[nagdu] Handicap parking permits was re: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs from the state of Maine.

Wed Mar 4 22:05:21 UTC 2015

Donna and all,
I too know of many people who have the Handicap parking permits that do not actually need them. Its a major issue, in the sense that those who have real life disablities are now being accused of not having real life conditions that limit daily function, because so many people are abusing the system. I know that generally persons who are blind, do not need, want handicap parking permits. I would say, that is fine, if your only disability is only blindness. But when your talking about those of us who are blind with additional disabilities, its different. Only until recently have it has been clear in my mind that because of asthma, which has reached the level of disability, has this meaning come clear. I will not go into the details here, but disability is a wide range term that applies to persons with physical, mental, emotional, and conditions that limit daily life, whether visable or hidden. and unfortunately, no one is out there writing tickets to those people who are violating handicap parking permits. I don't know when, it became not only cool to have people pass their dogs off as service dogs, but for people to say that they have a disability when they truely do not. 

Before I am jumped on here, I am not saying that anyone on this list is doing this, but as I already stated, I can name several on one hand that are in vilation of this law who live in my community. I know these people personal, and have asked why do this, and there ansser is because my doctor filled out the paperwork, and because I am lazy, and because it gets me a parking spot up front wherre I do not have to walk to and from the car in the heat or cold. There are also no ways to turn in these people. 

So back to your original reason Donna for having one, that is your decision, it makes sense because of the pup. 

Just my two cents, back to my moderator rock...LOL 

Marsha drenth  
email: marsha.drenth at gmail.com  
Sent with my IPhone  
Please note that this email communication has been sent using my iPhone. As such, I may have used dictation and had made attempts to mitigate errors. Please do not be hesitant to ask for clarification as necessary. 

