New Hampshire Laws & Rules (RSA 319-C, Elec 300-400)
Journeyman Practice study guide with diagrams.
New Hampshire Laws & Rules (RSA 319-C, Electrical Licensing)
Learning Objectives
By the end of this chapter, you should be able to:
4.Explain how New Hampshire's electrician licensing system is organized under RSA 319-C and the Electricians' Board rules (Elec 300–400 series).
5.State the experience, education, and examination requirements for a New Hampshire journeyman electrician license.
6.Distinguish the roles of apprentice, journeyman, master, and licensed business entity, including who must employ whom.
7.Describe what "direct supervision" means under New Hampshire rules for both journeymen and apprentices, and recall the numeric apprentice-supervision ratios.
8.Identify the license renewal cycle and the continuing education required, including the NEC code-change hours.
9.Follow the correct application-and-examination procedure, including the role of the testing vendor.
10.Recognize conduct that can lead to disciplinary action and the consequences of unlicensed work.
1.1 How New Hampshire Regulates the Electrical Trade
New Hampshire regulates electrical work through a licensing statute — RSA Chapter 319-C (Electricians) — and the administrative rules of the Electricians' Board, numbered in the Elec 100 through Elec 400 series (licensing and supervision rules sit mainly in Elec 300 and Elec 400). The board operates under the Office of Professional Licensure and Certification (OPLC).
The basic rule is short and strict: no electrical installation may be made for compensation unless made by an electrician licensed under RSA 319-C (RSA 319-C:1). The words "for compensation" matter — a license is not required for every wire pulled in the state, but it is required for paid electrical installation work.
Who's Who in Enforcement
Actor
Role
Electricians' Board
Five members (2 masters, 1 journeyman, 2 public members), 5-year terms; adopts rules on licensing, exams, NEC adoption, CE, ethics, and discipline (RSA 319-C:4, :6-a).
State Fire Marshal
Appoints electrical inspectors; investigates fires where faulty wiring was a principal cause (RSA 319-C:5, :14-a).
Municipal/local officials
Towns enforce the state building code (RSA 155-A) and may check licenses and ID cards on the job (RSA 319-C:5, V).
OPLC
Administers applications, licenses, and renewals for the board.
The board's rulemaking authority (RSA 319-C:6-a) includes adopting the applicable version of the National Electrical Code (NEC), with any changes no less stringent than the state building code under RSA 155-A. When a new NEC edition is published, licensees must complete code-change training on it (see § 1.5).
1.2 The Licensing Ladder: Definitions and Roles
RSA 319-C:2 defines the regulated classes:
Apprentice electrician — a person learning and assisting in electrical installations under the direct supervision of a master or journeyman electrician. Apprentices must be registered with the OPLC (RSA 319-C:7, IV) and carry a board-issued apprentice identification card.
Journeyman electrician — a person installing electrical wires, conduits, apparatus, fixtures, and other electrical equipment. A journeyman must be employed by a New Hampshire licensed master electrician, or by a business entity licensed under RSA 319-C:10. A journeyman license does not authorize working for yourself, hiring others, or operating as an independent contractor.
Master electrician — a person who is employed by another master or who, as a business, hires or employs others to do electrical work — or who makes installations for his or her own account. The master is the top of the ladder: able to employ electricians, take responsibility for work, and stand behind installations.
Licensed entity (corporation or partnership) — under RSA 319-C:10, a business may be licensed only if an officer or employee directly in charge of its business affairs is a licensed master electrician.
The chain of responsibility: apprentices work under masters or journeymen; journeymen work for masters; masters (or master-controlled entities) conduct the business of electrical installation.
What "Electrical Installation" Means
The statute covers the installation, repair, alteration, and maintenance of electrical conductors, fittings, devices, and fixtures for heating, lighting, or power purposes, regardless of voltage (RSA 319-C:2, III). Purely portable work — plugging a portable appliance into a fixed receptacle — is excluded, and over-600 V distribution work has its own high/medium-voltage licensing category.
Exceptions to Licensure (RSA 319-C:3)
Several groups may do electrical work without an electrician's license, including:
Utility employees on utility-owned systems and anyone under public utilities commission or FCC jurisdiction;
Regular employees of industrial or manufacturing plants (and work on plant-owned property supervised by an electrical engineer employed by the operator);
Work on mines, pipeline systems, ships, railway rolling stock, and automotive equipment;
Manufacturers testing or repairing their own equipment in the plant;
Exposed laboratory wiring for experimental purposes;
Regular employees of owners/lessees doing incidental electrical work in the course of general manual labor;
Installation of fuel-oil, gas, or propane furnace/boiler equipment and its controls;
Vocational and apprenticeship students working under a licensed teacher or supervisor, where the installation will be inspected;
Automatic irrigation systems at 30 volts or less;
Elevator and accessibility-lift mechanics within their licensed scope.
