[Oagdu] Fwd: [nagdu] Fake service dog bill passes Florida House, advances in Senate

Tue Mar 31 21:49:04 UTC 2015

>When I moved into my apartment It became know that MS. P. was a service dog.
A couple of folks told the plowers to be that their dogs are service dogs.
Well as fare
as I know they were not.
I would be happy that service men and women can have their dogs accepted. Our
Veterans deserve all the help they need including service dogs. I would
rather see the
fakers as some people get those tags for their cars as disabled. then we
worry about the
fakes. Me and MS. P.


 I think that this is something we should really consider adding into our
> legislative effort. Let's use very similar language to this bill.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>> On Mar 31, 2015, at 2:33 PM, Marianne Denning via Oagdu
>> <oagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>>
>> This was posted on the NAGDU list today and I am forwarding it.
>> Please make comments.
>>
>> ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>> From: Ginger Kutsch via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>> Date: Tue, 31 Mar 2015 13:01:07 -0400
>> Subject: [nagdu] Fake service dog bill passes Florida House, advances in
>> Senate
>> To: "NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
>>
>> Fake service dog bill passes Florida House, advances in Senate
>>
>> Tuesday, March 31, 2015 |
>>
>> Palm Beach Post
>>
>> Source:
>> http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/fake-ser
>> vice-dog-bill-passes-florida-house/nkhwb/
>>
>>
>>
>> Florida lawmakers are considering a bill that would tighten restrictions
>> on
>> service animals.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> The reason that Cesar Silva came to Tallahassee sat under a podium on
>> Monday
>> as Silva urged members of a Florida Senate committee to approve a bill
>> that
>> would protect him and his service dog from being harassed by people who
>> can't see his invisible war wounds - post-traumatic stress disorder and
>> shrapnel in his back.
>>
>>
>>
>> Sophia, a German shepherd, sat silently and still while Silva told the
>> Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee about problems he has encountered
>> when
>> he has tried bringing her into parks and restaurants. He also said he
>> has
>> gone to court - and won - a legal battle over his right to enter a
>> public
>> park with Sophia.
>>
>>
>>
>> "We really need this bill to define what is an invisible disability,"
>> the
>> Tampa man said. "I was kicked out of an iHop once because I didn't have
>> a
>> service dog identification card, which doesn't exist."
>>
>>
>>
>> The bill (SB 414), sponsored by Sen. Thad Altman, R-Sebastian, moved a
>> step
>> closer to becoming law Monday as the committee passed it on a unanimous
>> vote. The House version of the bill, HB 71, was unanimously passed by
>> the
>> House on Friday, after passing three committees there. The Senate
>> version
>> still has two more committee stops.
>>
>>
>>
>> The bill would make interfering with the disabled and their service
>> animals
>> a second-degree misdemeanor, carrying penalties of up to 60 days in
>> jail, up
>> to $500 in fines and 30 hours of community service for an organization
>> that
>> serves people with disabilities or another entity, at the discretion of
>> a
>> judge.
>>
>>
>>
>> Under the bill, the same crime and penalties would apply to pet owners
>> who
>> lie about having a disability and falsely claim that their pet is a
>> service
>> animal.
>>
>>
>>
>> Service animal owners cannot be asked about their disability or whether
>> they
>> are entitled to have a service animal, but they may be asked if the
>> animal
>> is a service animal and what tasks it performs to assist its owner.
>>
>>
>>
>> Much of the bill reiterates rights and rules already provided by the
>> federal
>> Americans with Disabilities Act, but what would make the Florida bill
>> distinctive is the part that would make it a criminal offense to harass
>> a
>> disabled person with a service animal or to misrepresent a pet as a
>> service
>> animal.
>>
>>
>>
>> Republican Sen. Aaron Bean of Jacksonville asked during Monday's meeting
>> if
>> animals besides dogs were covered by the bill and learned it limited
>> service
>> animals to dogs and miniature horses.
>>
>>
>>
>> "If I have a monkey, I'm out of luck?" Bean asked.
>>
>>
>>
>> The bill also would allow service animals to be removed from a business
>> or
>> other public place if the animal is not under the handler's control, is
>> not
>> housebroken or poses a serious threat to others.
>>
>>
>>
>> The Senate bill now moves Senate Community Affairs Committee.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> Marianne Denning, TVI, MA
>> Teacher of students who are blind or visually impaired
>> (513) 607-6053
>>
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