About the Boards of Nursing
The boards of nursing are agencies established by state governments in order to protect the public's health and welfare by ensuring the safe practice of nursing. The boards of nursing create and update the standards for safe care and issue and renew licenses. There are differences from state to state with regard to who determines the specific administrative responsibility of the board and who oversees the board of nursing but in general they report to either a state agency, the governor of the state, or some other state organization or official. Licensed nurses and CNAs in some states are monitored for compliance to state laws and regulations and action is taken in the event of unsafe nursing practice. Representatives who serve on a board of nursing are appointed to their position according to state laws and are usually RN, LPN or advanced practice registered nurses.
Board representatives are tasked with approving nursing programs, creating or updating rules, regulations, policies, and practice standards, the requirements for maintaining nursing licenses, as well as taking disciplinary action on nurse licenses and enforcing the Nurse Practice Act which is a law of each state or territory. It is the responsibility of each licensed nurse to be familiar and comply with the rules, regulations, and requirements of each state they are practicing in. The Nurse Practice Act includes penalties that can happen if a licensed nurse does not follow the nursing law, the educational requirements and other qualifications needed for getting a license, what nurses are allowed to do, and the titles that can be used.
Boards of Nursing by State
Alabama (AL)
Alabama Board of Nursing
770 Washington Avenue, RSA Plaza, Suite 250, Montgomery, AL 36104
Phones: 800-656-5318 and 334-293-5200
Alaska (AK)
Alaska Board of Nursing
550 West 7th Avenue, Suite 1500, Anchorage, AK 99501
Phone: 907-269-8161
American Samoa (AS)
American Samoa Board of Nursing
LBJ Tropical Medical Center, Pago Pago, AS 96799
Phone: 684-633-1222
Arizona (AZ)
Arizona State Board of Nursing
4747 North 7th Street, Suite 200, Phoenix, AZ 85014
Phone: 602-771-7800
Arkansas (AR)
Arkansas State Board of Nursing
University Tower Building, 1123 South University, Suite 800, Little Rock, AR 72204
Phone: 501-686-2700
California (CA)
California Board of Vocational Nursing
2535 Capitol Oaks Drive, Suite 205, Sacramento, CA 95833
Phone: 916-263-7800
California Board of Registered Nursing
1747 North Market Boulevard, Suite 150, Sacramento, CA 95834
Phone: 916-322-3350
Colorado (CO)
Colorado Board of Nursing
1560 Broadway, Suite 1350, Denver, CO 80202
Phones: 303-894-2458 and 303-894-2430
Connecticut (CT)
Connecticut Board of Examiners for Nursing
410 Capitol Avenue, Hartford, CT 06134
Phones: 860-509-7603 and 860-509-7624
Delaware (DE)
Delaware Board of Nursing
861 Silver Lake Boulevard, Cannon Building, Suite 203, Dover, DE 19904
Phone: 302-744-4500
District of Columbia (DC)
District of Columbia Board of Nursing
899 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002
Phones: 202-724-4900 and 877-672-2174
Florida (FL)
Florida Board of Nursing
4042 Bald Cypress Way, Room 120, Tallahassee, FL 32399
Phones: 850-488-0595 and 850-245-4125
Georgia (GA)
Georgia Board of Nursing
237 Coliseum Drive, Macon, GA 31217
Phone: 478-207-2440
Guam (GU)
Guam Board of Nurse Examiners
651 Legacy Square Commercial Complex S, Route 10, Suite 9, Mangilao, GU 96913
Phones: 671-735-7406 and 671-735-7407
Hawaii (HI)
Hawaii Board of Nursing
King Kalakaua Building, 335 Merchant Street, Room 301, Honolulu, HI 96813
Phone: 808-586-3000
Idaho (ID)
Idaho Board of Nursing
280 North 8th Street, Suite 210, Boise, ID 83720
Phones: 208-577-2476 and 208-334-3110
Illinois (IL)
Illinois Board of Nursing
J. R. Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph Street, Suite 9-300, Chicago, IL 60601
Phone: 312-814-2715
Indiana (IN)
Indiana State Board of Nursing
402 West Washington Street, Room W072, Indianapolis, IN 46204
Phone: 317-234-2043
Iowa (IA)
Iowa Board of Nursing
400 S.W. 8th Street, Suite B, Des Moines, IA 50309
Phone: 515-281-3255
Kansas (KS)
Kansas State Board of Nursing
Landon State Office Building, 900 SW Jackson Street, Suite 1051, Topeka, KS 66612
Phone: 785-296-4929
Kentucky (KY)
Kentucky Board of Nursing
312 Whittington Parkway, Suite 300, Louisville, KY 40222
Phone: 502-429-3300
Louisiana (LA)
Louisiana State Board of Nursing (Registered Nurses)
17373 Perkins Road, Baton Rouge, LA 70810
Phone: 225-755-7500
Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners
131 Airline Drive, Suite 301, Metairie, LA 70001
Phone: 504-838-5791
Maine (ME)
Maine State Board of Nursing
