Ayotte Unveils 'Patriot' Plates Ahead Of Veterans Day

By Leonard Robinson, NH Journal

“Support our veterans” is more than a bumper sticker. Thanks to a law Gov. Kelly Ayotte highlighted Monday, it’s also a license plate.

Ayotte ceremonially signed House Bill 1415, which creates a new “Patriot” license plate for vehicles registered in New Hampshire. She had originally signed the measure into law on July 10.

The plates will be available to order Jan. 1, 2027, for an initial $60 fee, plus regular registration and other applicable plate fees. Annual renewal will cost $30, also in addition to those fees. Owners do not need to be veterans. The law authorizes the special plates for passenger motor vehicles and recreational vehicles and allows an additional motorcycle plate.

The ceremony took place in the Executive Council chambers, with Ayotte surrounded by veterans leaders and lawmakers like Republican state Rep. Terry Roy and state Sen. Bill Gannon. The governor, who begins her second term in January, said this bill would continue her efforts to make New Hampshire a great place for veterans to live.

“We want New Hampshire to be the most friendly state in the nation for veterans, a place where veterans feel they can always call home,” Ayotte said at the ceremony. “People buying this Patriot plate will also show our veterans, by having this on their car, how much New Hampshire values those who serve.”

Ayotte also highlighted nhfirstforvets.com, a website created by Swim With a Mission where veterans and their families can access information about benefits and connect with veterans service organizations.

Swim With a Mission (SWAM) co-founder Phil Taub told NHJournal that the organization’s efforts in recent years have focused on building relationships with federal and state government officials and the broader veterans nonprofit community. Ayotte said the website continues those efforts.

“They worked very closely with us and other veteran organizations to establish a website to bring the state and federal resources for our veterans and opportunities, but also the phenomenal work that is done by the nonprofit sector,” Ayotte said.

New Hampshire National Guard Adjutant General David Mikolaities called the legislation another step in the right direction for the state’s veterans since the Department of Military Affairs and Veterans Services was founded in 2019.

“WalletHub ranks us among the top five states in the nation for military veterans and retirees. This just shows that our government has a veteran’s back for employment opportunities because we realize the virtue and value of military service,” Mikolaities said. “It’s amazing to me since 2019, when the Department of Military Affairs and Veteran Services was founded, that this momentum has continued.”

WalletHub ranked New Hampshire fourth for military retirees earlier this year, behind South Carolina, North Dakota, and Wyoming. Veterans organizations in the state say they are still seeking volunteers and support in tackling a lack of affordable housing and rising suicide rates.

One source of support for local veterans is the Bob Woodruff Foundation, which gives targeted microgrants to veterans groups like the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society. The NMCRS at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is a resource for food, rent or mortgage payments, utilities, essential home repairs, moving deposits, medical expenses, delayed military pay and funeral expenses for sailors, Marines and their families.

“Veterans are people first,” Meg Harrell, the Woodruff Foundation’s chief program officer, told a veterans roundtable hosted by InsideSources. “All the things that help the people in your community are going to help the veterans and military families in your community.”

This story was originally published by the NH Journal, an online news publication dedicated to providing fair, unbiased reporting on, and analysis of, political news of interest to New Hampshire. For more stories from the NH Journal, visit NHJournal.com.