> On Mar 4, 2015, at 2:27 PM, Applebutter Hill via nagdu <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Marion,
> I have no idea what the actual law is here in Pennsylvania. In Philadelphia,
> there are enormous numbers of people with handicapped parking stickers who
> have no problems walking and the grumbling, when I was there, was that they
> got them through political favors.
> 
> Recently, I asked my doctor to sign off on a handicapped parking sticker for
> me, which he did and I have received and used it. I walk just fine. My
> reasoning is that normal parking spaces are very narrow. Even if we park
> somewhere that has room for me to get Hunter out of the car and harnessed up
> safely and comfortably, there is no guarantee that when we return to the
> car, someone won't have parked us in. There have been many times when I
> can't open the door fully and Hunter can't fully face the car to get in.
> I've had to stand out in the traffic lane and wait for the driver to pull
> out and pick us up. With the handicapped spaces, there is always enough
> room.
> Donna
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Marion Gwizdala
> via nagdu
> Sent: Wednesday, March 04, 2015 12:11 PM
> To: 'Star Gazer'; 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog
> Users'
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs from the state
> of Maine.
> 
>    The criteria for a disabled parking permit are set forth in state
> law. In the state of Florida, there are specific requirements of having a
> mobility impairment that limits the distance one is able to walk. I am not
> an expert in this area but the rules in florida do not include blindness
> without a mobility impairment. Of course, many physicians would liely assert
> that blindness impairs the ability to walk long distances; we would not want
> to confuse them with the facts, would we?
> 
> Marion
> 
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Star Gazer via
> nagdu
> Sent: Monday, March 02, 2015 3:03 PM
> To: 'Dudley Hanks'; 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide
> Dog Users'
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs from the state
> of Maine.
> 
> I never trained my own guides and I'd not show id.
> Also, you don't need to prove that you can't walk a certain distance in
> order to get a handicapped parking permit. You simply have to have a doctor
> sign off on whether or not you have a disability that fits the "this person
> can get a permit" criteria.
> You don't have to prove to the manager of Giant that you really do need the
> parking permit in order to park on one of the spaces. You just have to have
> the permit.
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Dudley Hanks via
> nagdu
> Sent: Monday, March 2, 2015 2:59 PM
> To: 'Skewis, Brian at DCA'; 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of
> Guide Dog Users'; 'The Pawpower Pack'; 'Debby Phillips'
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs from the state
> of Maine.
> 
> I can't speak for everyone but for me it boils down to criteria.
> 
> In order to get a handicap parking placard, the applicant needs to provide
> some sort of medical or physical proof that he or she cannot walk a certain
> distance.  Here in Alberta, I think it's 300 feet, but I could be mistaken.
> 
> Regardless of the cause of the mobility problem, there is an objective
> criteria that needs to be met, and that threshold is fairly easy to
> evaluate.
> 
> With service dogs, there are a number of people who benefit from a number of
> different things the dogs can be trained to do, and there are a number of
> ways the dogs can provide that assistance, it is unreasonable to assume that
> any single entity or organization can accurately evaluate every possible
> permutation.  Hence, some groups will benefit from any given registration
> scheme while others could be disadvantaged once again.
> 
> Personally, I don't have a problem showing my ID card when asked to do so,
> but that is a touchier issue for those who train their own Guides.
> 
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Skewis, Brian at DCA
> via nagdu
> Sent: March-02-15 12:17 PM
> To: The Pawpower Pack; NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide
> Dog Users; Debby Phillips
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs from the state
> of Maine.
> 
> Hi all,
> 
> I want to genuinely thank you all for your posts regarding service dog
> legislation.  I have been following the legislation in Florida, Arizona, and
> Maine quite diligently and I am truly grateful to be able to see your
> responses regarding the topic.
> 
> I work for the California State Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind; a
> consumer protection board that licenses and regulates guide dog schools and
> instructors in California.  I get calls and emails on a regular basis from
> people asking questions about guide dogs and service dogs in general.  These
> questions range from business owners asking access questions, to questions
> about how to register or license a service dog, to questions from members of
> the legislature regarding how to "fix" the fake service dog issue.
> 
> I understand that the ADA specifically protects a service dog user from
> having to show any documentation to gain access to a place of public
> accommodation, but a question I have yet to have answered is how this is
> different from an individual with a disability having to display a placard
> on their vehicle or license plate in order to use an accessible parking
> place.  How is displaying a license on a service dog different than
> displaying a placard on a vehicle?  Is it because the individual leaves the
> vehicle and then can assume personal privacy from that point?  I ask because
> I have seen this analogy used several times in articles, but I haven't heard
> both sides of the argument.
> 
> Regarding the legislation in Maine, Arizona, and Florida, my personal
> opinion is that because federal law is so broad, that it makes it very easy
> for people to fraudulently hold their pet dogs out as service animals with
> little to no repercussions.  There either needs to be a service dog club on
> the national or state level (meaning some way to identify legitimate service
> dog teams and exclude illegitimate teams), or the aversion of animals in
> public needs to change along with the education of businesses in their right
> to request that a poorly behaved dog leave the premises.
> 
> Thank you again for your continued education and fascinating stories
> regarding guide dogs and your lives with your "fluffy durable medical
> equipment" as I read earlier, which literally made me laugh out loud.
> Although I'm not a guide dog user, my chocolate lab gives me so much
> happiness, I identify with you all on that level.
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Brian Skewis
> California State Board of Guide Dogs for the Blind
> Email: brian.skewis at dca.ca.gov
> www.guidedogboard.ca.gov
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nagdu [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of The Pawpower Pack
> via nagdu
> Sent: Monday, March 02, 2015 10:19 AM
> To: Debby Phillips; NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide
> Dog Users
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Fw: Proposed Act Regarding Service Dogs fromthe stateof
> Maine.
> 
> Under the ADA, most stores are required to give a certain number of feet to
> aisle clearance space. If the store is not doing this, then they are IMHO,
> asking for trouble.  This is not just a service dog or blind issue, but the
> same struggle would be faced by someone with a wheelchair, or walker.
> If I go into a store, and cannot get through the aisle, either with a dog or
> in a wheelchair, and something gets broken, the store is responsible to make
> sure there is enough clearance.
> 
> It is the responsibility of the store to make sure that they are ADA
> compliant.
> 
> 
> Rox and the kitchen Bitches:
> Mill'E, Laveau, Soleil
> Pawpower4me at gmail.com
> Sent from my iPhone
> 
>> On Mar 2, 2015, at 12:12 PM, Debby Phillips via nagdu
>> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
>> 
>> Whether I liked it or not, I would have to pay for such.  There are
>> lots
> of shops where aisles are narrow and there's stuff everywhere.  As for
> dessert trays, they will put them where they can be seen and who better to
> see them and want them than children? It's a matter of taking responsibility
> for what my dog or my child, if I had one, does.    Debby
>> 
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