Word-for-word redline of the seven acts that changed New Hampshire’s Right-to-Know Law, RSA 91-A, since the Attorney General’s March 2024 memorandum.
Three sentences end conversations in New Hampshire government, “no comment,” “that’s a personnel matter,” and “it’s pending litigation,” and two of them carry no legal weight on their own; “personnel matter” stopped being law on May 29, 2020, and almost nobody outside a courtroom was told.
New Hampshire’s police body camera law, enacted in 2016, does not mandate camera use, allowing departments to decide. A bill to open footage to the public, HB 1587, was shelved without debate. Currently, most recordings are exempt from disclosure and must be deleted after 180 days, limiting accountability and transparency.
New Hampshire’s Right-to-Know Law, RSA 91-A, and the federal Freedom of Information Act differ on which governments they cover, how fast agencies must answer, and how a denial is appealed. Under RSA 91-A, every requester has the same right of access and a five-business-day response rule.
