpose.
Helping allottees understand the issues affecting their land is itself an important form of advocacy. When an allottee understands the processes, responsibilities, and decisions connected to land ownership, that person is better prepared to participate in decisions affecting their own property.
An informed allottee is better positioned to ask questions, understand proposals, participate in meetings, make inheritance decisions, and determine what may be in the best interests of their family and their land.
For SXAA, advocacy has therefore involved both representing allottee interests and helping allottees develop the knowledge necessary to advocate for themselves.
From Ownership to Understanding
For 35 years, SXAA has worked to make allotted land ownership more understandable and more usable for the families it serves.
Through assistance with land assignments, homesites, rights-of-way, wills, probate education, youth programs, community outreach, and educational meetings, the Association has helped connect land ownership with knowledge and action.
SXAA's work is ultimately about helping allottees understand what they own, what responsibilities come with ownership, what opportunities may exist, and what steps can be taken to protect those interests for future generations.
Keeping Allottees Connected
Not all San Xavier allottees live within the boundaries of the San Xavier District. Many reside in other districts, neighboring tribal communities, Tucson, Phoenix, other parts of Arizona, and locations outside the state.
SXAA has worked to maintain connections with allottees wherever they live. Through community outreach, direct communication, and annual meetings, the Association provides information and helps allottees better understand the issues affecting their land interests, families, and future.
These efforts recognize an important reality: an allottee’s connection to San Xavier land does not disappear simply because the person lives elsewhere. Regardless of distance, allottees remain connected through their ownership interests, family relationships, inheritance, and responsibility for protecting allotted lands.
By reaching beyond District boundaries, SXAA helps ensure that allottees have opportunities to remain informed, participate in discussions, and maintain a meaningful connection to San Xavier.
Governance and Accountability
SXAA is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Directors. The Board provides organizational leadership, establishes policy, oversees Association activities, and carries the legal and fiduciary responsibilities associated with SXAA’s nonprofit structure.
The Association’s staff supports the Board and serves the allottee community through communication, community outreach, records management, financial administration, daily operations, and organizational representation. Together, the Board and staff work to ensure that SXAA remains accountable to the allottees it was created to serve.
In 2025, the SXAA Board and Executive Director conducted a strategic planning session over three months with the general counsel to develop the organization’s 2025–2030 Strategic Plan. The planning process included responses to an allottee questionnaire distributed during the March 2027 Annual Meeting.
Including allottee input in the planning process reflected SXAA’s responsibility to listen to the community, identify priorities, and prepare for the Association’s future. This commitment to responsible governance continues to guide the organization’s work.
Responding to Changing Challenges
The work of allottee advocacy continues to change as new issues, projects, and outside pressures emerge.
SXAA has monitored transportation, infrastructure, and development proposals that could affect San Xavier allotted lands. This work helps ensure that allottees are informed when proposed projects may involve their property interests or create long-term consequences for the community.
One example involved the proposed Sonoran Corridor. By 2023, the proposed alignment through the San Xavier Reservation and allotted lands had been withdrawn, and the corridor was instead anticipated to travel through the Sahuarita area.
SXAA also faced the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted programs, projects, services, and annual meetings. Despite these interruptions, the Association continued its responsibility to serve San Xavier allottees and respond to changing community needs.
Through changing circumstances, SXAA has remained focused on the concerns of allottees and the protection of their land interests.
SXAA History timeline
Explore key moments in the history of San Xavier allottee advocacy, land and water protection, and the Association's ongoing work.
San Xavier Allottee Association 35th Anniversary timeline showing key milestones from 1874 through 2026, including the 2004 SAWRSA Amendments, the 2025 Tohono O'odham Legislative Council Resolution 25-212, and the 35th anniversary in 2026.
Protecting the Land • Understanding Our Rights • Educating Our Families • Preparing Future Generations
