33RD ANNUAL CCNY CONFERENCEFRIDAY, JUNE 5, 2015

JULIE HAWKINS, PH.D.

COLGATE UNIVERSITY

The Animals are Coming!

Goals

1.Why do we need to know about Assistance Animals?

2.What we need to know about Assistance Animals on Campus.

3.Policy considerations.

Why?

Requests to bring dogs and other service animals on college and university campuses are on the rise.

Colleges and universities are subject to a number of federal and local antidiscrimination laws, which impose differing obligations and definitions of “service animal.”

The Americans with Disabilities Act and the Fair Housing Act apply to student housing.

Legal Cases

United States of America v. Univ. of Nebraska at Kearney (Complaint) (D. Neb. 2011) 

Alejandro v. Palm Beach State College, --- F.Supp.2d ---, 2011 WL 7400018 (S.D.Fla 2011). 

United States v. Millikin University, FHEO No. 05-06-0829-8 (September 18, 2009) 

Legal Cases

Legal Cases

Legal Cases

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”)

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973Fair Housing Act (“FHA”)

Prohibit discrimination based on disability, and impose obligations upon colleges and universities to accommodate service or assistance animals.

Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”)

Title II of the ADA Applies to

State and local governmental entities, including all public colleges and universities

A public entity must modify its policies, practices, or procedures to permit the use of a service animal by an individual with a disability

ADA

Title III of the ADA Applies to:

All public and private colleges and universities, except qualifying religious entities.

Individuals with disabilities shall be permitted to be accompanied by their service animals in all areas of a place of public accommodation

ADA

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act apply to almost all colleges, universities, and trade schools.

The laws mandate an equal opportunity for students with disabilities – they’re entitled to benefit from all the services of those institutions and to use campus facilities

ADA

You probably know... If your institution receives federal financial

assistance, you’re subject to section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Office of Civil Right’s complaint process.

Almost all colleges – except for a handful of private colleges that refuse federal financial assistance – are covered. If you’re a public college, you’re also subject to title II of the ADA, DOJ’s regulation, and OCR’s complaint process.

Individuals can file litigation under the ADA and section 504.

ADA

But did you know?…

Title III of the ADA applies to all private colleges (except those that qualify for the “religious entity” exemption) whether or not they receive federal funds.

The DOJ reviews focus on private colleges. They have to comply with DOJ’s title III rule. DOJ can litigate and get civil penalties and damages for individuals. DOJ has agreements with several private colleges.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

Applies to: Any institution receiving federal financial assistance, which includes nearly all public and private colleges and universities.

Definition of Service Animal: the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) has adopted the definition provided by Title II and Title III of the ADA.

Thus, Section 504 imposes the same obligations on colleges and universities as the ADA does to permit dogs qualifying as service animals on campus.

Department of Housing and Urban Development “HUD”

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development “HUD”

Applies a broader definition of “assistance animal” when enforcing Section 504 for reasonable accommodation purposes, in the housing context.

HUD

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development “HUD”

Applies a broader definition of “assistance animal” when enforcing Section 504 for reasonable accommodation purposes, in the housing context.

The Fair Housing Act

Housing providers must offer reasonable accommodations to residents with disabilities.

The courts and HUD have ruled that campus housing is a dwelling under the FHA.

The Fair Housing Act

HUD and some courts have ordered housing providers to modify “no pets” rules as a reasonable accommodation for residents who rely on emotional support animals to ameliorate the effects of psychiatric disabilities.

As a result, an increasing number of students now live in campus housing with their emotional support animals.

Animals

Pets Animals living with owners for purposes of love, affection, and company.

Animals

Canine interaction increases a human's level of oxytocin, a hormone that reduces anxiety and blood pressure.

Petting a dog or caring for a pet helps people become less frightened, more secure and diverts their attention away from their own fears or anxieties.

Animals

Service Animals Any animal individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a physical, intellectual, and mental disability - i.e., guiding individuals with impaired vision, providing protection or rescue work, pulling a wheel chair, or fetching dropped items.

Animals

Therapy AnimalIn New York, a therapy dog is:1.Any dog that is trained to aid the emotional and physical health of patients in hospitals, nursing homes, retirement homes and other settings and is actually used for such purpose, or…2.Any dog owned by a recognized training center located within the state during the period such dog is being trained or bred for such purpose.”

