The New Hampshire Constitution took effect on June 2, 1784 and remains one of the oldest state constitutions still in operation anywhere in the country.1NH.gov. State Constitution It is organized in two parts: Part First is the Bill of Rights, and Part Second lays out the Form of Government. That split keeps individual protections in their own space, separate from the mechanics of how the state actually runs. Several of the structures it creates, from a 400-member House to a governor who shares power with an elected council, have no real equivalent in other states.
What the Bill of Rights Protects
Part First goes further than the federal Constitution in several places. The most recent addition is Article 2-b, ratified in 2018, which declares that every person’s right to live free from governmental intrusion into private or personal information is “natural, essential, and inherent.”2Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Bill of Rights The language was written to address digital-age concerns about data collection and surveillance, and it gives New Hampshire residents a constitutional privacy shield that most states lack.
Article 10 recognizes a right of revolution. When government becomes destructive to the public good and all other remedies have failed, the people “may, and of right ought to reform the old, or establish a new government.” The article calls blind obedience to arbitrary power “absurd, slavish, and destructive of the good and happiness of mankind.”2Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Bill of Rights Few state constitutions speak this directly about the people’s ultimate authority over their government.
Religious freedom runs through Articles 5 and 6. Article 5 protects the right to worship according to one’s own conscience and reason and bars the government from punishing anyone for their beliefs or practices, provided the worship does not disturb the public peace or interfere with others’ religion.2Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Bill of Rights Article 6 forbids the state from compelling anyone to support a denomination they don’t belong to, and declares that no religious group holds a higher legal status than any other.
Article 37 then anchors Part Second by requiring that the legislative, executive, and judicial branches remain “as separate from, and independent of, each other, as the nature of a free government will admit.”3New Hampshire Secretary of State. New Hampshire Constitution State courts have relied on that language repeatedly when one branch has tried to step into another’s territory.
The General Court
New Hampshire’s legislature is called the General Court, and it is unlike any other state legislature. Part Second, Articles 2 through 39 define its structure and authority.4Justia. New Hampshire Constitution The House of Representatives has a constitutionally mandated size of between 375 and 400 members, making it one of the largest legislative bodies in the English-speaking world.5Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Part Second – House of Representatives The point is hyperlocal representation: each member serves a relatively small number of constituents. The General Court holds the power to pass laws, levy taxes, create courts, define the duties of state officials, and appropriate funds.
Legislative pay is where the state’s populist streak really shows. The constitution caps compensation at $200 per term for regular members and $250 for the presiding officers of each chamber, plus mileage reimbursement for the first 45 legislative days or until July 1, whichever comes first.3New Hampshire Secretary of State. New Hampshire Constitution That is not a typo. New Hampshire legislators are among the lowest-paid in the country, and the arrangement makes service in the General Court civic duty rather than a career.
Governor and Executive Council
The executive branch is defined in Part Second, Articles 41 through 66, and it works differently than almost anywhere else: the governor shares power with a five-member Executive Council.6Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Part Second – Governor Councilors are elected every two years from their respective districts and must meet the same qualifications as state senators.7Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Part Second – Council
The council’s role is substantive, not ceremonial. No state funds can be spent without its approval. The governor cannot appoint judges or other officials without council confirmation. And the governor’s pardon power requires the council’s agreement.6Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Part Second – Governor This shared-power model is a deliberate check against any single person accumulating too much executive authority.
How the Courts Are Staffed
Part Second, Articles 72-a through 81 establish the judiciary.8Justia. New Hampshire Constitution – Part Second – Judiciary Power New Hampshire does not elect its judges. The governor appoints them, and the Executive Council confirms them, which insulates the courts from campaign fundraising and election-cycle politics.
Article 78 sets mandatory retirement ages. Probate judges and sheriffs must step down at 70, and judges on the state’s other courts must retire at 75, following an amendment that raised the cap from the original age of 70.3New Hampshire Secretary of State. New Hampshire Constitution Until they reach that age, judges serve during good behavior, meaning they can only be removed through impeachment or for cause. That tenure protection is the backbone of judicial independence in the state.
Article 74 adds an unusual function. The justices of the state Supreme Court can issue advisory opinions on important legal questions when the governor, the council, or the legislature formally requests one. In that role the justices act as individual constitutional advisors rather than as a court deciding a case. The justices can only advise the legislature about proposed laws, not existing ones, and they can decline requests that involve private disputes or questions likely to come before the court in actual litigation.
Why New Hampshire Has No Income or Sales Tax
The constitution shapes the state’s famously unusual tax structure. Part Second, Article 5 grants the General Court the power to levy “proportional and reasonable” taxes on all inhabitants and property in the state.3New Hampshire Secretary of State. New Hampshire Constitution The word “proportional” does heavy lifting. The New Hampshire Supreme Court has interpreted it to mean that any income tax must apply at a flat rate rather than a graduated one. Because a flat income tax is politically difficult to pass and a graduated one is constitutionally off the table, the state has never adopted a broad-based income tax. It also has no general sales tax.
Two other provisions earmark specific revenue streams. Article 6-a restricts motor vehicle fees and gasoline taxes to highway-related purposes, and Article 6-b directs lottery revenues exclusively to education. The legislature cannot simply redirect those funds to fill gaps elsewhere in the budget.
The State’s Duty to Fund Education
Article 83 imposes a broad obligation on the state to support public education. It declares that knowledge and learning are “essential to the preservation of a free government” and directs legislators and state officials to promote education, science, and the arts. The article also includes a firm prohibition: no tax revenue can be granted or spent on schools run by any religious denomination.9New Hampshire Department of Education. New Hampshire Education Laws Article 83 has been at the center of decades of litigation over school funding, with courts repeatedly finding that it creates an enforceable duty to provide an adequate education to every child in the state.
How the Constitution Gets Amended
Changing the document is intentionally difficult. Article 100 provides two paths for proposing amendments. The legislature can propose one by a three-fifths vote of the full membership of both the House and Senate, voting separately. Alternatively, the legislature can call a constitutional convention by a simple majority vote in both chambers. If neither the legislature nor the voters have addressed the convention question within any ten-year stretch, the secretary of state must place it on the ballot at the next general election automatically.3New Hampshire Secretary of State. New Hampshire Constitution
However an amendment reaches the ballot, voters must approve it by a two-thirds majority for it to take effect. That threshold is among the highest in the country. The constitution has been amended numerous times since 1784, including the 2018 addition of Article 2-b on digital privacy, but the high approval bar means far more proposals have failed than succeeded.