[Njagdu] Educational flyer from The U.S. DOJ

Tue Oct 21 00:39:50 UTC 2014

Source: http://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm

U.S. Department of Justice

Civil Rights Division Disability Rights Section

2010 RevisedADA  Requirements

Service Animals

The Department of Justice published  revised final regulations implementing
the 

Americans with  Disabilities Act (ADA) for title II (State and local
government services) and title III (public  accommodations and commercial
facilities) on September 15, 2010, 

in the Federal Register. 

These requirements, or 

rules, clarify and refine 

issues that have arisen 

over the past 20 years 

and contain new, and 

updated, requirements, 

including the 2010 

Standards for Accessible 

Design (2010 Standards). 

Overview

This publication provides guidance on the term "service animal" 

and the service animal provisions in the Department's 

revised regulations.

| Beginning on March 15, 2011, only dogs are recognized 

as service animals under titles II and III of the ADA.

| A service animal is a dog that is individually trained to 

do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability.

| Generally, title II and title III entities must permit service 

animals to accompany people with disabilities in all 

areas where members of the public are allowed

to go.

Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually 

trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. 

Examples of such work or tasks include guiding 

people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling 

a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is 

having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to 

take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post 

Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, 

or performing other duties. Service animals are working 

animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained 

to provide must be directly related to the person's disability. 

Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional 

support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.

How "Service Animal" Is Defined

(continued, page 2)

This definition does not affect or limit the 

broader definition of "assistance animal" 

under the Fair Housing Act or the broader 

definition of "service animal" under the Air 

Carrier Access Act.

Some State and local laws also define 

service animal more broadly than the ADA 

does. Information about such laws can be 

obtained from that State's attorney general's 

office.

Under the ADA, State and local governments, 

businesses, and nonprofit organizations 

that serve the public generally must 

allow service animals to accompany people 

with disabilities in all areas of the facility 

where the public is normally allowed to 

go. For example, in a hospital it would be 

inappropriate to exclude a service animal 

from areas such as patient rooms, clinics, 

cafeterias, or examination rooms. However, 

it may be appropriate to exclude a service 

animal from operating rooms or burn units 

where the animal's presence may compromise 

a sterile environment.

Revised ADA Requirements: Service Animals

Inquiries, Exclusions, Charges, 

and Other Specific Rules Related 

to Service Animals

| When it is not obvious what service 

an animal provides, only limited 

inquiries are allowed. Staff may ask 

two questions: (1) is the dog a service 

animal required because of a disability, 

and (2) what work or task has the dog 

been trained to perform. Staff cannot 

ask about the person's disability, 

require medical documentation, require 

a special identification card or training 

documentation for the dog, or ask 

that the dog demonstrate its ability to 

perform the work or task.

| Allergies and fear of dogs are not valid 

reasons for denying access or refusing 

service to people using service animals. 

When a person who is allergic to dog 

dander and a person who uses a service 

animal must spend time in the same 

room or facility, for example, in a school 

classroom or at a homeless shelter, 

they both should be accommodated by 

assigning them, if possible, to different 

locations within the room or different 

rooms in the facility.

| A person with a disability cannot be 

asked to remove his service animal 

from the premises unless: (1) the dog 

is out of control and the handler does 

not take effective action to control 

it or (2) the dog is not housebroken. 

When there is a legitimate reason to 

ask that a service animal be removed, 

staff must offer the person with the 

disability the opportunity to obtain 

goods or services without the animal's 

presence.

Where Service Animals 

Are Allowed

Service Animals 

Must Be Under Control

Under the ADA, service animals must be 

harnessed, leashed, or tethered, unless 

these devices interfere with the service 

animal's work or the individual's disability 

prevents using these devices. In that case, 

the individual must maintain control of the 

animal through voice, signal, or other effective 

controls.

2

| Establishments that sell or prepare 

food must allow service animals in 

public areas even if state or local 

health codes prohibit animals on the 

premises.

| People with disabilities who use 

service animals cannot be isolated 

from other patrons, treated less 

favorably than other patrons, or 

charged fees that are not charged to 

other patrons without animals. In 

addition, if a business requires a 

deposit or fee to be paid by patrons 

with pets, it must waive the charge for 

service animals.

| If a business such as a hotel normally 

charges guests for damage that they 

cause, a customer with a disability may 

also be charged for damage caused by 

himself or his service animal.

| Staff are not required to provide care 

or food for a service animal.

In addition to the provisions about service 

dogs, the Department's revised ADA regulations 

have a new, separate provision about 

miniature horses that have been individually 

trained to do work or perform tasks for 

people with disabilities. (Miniature horses 

generally range in height from 24 inches 

to 34 inches measured to the shoulders 

and generally weigh between 70 and 100 

pounds.) Entities covered by the ADA must 

modify their policies to permit miniature 

horses where reasonable. The regulations 

set out four assessment factors to assist entities 

in determining whether miniature horses 

can be accommodated in their facility. The 

assessment factors are (1) whether the miniature 

horse is housebroken; (2) whether the 

miniature horse is under the owner's control; 

(3) whether the facility can accommodate 

the miniature horse's type, size, and weight; 

and (4) whether the miniature horse's presence 

will not compromise legitimate safety 

requirements necessary for safe operation of 

the facility. 

Revised ADA Requirements: Service Animals

Miniature Horses

For more information about the ADA, 

please visit our website or call our toll-free number.

ADA Website 

www.ADA.gov

To receive e-mail notifications when new ADA information is available, 

visit the ADA Website's home page and click the link near the top of the
middle column.

ADA Information Line

800-514-0301 (Voice) and 800-514-0383 (TTY)

24 hours a day to order publications by mail.

M-W, F 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., Th 12:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. (Eastern Time)

to speak with an ADA Specialist. All calls are confidential. 

For persons with disabilities, this publication is available in alternate
formats.

Duplication of this document is encouraged. July 2011 

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