Nami National

“NAMI is a member organization. NAMI membership takes three forms: (1) individual members, who belong to local affiliates and whose enrollment determines their respective affiliate's voting power, (2) affiliates, the local NAMI presence and major voting unit within the organization, and (3) state organizations, which each have a vote and serve to support and coordinate the affiliates within their respective states. The affiliates and state organizations vote to elect the NAMI national board of directors and to amend the NAMI bylaws.”

“The annual meeting of the members of NAMI shall be held in the summer unless otherwise directed by the Board of Directors, on such dates and at such place as the Board of Directors shall designate. Voting members representing 20% of the voting power of the membership shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the members. Voting members shall designate delegates to vote at the annual meeting. Voting members may be represented by written proxy. The delegates shall act by majority vote at any meeting of the voting members at which a quorum is present, except as may be specifically provided to the contrary elsewhere in the Bylaws. Voting may be conducted by absentee ballot, or onsite. All affiliates and state organizations in good standing are eligible to vote. Those delegates whose affiliate or state organization is in good standing but who did not meet the credentialing deadlines may seek to vote on site. Every effort will be made to make this possible, assuming verification of the individual's role and identity can be confirmed.”

“Revisions or amendments may be proposed by any voting member, or by any Director. Any such proposed amendments shall be submitted in writing by United States Postal Service, either by registered mail, certified mail, Express Mail or Priority Mail, or any other USPS service offering Return Receipts or Signature Confirmation to a Bylaws Committee not less than ninety (90) days prior to the date of the next annual meeting. Each voting member shall receive all proposed revisions or amendments to the Bylaws not less than thirty (30) days prior to the next annual meeting. A two-thirds majority of the voting power of the membership voting shall be required to amend the Bylaws.”

“The entire board receives a copy of the return and meets to review, discuss and approve the return for filing.”

“Any employee of NAMI who believes they may have a conflict of interest must indicate those conflicts in writing and send them to the Chief Financial Officer's confidential attention for resolution. The NAMI board monitors potential conflicts of interest by requiring an annual disclosure statement from each member which must be reviewed and updated quarterly, based on updated vendor and donor information, prior to each board meeting. Board members discuss their disclosures quarterly and determine what recusal or other action may be appropriate and under what circumstances. This process is codified in the board's operating policies and procedures manual.”

“The salary for the Executive Director is determined and approved by the Board of Directors. Salary decisions for all employees are made using comparability data for similar positions in comparable organizations.”

“NAMI makes its Form 1023 available upon request. NAMI makes available a public disclosure copy of its Federal Form 990 on its website and upon request.”

“NAMI makes its governing documents, conflict of interest policy, strategic plan and audited financial statements available for view online.”

“Millions of people in the United States, 1 in 5 or nearly 60 million, face the day-to-day reality of living with a mental illness. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to providing advocacy, education, support and public awareness so that individuals and families affected by mental illness can build better lives. NAMI is the foundation for hundreds of NAMI State Organizations, NAMI Affiliates and volunteers who work in local communities across the country to raise awareness and provide essential and free education, advocacy and support group programs. In 2015, NAMI focused on strengthening and broadening its programs, reflecting the organization's strategy to build a movement, focus on youth and strengthen the organization.”

“Programs & Support Highlights from 2015 include the following: NAMI partnered with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority (AKA), Inc. to expand mental health education, awareness and support activities on the campuses of colleges and universities and in local communities. The partnership enabled NAMI and AKA, the nation's oldest sorority founded by African American college-trained women, to prepare new volunteer leaders for the future and reach broader constituencies as part of a growing movement to address unmet mental health needs. In addition, NAMI launched Say It Out Loud, a program to help faith communities and civic organizations start conversations about mental health with youth. Together with NAMI State Organizations and NAMI Local Affiliates, NAMIWalks hosted more than 80 Walks that promoted awareness and wellness. The funds raised by the Walks help NAMI State Organizations and NAMI Local Affiliates provide educational and support programs at no cost to those impacted by mental illness and their families. The NAMI HelpLine (800-950-NAMI) responded to more than 40,000 requests from individuals needing support, referral and information. More than 60 fact sheets on a variety of topics are available along with referrals to NAMI Local Affiliates across the country.”

