Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman
Information on the Right to Know Ombudsman
91-A:7 Violation. –
I. Any person aggrieved by a violation of this chapter may petition the superior court for injunctive relief. In order to satisfy the purposes of this chapter, the courts shall give proceedings under this chapter high priority on the court calendar. Such a petitioner may appear with or without counsel. The petition shall be deemed sufficient if it states facts constituting a violation of this chapter, and may be filed by the petitioner or his or her counsel with the clerk of court.
II. In lieu of the procedure under paragraph I, an aggrieved person may file a complaint with the ombudsman under RSA 91-A:7-a and in accordance with RSA 91-A:7-b.
III. A person's decision to petition the superior court forecloses the ability to file a complaint with the ombudsman pursuant to RSA 91-A:7-b.
IV. A person's decision to file a complaint with the ombudsman forecloses the ability to petition the superior court until the ombudsman issues a final ruling or the deadline for such a ruling has passed.
Thomas F. Kehr was appointed to the Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman on January 27, 2023 for a term through July 1, 2025. The telephone number of the office is (603) 271-3277. The office’s email is Thomas.kehr@sos.nh.gov. Its physical address is Room 313, State House Annex, 25 Capitol Street, Concord, NH 03301. The office is unable to provide legal advice to callers and cannot address particular disputes by email or telephone. Those wishing to bring a dispute to the Ombudsman’s attention must do so by submitting the required filing fee and a hard-copy complaint to the address above, using the complaint process of RSA 91-A: 7-b Section 91-A:7-b Complaint Process. (state.nh.us).
To learn more about the Office of the Ombudsman please visit the following:
RSA 91-A :7(a-d)
Notice of Case Hearings
Important Notices
- Effective June 3, 2024, the Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman has moved to Room 12 of the State House Annex, 25 Capital Street, Concord, NH 03301.
- The administrative rules of the Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman became effective on May 20, 2024. This means that matters filed on or after that date will be handled according to those rules. The rules themselves are not currently posted online in the New Hampshire Code of Administrative Rules. A period of administrative work is necessary before such posting occurs. When that is completed, a link to the rules will be provided through this website. At present, the content of the rules can be seen via the links included in “Past Notices” below. Alternatively, a copy of the adopted rules are available from this office upon request. Please include the phrase “Rules Request” in the message line of any electronic or hard copy request for copies of the rules.
The complaint, appearance and response forms adopted in the rules are located here:
These forms may be executed electronically, but must be submitted to the Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman in hard copy rather than by e-mail.