Do Native Americans pay taxes and vote in the United States?

Yes. Native Americans are United States citizens. They can vote in tribal, state and federal elections, and they pay federal income tax like other citizens. Some limited exemptions exist: for example, states generally cannot tax the income a tribal member earns on their own tribe's reservation while living there.

All Native Americans born in the United States became citizens under the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924. Many were citizens before that through treaties or military service. They are citizens of their tribal nation, their state and the United States at once.

Citizenship did not immediately bring the vote. Several states kept Native people from voting for decades. Arizona and New Mexico did so until court rulings in 1948. Barriers such as distant polling places and address rules on reservations remain a live issue.

Individual Native Americans pay federal income tax, including on wages earned on reservations. Certain income is exempt under treaties or federal law, such as income from treaty fishing rights and some income drawn directly from land held in trust for the individual.

Tribal governments, like state governments, do not pay federal income tax. On reservations, state sales and income taxes often do not apply to tribal members, while tribes may levy their own taxes. The idea that Native Americans pay no taxes at all is a common myth.

Words used here

Sources

• US Bureau of Indian Affairs: Frequently asked questionsbia.gov
• US Internal Revenue Service: Indian tribal governmentsirs.gov
• Wikipedia: Indian Citizenship Acten.wikipedia.org

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