North Dakota Association of Rural Cooperatives
Public records raise at least one point you should look into before giving.
What it says it does
Our mission is to provide member cooperatives a complete package of quality services in communications, government relations, education, safety training, professional and economic development.
- Income
- $6.6 million
- Spending
- $6.6 million
- Employees
- 25
- Volunteers
- 19
- Highest pay
- $344,847, executive vp & general mgr
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. How we rate
Financial health
We do not score finances when yearly spending is very small or the return has too little detail. The ratios stop meaning much at that size.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. How we rate
Governance
This return does not answer enough of the governance questions to score.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. How we rate
Impact evidence
Describes programs. Its tax return describes what it does but we have found no measurable results in it.
Programs described in its return (3)
- Publications and Graphic Arts Services:NORTH DAKOTA LIVING- Published 12 monthly North Dakota Living magazines, including 1,392 unique local pages for 16 electric cooperatives to communicate with their members. - Launched a redesigned cover, accomplishing one of the recommendations from the North Dakota Living Study Committee, to add colored cooperative logos to the front and back magazine covers and offer more opportunity for local co-op personalization, strengthening the connection North Dakota Living is provided by electric cooperatives. - Selected as a 2025 media partner with the Western ND Honor Flight. Staff members Kennedy DeLap, John Kary and Cally Peterson traveled with 227 veterans on all-expense-paid trips to Washington, D.C., in September to photograph and document the experience, ultimately sharing it with readers in North Dakota Living's first cover-to-cover tribute to veterans published in November. - Completed the four-part Cost of Your Power series, which examined electric industry pressures and how they impact the price of electricity. The series covered supply chain and inflation, wholesale power, and balancing supply and demand. - Introduced North Dakota Living Straight Talk, a collection of communications resources tailored to a North Dakota audience, including local pages articles, general manager columns, social media posts and other content, for co-op communicators to personalize and use in various communications channels. ADVERTISING- Advertising Sales Manager Duane Crabbe hit his highest grossing sales month in February's North Dakota Living, then broke the record three months later with May's travel and tourism issue. - Generated more than $640,000 in advertising revenue to reduce the cost of delivering North Dakota Living to cooperative members. - Procured contracts to sell advertising placements and produce special publications, which reduce the cost of delivering North Dakota Living to electric co-op members. Special publications include the N.D. Travel Guide, N.D. Hunting and Fishing Guide, Big Iron Guide, Bismarck-Mandan Convention and Visitors Bureau Guide, Bottineau-Lake Metigoshe Area Guide and the NDAREC/BAND Member Directory.- Represented electric co-ops at trade shows. GRAPHIC DESIGN AND PHOTOGRAPHY- Conducted the first magazine photo contest. - Designed numerous brochures, reports, logos, signs, graphics and other projects for member-cooperatives and statewide service areas and provided professional photography services for the magazine, co-op meetings, events and members, including headshots and studio photography.
- Safety Training Services:APPRENTICESHIP- Administered apprenticeship and instructional programs in the trades of lineworker, meter technician, relay technician, and substation technician reaching 78 participants.- Graduated 15 lineworkers and 1 meter technician.- Programs support the growth and complexity of training a skilled workforce.- Administered scholarship dollars to eligible apprentices and supported veterans in receiving GI Bill benefits.TRAINING- Provided safety meetings and special programs reaching 4,392 member-employees over 323 training days.- Coordinated the 61st annual Apprenticeship, Training and Safety Conference, which attracted 293 attendees.- Provided specialized training in hotline work, tree trimming and transformer connections to 117 participants.- Hosted digger derrick operator training at the Lineworker Training Center and certified 15 participants.- Provide first aid/CPR/AED training for 49 BSC lineworker students preparing them to enter the workforce.SAFETY/LOSS CONTROL- Collaborated with cooperatives and NDDES during the severe summer weather events which resulted in an estimated $18 million of damages. If awarded, the presidential declarations would make FEMA funding available to help with costs to repair utility infrastructure.- Submitted comments to the FEMA review council in efforts to reform FEMAs Public Assistance Program. - Influenced cooperatives culture of safety through multiple national and grassroots programs.- Administers the Rural Electric Safety Achievement Program (RESAP) to all North Dakota distribution cooperatives and Minnkota Power Cooperative.- Conducted RESAP on-site observations for six cooperatives.- Safety advocates from North Dakota and Montana gather in a cooperative effort to share best practices to promote safety and wellness during the bi-annual safety coordinator meetings. - Member of NRECAs Certified Loss Control Professional Commission and Safety Leadership Summit development committee.- Dielectrically tested 152 trucks at 29 locations.
- Government Relations & Communication Services:GOVERNMENT RELATIONS- Successful legislative session: Avoiding harmful proposals on large load siting, securing favorable policies on coal conversion tax relief extension, passed a bill outlining the creation of voluntary Wildfire Mitigation Plans, achieved passage of support for rural grocery sustainability, and avoided bills being introduced on utility shutoff limits and guy wire marking.- Worked with member-cooperatives to coordinate educational and relationship-building opportunities with local legislators.- Engaged member-cooperatives, congressional members and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) to promote achievable and sensible public policies related to energy, electricity and the environment.- Facilitated North Dakota's participation in NRECA's Legislative Conference and the fall fly-in in Washington, D.C.- Coordinated Rural Electric Political Action Committee (REPAC) meetings and provided support to statewide and legislative candidates who support electric cooperative issues.COMMUNICATIONS- Developed and implemented the NDAREC Strategic Communications plan. - Transformed and redesigned the NDAREC website by upgrading to Touchstone Energy Cooperatives' SHiNE platform. - Emphasized key themes on social media, including energy efficiency, cooperative philosophy, the electric cooperative network and community building. - Produced additional communications, including the Cooperative Power pamphlet, the bimonthly Know What's Happening e-newsletter, NDAREC Annual Review. - Created 20 videos for rural development, education, safety and government relations. - Hosted and planned an Artificial Intelligence workshop for cooperative communicator. - Worked with the media to promote issues important to electric cooperatives and their members.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. How we rate
Legitimacy checks
Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.
Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(6) business league.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Has the IRS revoked its tax-exempt status? Passed.
Not on the IRS automatic revocation list.
Source: Automatic revocation of exemption list, Internal Revenue Service, file dated November 6, 2026.
Are donations tax-deductible? Caution.
The IRS master file records contributions to this 501(c)(6) business league as not deductible.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2025.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.
Recognized by the IRS since November 1967.
Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated October 13, 2026.
Is it in good standing with state regulators? Passed.
Not on California's list of charities barred from soliciting. Other states are not yet checked.
Source: May Not Operate or Solicit for Charitable Purposes list, California Attorney General, Registry of Charities and Fundraisers, file dated November 4, 2026.
Ratings and checks are our reading of public records, using the published method. They are not a statement about anyone's honesty. If you work for this organization, you can send corrections or results, confirm you want gifts through Veridonate, or ask to be removed from giving.