The Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) is a natural resources management support service organization for 20 treaty Indian tribes in western Washington. Headquartered in Olympia, the NWIFC employs approximately 65 people with satellite offices in Burlington and Forks.

NWIFC member tribes are: Lummi, Nooksack, Swinomish, Upper Skagit, Sauk-Suiattle, Stillaguamish, Tulalip, Muckleshoot, Puyallup, Nisqually, Squaxin Island, Skokomish, Suquamish, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Jamestown S’Klallam, Lower Elwha Klallam, Makah, Quileute, Quinault, and Hoh.

The NWIFC was created following the 1974 U.S. v. Washington ruling (Boldt Decision) that re-affirmed the tribes’ treaty-reserved fishing rights. The ruling recognized them as natural resources co-managers with the State of Washington with an equal share of the harvestable number of salmon returning annually.

Read more on our About Us page.

  • Fisheries Technician – Stillaguamish Tribe of Indians

    December 7, 2018

    Download Announcement Perform duties pertaining to data collection and habitat enhancement. The majority of duties will be participating in a continuing juvenile salmon outmigration study on the Stillaguamish River. Primary duties include: deploying and operating the smolt trap; identifying, measuring, and enumerating juvenile salmonids; trap maintenance; data collection and entry, reconciliation of electronic data.

  • Scientific Technician II – Puyallup Tribe of Indians

    November 19, 2018

    Download Announcement Monitors juvenile salmon during spring emigration using a rotary screw trap on the Puyallup and White Rivers.

  • Habitat Restoration Biologist – Quileute Tribe

    September 24, 2018

    Download Announcement Will provide fisheries habitat protection, restoration, and enhancement technical services to the Tribe with an emphasis on wild salmon populations in the Quillayute, Ozette, and Goodman watersheds, within the Quileute Tribe’s Usual and Accustomed fishing areas. Responsible for writing, analyzing, and preparing technical documents for a wide range of audiences and functions. Will […]

RSS News from nwtreatytribes.org

  • Nisqually Tribe raising bigger chinook to feed orcas
    The Nisqually Tribe is changing how it spawns hatchery chinook in an effort to give orcas a more nutritious meal. “Puget Sound hatchery chinook have been getting smaller and smaller for decades,” said David Troutt, natural resources director for the Nisqually Tribe. The number of southern resident orcas has declined from nearly 100 to 74 […]
  • New study finds evidence of broadscale decline in native littleneck clams
    Populations of native littleneck clams have declined in Puget Sound over the past several decades and are likely decreasing throughout their range from Baja California to Alaska. Meanwhile, populations of butter clams in Washington’s inland waters have increased until the past few years when several populations began showing signs of decline. These and other species-specific […]
  • Being Frank: We’re Finding Common Ground To Save Salmon
    Being Frank is a monthly column written by the chair of the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission. As a statement from the NWIFC chair, the column represents the interests and concerns of treaty Indian tribes throughout western Washington. The strength of the late Billy Frank Jr.’s vision and leadership is once again being called upon to […]