Native American Rights Fund
Public records show a registered, tax-exempt organization in good standing.
What it says it does
THE NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND HOLDS GOVERNMENTS ACCOUNTABLE. WE FIGHT TO PROTECT NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS, RESOURCES, AND LIFEWAYS THROUGH LITIGATION, LEGAL ADVOCACY, AND LEGAL EXPERTISE. AS ESTABLISHED BY NATIVE AMERICAN RIGHTS FUND'S (NARF) FIRST BOARD OF DIRECTORS, (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O)
- Income
- $24.7 million
- Spending
- $21.3 million
- Spent on programs
- 66%
- Reserves
- 36.9 months of spending
- Largest source of income
- donations and private grants, 69%
- Employees
- 78
- Volunteers
- 20
- Highest pay
- $344,810, executive director
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Financial health
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 88% of charities in its peer group (civil rights, $10m to $100m).
Reserves
35 of 35Spendable reserves would cover 36.9 months of spending.
Debt
20 of 20It owes 3% of what it owns.
Living within its means
15 of 15Income exceeded spending by 13% of income.
Income trend
15 of 15Income rose 0% on the year before.
Spending floor
15 of 1566% of spending went to programs and raising each dollar of donations cost 22 cents.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. How we rate
Governance
Strong: 100 out of 100. Higher than 39% of charities in its peer group (civil rights, $10m to $100m).
Independent board
25 of 2513 of 13 voting board members are independent.
Conflict of interest policy
15 of 15Has a written conflict of interest policy.
Whistleblower policy
8 of 8Has a written whistleblower policy.
Record keeping policy
7 of 7Has a written policy on keeping and destroying records.
Board minutes
5 of 5Keeps minutes of board meetings.
Board sees the tax return
10 of 10Gave the board a copy of this return before filing it.
Pay set independently
5 of 5Sets its chief executive's pay through independent review and comparison.
Independent check of accounts
15 of 15Its accounts were audited by an independent accountant.
No reported misuse
10 of 10Reports no diversion of assets, excess benefits or loans to insiders.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, 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 (2)
- $13.4 million spent. The Native American Rights Fund (NARF) continues to provide high-level legal advocacy and programs that serve tribal nations and their communities across the country. Our mission and work are to simply assist tribal nations in living according to their culture and identity through the assertion, defense, and evolution of tribal sovereignty and the protection of their treaty rights. NARF's casework and programming assist tribal communities in addressing ongoing adverse threats to tribal interests and their homelands. NARF is guided by five mission priorities, which include the preservation of tribal existence, the protection of tribal natural resources, the promotion of human rights, the accountability of governments to Native Americans, the development of Indian law and by extension, the education of the public about contemporary Indian rights, laws, and issues. A board of directors consisting of tribal and indigenous leaders from across the country guide the direction of NARF to the fulfillment of our mission in protecting tribal nations and their communities. Our litigation management committee and corporate officers ensure that the programs and cases NARF engages in under the umbrella of Federal Indian law for the benefit of tribal nations are effective, directly impact and advance tribal sovereignty and their interests. NARF's work is generally organized into two areas, casework/litigation and programs. Tribal nations and Native individuals approach NARF for legal assistance in a variety of areas under Federal Indian Law such as environmental/natural resource protection, water law, social justice, voting rights/election protection, treaty rights, tribal sovereignty, Indian child welfare, education, international indigenous rights policy, and peacemaking/mediation, among others. NARF provides high-level litigation support at no charge to tribal nations that have difficulty to pay, but thanks to our donors, we are able to provide the assistance they need, regardless of duration of litigation or cost. Our programs are meant to provide critical resources to tribal nations, their in-house counsels, and the public regarding legal information and resources they may need to most effectively understand tribal law and provide advocacy to their communities. Programs include the National Indian Law Library, the Homelands Coalition, the Native American Voting Rights Coalition, the Tribal Supreme Court Project, the Tribal Water Institute, and Coalition for Tribal Sovereignty, among others. FY2025 was a year of continued growth for our organization, and an opportunity to see many successful assertions of tribal sovereignty. The development of new coalitions of legal advocates, in-house tribal general counsels, and academics assure that NARF will continue to be agile and prepared to assist tribal nations with their ongoing legal needs and challenges. NARF Programs - Tribal Supreme Court Project The Tribal Supreme Court Project (TSCP) is