Age of Consent
Sex Education Required by State
Sex Education Type
Medically Accurate Content Required
LGBTQ+ Inclusive
Consent Education Taught
Adult Entertainment
New Hampshire's age of consent is 16. There is a close-in-age exemption: sexual activity with a 13-, 14-, or 15-year-old is not a felony if the defendant is less than four years older, under New Hampshire Revised Statutes Section 632-A:3.
New Hampshire has no statewide sex education mandate. When districts offer sex ed, state guidelines call for comprehensive, medically accurate instruction. The guidelines are not mandatory, and actual instruction varies by district. New Hampshire's libertarian political culture means neither an abstinence mandate nor a comprehensive requirement has gained lasting legislative traction.
New Hampshire's adult entertainment environment is permissive. Manchester and other cities have adult entertainment businesses regulated through local licensing. The state's libertarian tradition creates a political environment resistant to state-level intervention in adult businesses. The overall posture reflects the "Live Free or Die" political culture that characterizes New Hampshire's approach to personal freedoms.
No mandate but when offered, guidelines are comprehensive. Libertarian-leaning state.
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More on New Hampshire
Discussions
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- Age of consent needs to change : r/offmychest
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In the News
- Supreme Court Backs Parental Rights in Gender Identity Case - MultiStateApr 28
- 2025 New Hampshire Legislative Issues - Planned Parenthood Action FundFeb 14
- State High Courts Split on Laws Letting Survivors of Sexual Abuse Sue After Expiration of Statutes of Limitations - State Court ReportNov 24
- Adolescents Deserve Better: What the Biden-Harris Administration and Congress Can Do to Bolster Young People’s Sexual and Reproductive Health - Guttmacher InstituteFeb 8
- Republican lawmakers push for bill barring ‘sexual lifestyles’ from public school instruction - New Hampshire BulletinFeb 5
Full New Hampshire profile
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Sources: NCSL, Guttmacher Institute, SIECUS State Profiles, Wikipedia "Ages of consent in the United States". Laws change — verify current status with official sources.