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.

  • Environmental Management Specialist – Swinomish Tribal Community

    December 9, 2019

    Download Announcement The Environmental Management Specialist is primarily responsible for the Department’s Weed Control activities and Brownfields Program, oil spill response activities, and Tribe’s Waste Oil Recycling Facility and related programs including: conducting field inventories, identifying sites for assessment, supervising field technician(s), maintaining equipment, purchasing supplies, coordinating public outreach, progress reports and public records, and […]

  • Scientific Technician II – Puyallup Tribe of Indians

    December 9, 2019

    Download Announcement The Scientific Technician II will work under direction of the Puyallup Tribal Fisheries staff to monitor juvenile salmon during spring emigration using a rotary screw trap on the Puyallup and White Rivers.

  • Police Officer – Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fisheries Commission

    November 13, 2019

    Download Announcement Directly responsible for carrying out all enforcement and protective patrols by foot, vehicle and boat on the main stem Columbia River (Oregon and Washington shores) and its environs and also patrol at the In-lieu and Treaty Fishing Access sites (TFAS).

RSS News from nwtreatytribes.org

  • Recovering salmon will take leadership, cooperation and commitment
    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 natural resources management interests and concerns of the treaty Indian tribes in western Washington. Treaty Indian tribes in western Washington are greatly encouraged by Gov. Jay Inslee’s recent […]
  • How private landowners can help restore fish passage
    Tribes in the Skagit watershed are helping restore fish passage on private forestland. The Upper Skagit Indian Tribe and the Skagit River System Cooperative (the natural resources extension of the Swinomish and Sauk-Suiattle tribes) are collaborating with partners from Skagit County and the Skagit Fisheries Enhancement Group (SFEG) to identify high-priority restoration opportunities and help […]
  • Muckleshoot Tribe’s Tomanamus Community Day: Connecting with the Land and Community
    More than 1,200 Muckleshoot tribal and community members gathered in the rural foothills of Mount Rainier at the tribe’s Tomanamus Forest property for a community celebration this fall. The tribe celebrates Tomanamus Community Day at Medicine Eagle Flats within the forest every fall. Salmon, elk, deer and medicinal teas are prepared and served. There are […]