currently in its 25th year of serving as a resource program that coordinates and focuses resources to improve advocacy and results in state and federal cases that may appear before the U.S. Supreme Court. Spearheaded by the Native American Rights Fund (NARF) and the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) the TSCP consists of a coalition of over 200 attorneys, academics, Indian Law and US Supreme Court Practitioners, tribal In-House attorneys, and other legal organizations that support Federal Indian law cases that have the potential to reach the Supreme Court. The goal is to improve advocacy so that tribal interests and their cases are presented in the most favorable positions. The TSCP provides legal support, strategy, amicus drafting/presentation, moot court and practice of their oral arguments and various professional legal experience and opinions from relevant experts. - Judicial Selection Project The goal of the Judicial Selection Project is to increase the representation of Native Americans in the federal and state judiciaries. To that end, the Project helps recruit and support qualified Native candidates for federal and state judicial appointments. The Project works with the White House to promote better Native American representation in the federal judiciary and the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to ensure that nominees are asked about their experience with Indian tribes and their understanding of federal Indian law during confirmation proceedings. Project staff also participate in several coalitions that work to increase demographic and professional diversity in the judiciary. The Project also evaluates the records of judicial nominees on their knowledge of Indian issues. The analysis and conclusions are shared with stakeholders and federal decision-makers in relation to their decision whether to support or oppose a particular nomination. The Project also seeks to educate the federal judiciary about tribal issues, educating tribal leaders about the federal judiciary and the judicial nomination process, and reaching out to elected officials and the public at large about the need for Native American federal judges and judges who understand the unique legal status of Indian tribes. - Homelands Coalition In 2025, NARF formalized our natural resource protection, environmental, and water work into one coalition named the Homelands Coalition. Protecting sacred places, lands, and water across the country has long been a pillar of NARF's work. Two of our five organizational priorities have been to Protect Tribal Natural Resources and to Preserve Tribal Existence, each dependent on tribes' ability to maintain strong relationships with their homelands. Our reputation, built on over 50 years of leadership supporting Tribal Nations, enables us to use existing relationships to find meaningful ways to bring people together to address these pressing issues. Recognizing the increased capacity and strength of our advocacy through partnerships and relationships with oth
- $668,470 spent. National Indian Law Library In 1972, NARF founded the National Indian Law Library (NILL) to serve the research needs of NARF attorneys. NILL's resources are also available to the public however, and hundreds of research requests are received weekly. The library houses a unique and valuable collection of federal Indian and tribal law materials and provides specialized legal research assistance. It also provides online bulletins to keep advocates aware of the latest legal developments and most recent news in Indian law. Researchers around the world have access to the resources of the National Indian Law Library through online access to our library catalog (https://nill.softlinkliberty.net/liberty). The catalog contains information on over 18,000 titles held in the NILL collection. Copies of most resources can be delivered to researchers in a timely way and many catalog records provide links to free resources that are available on the internet. NILL's collection includes catalog records for approximately 7,000 articles, 4,500 books, and 1400 tribal law resources. Many of these items are freely available online and are easily accessed via a link in the catalog record. NILL is the only library serving the public with extensive expertise and resources relating to Indian law, providing services that other libraries are unable to provide. One critical resource provided during FY2025 was in the many public presentations and training NILL Staff provided to the public, librarians, judges, court employees, law students, and other researchers on how to conduct Federal Indian Law and Tribal Law research.
Source: Form 990 for the year ending September 30, 2025, filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Rating method 2026.2. 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)(3) charitable organization.
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 October 13, 2026.
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 October 13, 2026.
Is it keeping up with its IRS filings? Passed.
Most recent return on file covers the year ending September 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 July 1971.
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 October 21, 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.