Animals

Emotional Support AnimalsProvide some therapeutic benefit to a person with mental or psychiatric disability, requiring no specific training. The mere presence of this animal mitigates the effects of the emotional or mental disability.

Animals

Emotional Support AnimalsProvide some therapeutic benefit to a person with mental or psychiatric disability, requiring no specific training. The mere presence of this animal mitigates the effects of the emotional or mental disability.

What is a Service Animal?

Defined by Title II and Title III of the ADA:

A service animal means any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability. 

What is a Service Animal?

Service animals are limited to dogs. However, entities must make reasonable modifications in policies to allow individuals with disabilities to use miniature horses if they have been individually trained to do work or perform tasks for individuals with disabilities.

What is a Service Animal?

Psychiatric Service Dog

A dog that has been trained to perform tasks that assist individuals with disabilities to detect the onset of psychiatric episodes and lessen their effects.

What is a Service Animal?

Tasks performed by psychiatric service animals may include:

Reminding the handler to take medicine Providing safety checks or room searches Turning on lights for persons with Post

Traumatic Stress Disorder Interrupting self-mutilation by persons with

dissociative identity disorders Keeping disoriented individuals from danger

Service Animals

Under the ADA, colleges and universities must allow people with disabilities to bring their service animals into all areas of the facility that are open to the public or to students.

Service Animals

Colleges and universities may have a policy asking students who use service animals to contact the school’s Disability Services Coordinator to register as a student with a disability.

Service Animals

Higher education institutions may not require any documentation about the training or certification of a service animal.

They may, however, require proof that a service animal has any vaccinations required by state or local laws that apply to all animals.

What is an Emotional Support Animal?

Title II and Title III of the ADA:

Emotional Support Animals, Comfort Animals, and Therapy Dogs are not service animals.

Other species of animals, whether wild or domestic, trained or untrained, are not considered service animals either.

A doctor’s letter does not turn an animal into a service animal.

What is an Emotional Support Animal?

An emotional support animal is a companion animal that provides therapeutic benefit to an individual with a mental or psychiatric disability.

The person seeking the emotional support animal must have a verifiable disability.

The reason cannot just be a need for companionship.

Assistance Animal Defined

Under the FHA, a person may keep an assistance animal in his or her dwelling unit as a reasonable accommodation if:

1. The person has a disability;2. The animal is necessary to afford the person

with a disability an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling; and

3. There is an identifiable relationship or nexus between the disability and the assistance the animal provides. 

What is an Emotional Support Animal?

The animal is viewed as a "reasonable accommodation" under the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (the FHA) to those housing communities that have a "no pets" rule.

Emotional Support Animals

What are the requirements to obtain one?

To qualify, a person must meet the federal definition of disability.

The emotional support animal alleviates or mitigates some of the symptoms of the disability.

No specific training of the animal is required.

Emotional Support Animals

What are the requirements to obtain one?

Must have a note from a physician or other medical professional stating that a person has a disability and that the reasonable accommodation (here, the emotional support animal) provides benefit for the individual with the disability.

How to get documentation?

However……

New York State Law:

“It shall be a violation for any person to knowingly affix to any dog any false or improper identification tag, special identification tag for identifying guide, service or hearing dogs or purebred license tag.”

Policy Considerations

Guidelines:

Serve as a consultant to campus partners, including Disability Services Residential Life Student Health Services

Consider dual-relationship/dual role conflicts

“Reasonable Accommodations, Reasonable Rules”

What can you ask?

The US Department of Justice allows only permits businesses to ask two questions:

1. Is this a service dog required because of disability?

2. What is it trained to do to mitigate the disability?

Goals

Why do we need to know about Assistance Animals?

What we need to know about Assistance Animals on Campus.

Policy considerations.

Additional Lawsuits

http://eagnews.org/doj-sues-university-over-refusal-to-allow-emotional-service-dog-in-student-housing/

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2011/12/13/lawsuit-over-therapy-dog-raises-questions-about-university-housing

https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2011/11/28/us-sues-over-students-right-emotional-assistance-dog

http://www.athensnews.com/ohio/article-37014-ou-student-settles-fair-housing-lawsuit-over-her-therapy-animal.html

http://www.highereducationlaw.org/url/2014/8/23/kent-state-charged-with-violating-fair-housing-act-for-refus.html

http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/jp/grand-valley-state-u-settles-students-lawsuit-over-guinea-pig-for-40000