Representation in the New Hampshire State Legislature

         State governments across the United States vary in design for many reasons. Every state is different and wants their governments to reflect that. One big way many are different is the size of their legislature. New Hampshire has an abnormally larger sized Legislature than other states, the question is, does it truly represent the constituents a greater deal than other states?   Similar to many people, I have always wondered if my Representatives were actually representing their constituents and actually doing a public service or not.
        Vermont for example has 150 State Representatives to their population of roughly 630,000 compared to their neighbor, New Hampshire with 400 State Representatives to a population around 1.3 million. In 2014, a Vermont State Representative earned about $660.00 a week during session plus $61.00 a day for meals and commute (Legislators). At the same time, a New Hampshire State Representative earned $100.00 a year plus $.56 a mile for commute. Just between two neighboring states shows a dramatic difference is size.
        With the fourth largest chamber in the world, does it perform for it's constituents better than Vermont's? The only way to find out is to do an experiment. Working with two family friends who live in Vermont in two different districts and also working with two New Hampshire residents, we designed the experiment. Each resident would contact their State Representative with a personal issue they wanted help on. Our hypothesis was with a Vermont State Representative working with larger district geographically, it would take longer to hear back from them than it would for the New Hampshire resident.
         The results were both of the New Hampshire residents heard back from their representatives within a week while both of the Vermont residents are still waiting a response. There are various reasons we may have not yet heard back from either Vermont State Representative, but the advantage the New Hampshire residents had was they have a floterial  State Representative also to contact if their district Representative
        As a New Hampshire State Representative myself, I experience first hand the amount of work and constituent service the job takes. There are times it is almost impossible to reply every constituent who contacts you about an issue or a personal problem, but the dedication to public service is the reason why I and many of my colleagues do what we do because it surely is not for the money. While there may be flaws with the New Hampshire State Legislature, there are in all governments, the one thing to be assured of is with the fourth largest Legislature, you can be assured you will get help from your government. It may not be the most efficient because of the amount of Representatives, but it represents the people of New Hampshire very well.

Legislators, National Conference of State. 2014 State Legislator Compensation | Living Expense Allowances During Session . 11 April 2014. 23 February 2017.