Homeowners are protected separately: RSA 319-C:15, II allows a homeowner to make electrical installations in or about a single-family residence that he or she owns and occupies (or will occupy as a bona fide personal abode). The exception is narrow — it does not extend to rental property, second homes, commercial space, or paid work performed by the homeowner.
1.3 Becoming a Journeyman: Hours, Education, and Exam
Under RSA 319-C:7, a journeyman (or master) license requires three qualification blocks:
44.8,000 hours of supervised experience as an apprentice electrician — about four years of full-time work — gained under a licensed master or journeyman electrician. The board may grant credit for a recognized school course of instruction or qualifying military field experience.
45.Not less than 600 hours of education meeting criteria the board sets in rule — NH is not a "no classroom required" state; applicants must show formal instruction, not just work time.
46.Passing an approved examination (RSA 319-C:8), written, written-and-oral, oral, or computerized as the board approves, and including such provisions of the National Electrical Code as the board deems appropriate. An applicant who fails may retake the exam through an approved examination entity at his or her own expense; if the exam is not passed within one year of application, a new application and fee are required.
The board's rules (Elec 300 series) add application qualifications: high school completion or equivalent, good professional character, no disqualifying felony convictions, and no license suspended, revoked, or sanctioned in another jurisdiction.
The Application Flow — a Sequence You Must Know
Under the board's rules (Elec 305.01), the order is fixed:
50.File a complete application with the Electricians' Board (fee plus documentation of hours and education);
51.Receive board approval to take the examination;
52.Only then register with the testing vendor (the board's contracted examination vendor, PSI) and schedule the exam.
You cannot register with the vendor first, and towns do not process license applications. Approval comes first; vendor registration comes second.
1.4 Supervision: Masters, Journeymen, and "Direct Supervision"
New Hampshire builds its safety net from supervision rules. Two different relationships are constantly tested, and they work differently.
Master → Journeyman
A journeyman must be employed by a licensed master (or licensed entity) and work under the master's direction and control. Under the board's rules (Elec 303.01 and Elec 402.01), this is "direct supervision," defined as the master being available for consultation and direction — but not necessarily physically present on site. That is what lets a journeyman run a job independently: the master need not stand beside him, but must be reachable and able to direct the work.
Practical consequences:
The master must periodically inspect the journeyman's installation and perform a final inspection of the completed work (Elec 404.05). Supervision carries inspection duties; it is not a legal fiction.
The rules set no fixed numeric ratio of journeymen per master (Elec 303.02). Unlike apprentice ratios, there is no "one master per X journeymen" cap — supervision must be direct and adequate, and the board judges adequacy on a case-by-case basis.
The master may not simply lend his name. It is unprofessional conduct for a master to obtain a permit for a journeyman he does not actually employ — the journeyman must be on the master's payroll, not merely supervised from afar while working for someone else.
Master/Journeyman → Apprentice
Apprentice supervision is the opposite: numeric, strict, and on-site. An apprentice's installations must be directly supervised at all times by a master or journeyman (Elec 404.05), and the ratios are set in RSA 319-C:2-a:
Situation
Allowed ratio
Journeyman in the **first year** after initial licensure
No more than **1 apprentice**
Journeyman after the first anniversary of licensure
Up to **2 apprentices**
Per work site
Max **3 journeymen** may each supervise 2 apprentices; additional journeymen on site are limited to 1
Master electricians
Up to **2 apprentices** each, to a maximum of **6 masters** per site with 2 each; additional masters limited to 1
Site-wide cap
No more than **6 licensed electricians** on a work site may be supervising 2 apprentices at once
If supervision fails as required, the board may open disciplinary proceedings against the licenses and apprentices involved — supervision is itself a license obligation.
1.5 Renewal and Continuing Education
New Hampshire journeyman licenses are renewed biennially — every two years (RSA 319-C:7). Licenses expire on the last day of the month of issuance, so the cycle is tied to the month you were originally licensed.
Continuing education is mandatory. Under the board's rules (Elec 402.04), each renewal cycle requires:
At least 15 hours of continuing education from board-approved providers; and
Of those, at least 3 hours on the latest NEC code changes.
NEC training has an additional statutory heartbeat: when a new NEC edition is published, every licensee must complete code-change continuing education within 12 months from the January 1 following its publication date (RSA 319-C:6-c). Until that training is documented, the license is invalid — in practical terms, budget for a code-update class after every NEC cycle in addition to the ordinary biennial 15 hours.
1.6 Scope of Practice and Work Rules for a Journeyman
A journeyman license authorizes electrical installations — wire, conduit, apparatus, fixtures, and equipment for heat, light, and power — while employed by and working under a licensed master. Boundaries the exam presses:
Employment: a journeyman cannot perform installations "on his own" or as a subcontractor; employment by a master or licensed entity is mandatory (RSA 319-C:2, IV).
