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

The administrative rules of the Office of the Right to Know Ombudsman (which apply to cases filed on or after May 20, 2024) are found here:

https://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rules/state_agencies/rko.html

The complaint, appearance and response forms adopted in the rules are located here:

Complaint form

Appearance Form

Response Form

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.