161 Capitol Street, Augusta, ME 04333
Phone: 207-287-1133
Maryland (MD)
Maryland Board of Nursing
4140 Patterson Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21215
Phones: 888-202-9861 and 410-585-1900
Massachusetts (MA)
Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing
239 Causeway Street, Suite 500, 5th floor, Boston, MA 02114
Phones: 800-414-0168 and 617-973-0900
Michigan (MI)
Michigan Board of Nursing
611 W. Ottawa, 1st Floor, Lansing, MI 48909
Phone: 517-335-0918
Minnesota (MN)
Minnesota Board of Nursing
2829 University Avenue SE, Suite 200, Minneapolis, MN 55414
Phone: 612-317-3000
Mississippi (MS)
Mississippi Board of Nursing
713 Pear Orchard Road, Suite 300, Ridgeland, MS 39157
Phone: 601-957-6300
Missouri (MO)
Missouri State Board of Nursing
3605 Missouri Boulevard, P.O. Box 656, Jefferson City, MO 65102
Phone: 573-751-0681
Montana (MT)
Montana Board of Nursing
301 South Park, Suite 401, Helena, MT 59620
Phones: 406-841-2205 and 406-841-2202
Nebraska (NE)
Nebraska Board of Nursing
301 Centennial Mall South, Lincoln, NE 68509
Phone: 402-471-4376
Nevada (NV)
Nevada State Board of Nursing
5011 Meadowood Mall Way, Suite 300, Reno, NV 89502
Phones: 702-486-5800 and 775-687-7700
New Hampshire (NH)
New Hampshire Board of Nursing
121 South Fruit Street, Concord, NH 03301
Phone: 603-271-2323
New Jersey (NJ)
New Jersey Board of Nursing
124 Halsey Street, 6th Floor, Newark, NJ 07101
Phone: 973-504-6430
New Mexico (NM)
New Mexico Board of Nursing
6301 Indian School Road, NE, Suite 710, Albuquerque, NM 87110
Phone: 505-841-8340
New York (NY)
New York State Board of Nursing
89 Washington Avenue, Education Building, 2nd Floor West Wing, Albany, NY 12234
Phones: 518-474-3817 ext. 120 and 518-474-3817
North Carolina (NC)
North Carolina Board of Nursing
4516 Lake Boone Trail, Raleigh, NC 27607
Phone: 919-782-3211
North Dakota (ND)
North Dakota Board of Nursing
919 South 7th Street, Suite 504, Bismarck, ND 58504
Phone: 701-328-9777
Northern Mariana Islands (MP)
Northern Mariana Islands Commonwealth Board of Nurse Examiners
P.O. Box 501458, Saipan, MP 96950
Phone: 670-233-2263
Ohio (OH)
Ohio Board of Nursing
17 South High Street, Suite 400, Columbus, OH 43215
Phones: 614-466-3947 and 614-466-6940
Oklahoma (OK)
Oklahoma Board of Nursing
2915 N. Classen Boulevard, Suite 524, Oklahoma City, OK 73106
Phone: 405-962-1800
Oregon (OR)
Oregon State Board of Nursing
17938 SW Upper Boones Ferry Road, Portland, OR 97224
Phone: 971-673-0685
Pennsylvania (PA)
Pennsylvania State Board of Nursing
P.O. Box 2649, Harrisburg, PA 17105
Phone: 717-783-7142
Puerto Rico (PR)
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico Board of Nurse Examiners
800 Roberto H. Todd Avenue, Room 202, Santurce, PR 00908
Phones: 787-705-8364 and 787-999-8989
Rhode Island (RI)
Rhode Island Board of Nurse Registration and Nursing Education
105 Cannon Building, Three Capitol Hill, Providence, RI 02908
Phone: 401-222-5700
South Carolina (SC)
South Carolina Board of Nursing
110 Centerview Drive, Kingstree Building, Suite 202, Columbia, SC 29210
Phone: 803-896-4550
South Dakota (SD)
South Dakota Board of Nursing
4305 South Louise Avenue, Suite 201, Sioux Falls, SD 57106
Phone: 605-362-2760
Tennessee (TN)
Tennessee State Board of Nursing
665 Mainstream Drive, Nashville, TN 37243
Phones: 800-778-4123 and 615-532-5166
Texas (TX)
Texas Board of Nursing
333 Guadalupe Street, Suite 3-460, Austin, TX 78701
Phone: 512-305-7400
Utah (UT)
Utah State Board of Nursing
Heber M. Wells Building, 4th Floor, 160 East 300 South, Salt Lake City, UT 84111
Phones: 866-275-3675 and 801-530-6628
Vermont (VT)
Vermont State Board of Nursing
89 Main Street, 3rd Floor, Montpelier, VT 05620
Phones: 802-828-1503 and 802-828-2396
Virgin Islands (VI)
Virgin Islands Board of Nurse Licensure
No. 5051 Kongens Gade, Suite 1, St. Thomas, VI 00802
Phone: 340-776-7397
Virginia (VA)
Virginia Board of Nursing
Perimeter Center, 9960 Mayland Drive, Suite 300, Henrico, VA 23233
Phone: 804-367-4515
Washington (WA)
Washington State Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission
111 Israel Road S.E., Tumwater, WA 98501
Phone: 360-236-4700
West Virginia (WV)
West Virginia State Board of Examiners for Licensed Practical Nurses
101 Dee Drive, Charleston, WV 25311
Phones: 877-558-5767 and 304-558-3572
West Virginia Board of Examiners for Registered Professional Nurses
101 Dee Drive, Suite 102, Charleston, WV 25311
Phones: 877-743-6877 and 304-558-3596
Wisconsin (WI)
Wisconsin Board of Nursing
1400 East Washington Avenue, Room 112, Madison, WI 53703
Phones: 877-617-1565 and 608-266-2112
Wyoming (WY)
Wyoming State Board of Nursing
130 Hobbs Avenue, Suite B, Cheyenne, WY 82002
Phone: 307-777-7601