Pechanga Fourth Biggest Campaign Donor in California

A local Indian tribe was the fourth-biggest donor to Californian political causes during the last dozen years.

The Pechanga Tribe of Luiseno Indians donated $52.6 million to various causes since 2001, according to a report by California Watch.

The tribe made 1,182 donations: 1,054 to candidates, 47 to ballot measures and 81 to political parties, according to the report.

The tribe set itself apart from other donors in several ways. It was the biggest donor of any organization in 2007, and it gave evenly to both political parties, often donating to two candidates that run against each other, the report showed.

The tribe was also one of the most effective donors on the list. More than 90 cents of every dollar it donated went to winning candidates, propositions or parties.

The only organizations that donated more were Pacific Gas and Electric Company, based in San Francisco, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America in Washington, D.C. and the California Teachers Association, based in Burlingame, Calif.

Two other local tribes made the list. The Pala Band of Mission Indians came in 13th place for donating $20.4 million. The band, like Pechanga, gave to causes that oppose each other. Unlike Pechanga, the band gave almost exclusively to ballot measures.

The Morongo Band of Mission Indians of Cabazon also appeared on the list in fifth place. It gave $50.4 million, was the biggest donor in 2008 and, like the other tribes, gave to causes that oppose each other.Unlike Pechanga, the band gave almost exclusively to ballot measures.

The lists are largely based on two reports. One was by the California Fair Political Practices Commission that described the 15 groups that spent a combined $1 billion on lobbying and campaign contributions in the previous decade. The other was by the California Secretary of State that listed "major donors."

California Watch, a nonprofit organization dedicated to government transparency, did further research for its report, according to Coulter Jones of the nonprofit.

"Although there are many similarities in our numbers, there are also some differences," she wrote in its report, available on its website.

It took information from the National Institute on Money in State Politics for additional information and groomed data from the Secretary of State.

"Data from the secretary of state is notoriously inconsistent," Jones wrote. "Generally speaking, if organizations spell their names in different ways, it's harder to group together those donations… For example, a person could see that 'The CA Teachers Assn.,' 'California Teachers Association' and 'CA Teachers Association' are all the same group, but a data analysis program won't automatically."