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Native Biodata Consortium

EIN 83-2424364 · Eagle Butte, SD

Public records raise at least one point you should look into before giving.

LegitimacyCautionRegistration and standingFinancial healthFair63 out of 100GovernanceGood75 out of 100Impact evidenceDescribes programsHow well its results are evidenced

What it says it does

Our mission is to strengthen sovereignty and empower tribes through Native-led education research and stewardship of Indigenous data. Native BioData Consortium works to strengthen tribal sovereignty and the inherent rights of Indigenous peoples to the ownership benefit and self-governance of our own ancient genetic environmental traditional and social data.

Income
$1.0 million
Spending
$1.9 million
Spent on programs
85%
Reserves
8.8 months of spending
Largest source of income
fees for its services, 88%
Employees
8
Volunteers
0
Highest pay
$76,000, executive director vice president

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2022, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Financial health

Fair: 63 out of 100. Higher than 36% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).

  • Reserves

    28 of 35

    Spendable reserves would cover 8.8 months of spending.

  • Debt

    20 of 20

    It owes 6% of what it owns.

  • Living within its means

    0 of 15

    Spending exceeded income by 86% of income.

  • Income trend

    0 of 15

    Income fell 69% on the year before.

  • Spending floor

    15 of 15

    85% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 24 cents.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2022, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Governance

Good: 75 out of 100. Higher than 25% of charities in its peer group (arts and culture, $1m to $10m).

  • Independent board

    25 of 25

    11 of 11 voting board members are independent.

  • Conflict of interest policy

    15 of 15

    Has a written conflict of interest policy.

  • Whistleblower policy

    8 of 8

    Has a written whistleblower policy.

  • Record keeping policy

    7 of 7

    Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.

  • Board minutes

    5 of 5

    Keeps minutes of board meetings.

  • Board sees the tax return

    0 of 10

    Did not give the board a copy of this return before filing it.

  • Pay set independently

    5 of 5

    Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.

  • Independent check of accounts

    0 of 15

    Its accounts were not audited or reviewed by an independent accountant.

  • No reported misuse

    10 of 10

    Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2022, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. 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 (9)
  1. $744,587 spent. Building Capacity with Northern Plains Tribes and the Future of Pandemics. The Native BioData Consortium is partnering with its research partners to develop itself to be a Infectious disease testing center immunological research hub and data storage and security facility to support the northern plains tribal public health monitoring and response efforts.
  2. $556,761 spent. To design and build the first ever indigenous portal to sort categorize track and collect samples and data for past present and future projects. This portal will allow access for participants to consent their data into research projects and allow access for scientists to ethically access indigenous data.
  3. $102,656 spent. A one-week 4-6 days Indigenous data science education workshop held each summer to introduce data science and informatics skills to undergraduate and graduate students. We offer an Indigenous-centered curriculum that is led by a community of Indigenous data scientists and guest faculty. All of our workshop activities will center Indigenous data sovereignty and data ethics while also providing students valuable insight into the emerging data and technology career fields.
  4. $73,680 spent. Indigenous Data Economies and Artificial Intelligence Summit IDEAS is a summit held at Arizona State University in the spring of 2023. The purpose is to provide educational outreach and networking for indigenous students studying artificial intelligence and data sovereignty.
  5. $41,525 spent. Development of film resources for educational and community outreach. A documentary across the hemisphere talking about the data and resource theft by settler colonial governments of wild and domesticated products in the Indigenous purview.
  6. $40,605 spent. South East Native America Health Disparities Symposium SENAHD. This project is a partnership with the Odum Institute Kenan Flagler University of North Carolina. This is an educational outreach program to train students raise awareness and build a network in the Southeast US for Indigenous data and research sovereignty.
  7. $27,474 spent. Locate future site of new NBDC building. The new building will incorporate more lab space data and sample storage capacity while maintaining a cultural connection to the land. We partnered with MASS Design in order to provide initial site visit building concept and cost estimates.
  8. $13,680 spent. Sovereignty In Action Summer Continuing Education Awards. This award for four $2,500 practicums to enrolled students of the Oglala Lakota College Cheyenne River Campus in May 2022.
  9. $3,680 spent. This is a study of rheumatoid arthritis from samples collected from Cheyenne River Sioux people since 2012. This includes the storage and analysis of these samples.

Source: Form 990 for the year ending December 31, 2022, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate

Legitimacy checks

  1. Is it registered with the IRS? Passed.

    Listed in the IRS master file of tax-exempt organizations as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  2. 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 September 30, 2026.

  3. Are donations tax-deductible? Passed.

    On the IRS list of organizations eligible to receive tax-deductible contributions.

    Source: Publication 78 data: organizations eligible for tax-deductible contributions, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 10, 2026.

  4. Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Caution.

    Most recent return on file covers the year ending December 2022. Organizations that miss three years of returns lose their exemption.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  5. How long has it been tax-exempt? Passed.

    Recognized by the IRS since June 2019.

    Source: Exempt Organizations Business Master File, Internal Revenue Service, file dated September 7, 2026.

  6. 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 October 7, 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.