Permits: permits run through the responsible licensed master/contractor in the municipality where the work occurs. Working without a required permit — or on a permit procured for you by a master who does not employ you — is outside the rules.
Supervision: working without the master available for consultation and direction exceeds the scope of the journeyman license.
Work quality: the master performs the final inspection of a journeyman's completed installation, so the journeyman must keep work inspection-ready and correct any deficiencies the master or local inspector finds.
1.7 Discipline: Grounds and Process
A license is a privilege the board can restrict, suspend, or revoke. Grounds for discipline are listed in the board's rules (Elec 402.05) and the licensing statute — traditionally enumerated at RSA 319-C:12 and RSA 319-C:14, and today administered through the board's rulemaking and enforcement authority (RSA 319-C:6-a, V). Recognized grounds include:
Making installations without a license or allowing unlicensed work under your name;
Working on a project without a permit where one is required;
Performing work outside the scope of the license held (e.g., a journeyman acting as a contractor);
Failing to notify the board of a change of address or other required contact updates;
Conviction of a felony — particularly one involving moral turpitude or related to the trade;
Unprofessional or dishonorable conduct affecting the practice of the trade — including a master procuring permits for journeymen he does not employ;
Violating the chapter or any board rule, or wrongfully/fraudulently obtaining or representing a license.
Discipline is also fed by the fire-investigation loop: if the State Fire Marshal finds faulty wiring was a principal cause of a fire, the board investigates and orders a currently licensed installer to show cause why the license should not be revoked or suspended (RSA 319-C:14-a). Note that carrying liability insurance is not a statutory license requirement, so lacking it is not a ground — while every conduct item above is.
1.8 Enforcement and Penalties for Unlicensed Work
Enforcement is shared by the board, State Fire Marshal inspectors, and local code officials. Inspectors may enter premises where a regulated installation is underway and order removal or correction of violations, including ordering the utility to disconnect power until violations are corrected (RSA 319-C:5); state, city, and town building officials may check licenses and ID cards on the job.
Penalties under RSA 319-C:15 are criminal in nature:
A natural person who makes unlicensed installations, employs an unlicensed person (other than an apprentice) to make installations, fraudulently procures a license, violates the chapter or board rules, or fraudulently represents himself as licensed is guilty of a misdemeanor;
If the offender is not a natural person (a corporation or other entity), the offense is a felony.
Apprentice supervision; journeyman final inspection
Elec 404.05
Common Exam Traps & Practical Field Points
8,000 hours is the NH number — twice over. Both the experience question and the "minimum hours" question land on 8,000 hours (about four years). Never confuse NH with states using 4,000 or 10,000.
Master–journeyman supervision has NO numeric cap. If options offer ratios like 1:1, 2:1, or 3:1 for masters supervising journeymen, the answer is that no fixed ratio exists — supervision must be direct and adequate, judged case by case. Apprentice ratios, by contrast, are strictly numeric.
"Direct supervision" ≠ "standing over the shoulder." For a master supervising a journeyman, NH defines it as the master being available for consultation and direction, not necessarily on site. Reject answers requiring the master to be physically present at all times, on site 50% of the time, or reviewing work daily.
Application order: board approval first, then vendor registration — never the reverse.
Renewal: biennial; the tested pair is 15 hours of CE per cycle with at least 3 hours on NEC code changes.
Discipline: unlicensed work, missing permits, scope violations, address-notification failures, and felony convictions are all genuine grounds — do not dismiss an "All of the above" answer. Personal-life items (refusing Sunday work, working 40+ hours) are never grounds, and insurance is not statutorily required.
On the job: count every apprentice against the RSA 319-C:2-a ratios, and remember the master makes the final inspection of journeyman-installed work — that is how a master stays genuinely "in control" of a job he signs for.
Chapter Summary
New Hampshire's licensing law (RSA 319-C) requires every compensated electrical installation to be made by a licensed person, organized into registered apprentices, journeymen (employed by and working under a licensed master), masters, and licensed business entities. A journeyman license requires 8,000 hours of supervised experience, at least 600 hours of approved education, and a passing NEC-based examination — obtained by applying to the Electricians' Board first and then registering with the testing vendor. On the job, masters supervise journeymen by being available for consultation and direction (no fixed ratio), while apprentice supervision is tightly rationed by statute and must be direct and continuous. Licenses renew biennially with 15 hours of continuing education (3 on NEC changes), plus code-update training after each new NEC edition. The board polices the system through defined disciplinary grounds — unlicensed work, permit failures, scope violations, address-notification failures, and felony convictions — backed by criminal penalties and the power to disconnect non-compliant installations.
Preparing for the New Hampshire journeyman license?
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