Explanatory Notes and Data Sources

Community Repsonse: A substantial amount of data in the community profiles is supplied by individual communities through a survey. Their participation is vital to this effort, and greatly appreciated. Data gathered through community survey response include contact information, municipal services, emergency services, utility services, largest employers, and recreation, attractions, and events information.

Census Data: Data from the US Decennial Census are only collected once every ten years. Data from the 2000 Census included in the current community profiles include population by gender and age group, educational attainment, income, and commuting to work. Updates for these items are not available between Census years. The Census Bureau does update total population estimates, which are released annually.

Population Density: Population density is calculated by dividing total land area in square miles by total population. The total population is from US Bureau of the Census annual estimates. Land and water area is from Land Area Figures for New Hampshire Cities and Towns, published by the New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning. The full report is available from OEP at www.nh.gov/oep/programs/DataCenter/Geography/CensusTractMaps.htm.

Zoning: Dates of zoning ordinances show the original date of adoption and the most recent amendment, such as 1971/98. A single date indicates date of adoption. A blank indicates no record of ordinance.

Housing Supply: Housing data is from Current Estimates and Trends in New Hampshire's Housing Supply, prepared by the New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning. This report is based on municipal survey. For communities not responding to the survey, data from the US Census Bureau C-40 Construction reports are substituted when available. This report indicates the net change in dwelling units, or existing units plus permits issued less demolition permits. In some cases, the net change is a negative number. The full report is available from OEP at www.nh.gov/oep/programs/DataCenter/library.htm.

Property Tax: Passage of RSA 76, Chapter 338, the State Education Property Tax Law, established a statewide property tax for education funding, effective April 1, 1999. As of April 1, 2005, the state education property tax rate is $3.33 per $1,000 of total equalized valuation. This tax has had a significant effect on tax rates for many communities. Although assessed and collected by each municipality, the tax rates listed do not include the statewide property tax. Further tax data is available from the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration at www.revenue.nh.gov/munc_prop/propertyappraisal.htm.

Property Valuation: Percentage of property valuation by type were calculated from data in the NH Department of Revenue Administration's Equalization Report, Tables by County. Percents were calculated as a portion of gross valuation. Residential represents the percentage of net local assessed valuation of residential land, residential buildings, and manufactured housing. Commercial represents the percentage of net local assessed valuation of commercial/industrial land and commercial/industrial buildings. Other represents the percentage of net local assessed valuation of current use land, conservation easements, and public utilities. The full equalization report, excluding the calculated percentages, is available from DRA at the above web address.

Labor Force: This data is a place of residence estimate of total labor force, the number of employed persons, the number of unemployed persons, and the unemployment rate. This data is prepared by the Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau's Local Area Unemployment Statistics (LAUS) Program.

Employment and Wages: Covered employment and wages are from the federal-state cooperative effort called the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW). Data is prepared by the Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau as a by-product of the state's Unemployment Insurance (UI) and Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) programs. Only jobs covered by unemployment insurance are included. This data is subject to strict confidentiality standards. Data replaced with 'n' indicates that the data does not meet disclosure standards. The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) is used to classify industry data, including covered employment and wages. Data for privately owned businesses is supplied for two domains: (1) Goods-Producing industries, including Natural Resources and Mining; Construction; and Manufacturing; and (2) Services-Providing industries, including Trade, Transportation, and Utilities; Information; Financial Activities; Professional and Business Services; Education and Health Services; Leisure and Hospitality; and Other Services. Establishments in Government may be in any industry but are owned by a government entity.

Educational Facilities: Data on New Hampshire schools was taken from the NH Department of Education listing of New Hampshire public schools and non-public schools. Further information on New Hampshire's public and private schools may be found on the Department's web site at www.ed.state.nh.us/education/. Listed colleges and universities are educational institutions offering associate's degrees or higher and are approved by the New Hampshire Postsecondary Education Commission. Further information on postsecondary institutions may be found on the Commission's web site at www.nh.gov/postsecondary/index.html.

Child Care: Data on child care facilities was provided by the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Child Care Licensing.

Largest Employers: Employer information was provided by the individual communities. Identifying information about employers collected by NH Employment Security is deemed strictly confidential.

Driving Distances: Approximate driving distances to the city hall of Manchester, Boston, Portland, Montreal, and New York; the nearest hospital(s); the nearest interstate/exit; and the nearest scheduled service airport were estimated from each community's city/town hall address using AAA's Internet TripTik mapping software.

Updated: This represents the date the last community survey response was received.