“Education & Research Highlights from 2015 include the following: There were 241,275 reported participants in NAMI's education programs. NAMI taught its first NAMI Homefront course to address the unique needs of family, caregivers and friends of those who have served or are currently serving in the military. NAMI awarded five-year grants to promote research in serious mental illness to two leading university departments of psychiatry-The University of Michigan Health System's Department of Psychiatry and the McLean Hospital Psychotic Disorders Division, affiliated with Harvard Medical School. NAMI organized the OK2Talk Research Summit to help communicate with young adults, improve early identification and engagement and save lives. Leading experts in big data, anthropology, linguistics, brain science, social science and communications came together to set a transformation in motion. With the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), NAMI announced the release of highly anticipated, innovative research on mental health. Two studies from NIMH's Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode (RAISE) program looked at how best to treat people with early psychosis.”

“Policy & Advocacy Highlights from 2015 include the following: NAMI published two major policy reports that received broad media coverage and influenced public debate. A Long Road Ahead: Achieving True Parity in Mental Health and Substance Use Care called for enforcement of the 2008 landmark federal parity law. State Mental Health Legislation: Trends, Themes and Effective Practices surveyed state approaches to mental health care and called on Congress to pass comprehensive mental health legislation to support state innovations. NAMI endorsed a bipartisan bill, H.R. 2646, which a health subcommittee in the House of Representatives approved in December; S. 1945, its companion bill in the Senate; and S. 2002, which would reduce criminalization of mental illness. Thousands of NAMI members contacted their legislators seeking action on these bills. NAMI continued to build support for early identification and intervention for first episode psychosis (FEP). A Congressional briefing highlighted the results of an NIMH study that found that early combinations of medication, therapy, family education and social supports lead to better outcomes. Through NAMI's efforts, Congress took a major step forward by increasing from 5% to 10% the proportion of mental health block grants to states dedicated to FEP programs. NAMI advocated for the successful passage of the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, which addresses suicide among veterans. NAMI also worked with federal agencies to promote data collection on suicides and to release data.”

“Throughout the year, but particularly during Mental Health Month in May, National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in July and Mental Illness Awareness Week in October, NAMI launched campaigns to raise public awareness of mental illness. Such campaigns fought stigma, provided support, educated the public and advocated for equal care. The following are some campaign highlights: NAMI launched "Hope Starts with You," a campaign of public service announcements (PSAs) for television. NAMI also conducted a media tour to get Congress to pass comprehensive mental health legislation. The tour featured about 20 interviews to news programs and talk shows and reached 17 million listeners through 8,600 networks or stations. NAMI began a two-year partnership with philosophy, a well-being beauty brand. To mark the partnership, NAMI launched stigmafree, a campaign to shift social and systemic barriers for those living with mental health conditions and encourage acceptance and understanding. By the end of the year, more than 10,000 people had taken the stigmafree pledge. NAMI's website, www.nami.org, reached more than 8 million visitors in 2015. Visitors learned more about mental illnesses, medication and treatment, found support and resources and got involved with advocacy efforts. NAMI also launched the mobile app AIR (Anonymous. Inspiring. Relatable.), which enabled people to find and give support anonymously through smart phones and computer tablets. NAMI's new Stepping Up Initiative strives to divert people with mental illness from jails and into treatment. The campaign included a powerful coalition of national agencies, law enforcement associations, mental health organizations and substance abuse organizations. The initiative developed a series called "31 Days, 31 Stories," featuring a new profile each day during Mental Health Month in May.”

“NAMI's Audit Committee assumes responsibility for oversight of the audit of its financial statements and selection of its independent accountant. This process is consistent with previous years.”