The Trainer — June 2013 Special Issue
HANDLING REQUESTS FOR ASSISTANCE ANIMALS; COMPLYING WITH DESIGN & ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS
In our feature on responding to residents’ and applicants’ requests for assistance animals, weexplained the federal fair housing requirements and suggested five rules to follow to comply with them. Under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and Section 504, a disabled person must be allowed to use an assistance animal even in housing that otherwise prohibits pets.
In our article on the new joint statement issued by HUD and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), we discussed how those agencies clarified the FHA’s requirement that multifamily housing be designed and constructed so it's accessible to persons with disabilities. To help you comply with federal accessibility laws, we explained the time limits formalized in the joint statement and reviewed the various laws that protect the rights of persons with disabilities.
QUIZ
QUESTION #1
When prospects call and say they have a pet, it’s okay if we tell them about our no-pet policy and suggest they call the local humane society for a list of pet-friendly communities. True or false?
a. True.
b. False.
QUESTION #2
Our site has a no-pet policy. Recently, we discovered that a resident has a cat in her unit. She said that she’s disabled and it’s an emotional support animal. It seems like she’s just trying to keep her pet cat, so we can enforce the lease to require her to remove the animal. True or false?
a. True.
b. False.
QUESTION #3
Our site allows pets, but they can’t be more than 20 pounds. If a disabled resident says she needs a larger dog as an assistance animal, then we should consider making an exception to the weight restriction as a reasonable accommodation. True or false?
a. True.
b. False.
QUESTION #4
We can require all applicants who have animals to pay an extra fee or additional security deposit to cover any potential property damage the animal may cause. True or false?
a. True.
b. False.
QUESTION #5
When a person believes he has suffered an injury because a site hasn’t been constructed in compliance with the accessibility requirements of the FHA, how long does he have to file a complaint with HUD?
a. One year.
b. Two years.
c. 10 years.
d. There’s no statute of limitations in these cases.
QUESTION #6
Your site includes a newly constructed building without an elevator. The ground-floor units feature one bathroom with two bathroom doors, one leading to the hallway and the other leading to a bedroom. When a new resident in a wheelchair moves in, she notices that the door leading to the bedroom is too narrow to allow her to pass through. She wants the door widened. What should you do?
a. Ignore her request. She has access to the bathroom through one doorway, so there's no violation.
b. Allow her to have the doorway widened at her own expense.
c. Pay to widen the doorway in her unit.
d. Pay to widen the doorways in all the ground-floor units.
ANSWERS & EXPLANATIONS
QUESTION #1
Correct answer: a
Sites may generally adopt policies to prohibit or otherwise restrict pets, as long as you consider requests for exceptions to the policies as a reasonable accommodation when necessary to allow an individual with a disability to keep an assistance animal.
QUESTION #2
Correct answer: b
Despite your instincts, don’t dismiss the possibility that she may be entitled to keep the cat under fair housing law. It’s true that cats can’t be service animals, but fair housing law is broad enough to permit an individual with a disability to have an assistance animal other than a dog, including an emotional support animal, if she has a disability-related need for the animal.
QUESTION #3
Correct answer: a
Under fair housing law, sites must consider a request for an exception to pet policies, including size or weight restrictions, as a reasonable accommodation when necessary to allow an individual with a disability an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the property.
QUESTION #4
Correct answer: b
A site may not require an applicant with a disability to pay a fee or a security deposit as a condition of allowing him to keep an assistance animal.
QUESTION #5
Correct answer: a
Under the FHA, “[a]n aggrieved person may, not later than one year after an alleged discriminatory housing practice has occurred or terminated, file a complaint” with HUD [42 U.S.C. § 3610(a)]. However, the person “may commence a civil action [in Court]. . . not later than 2 years after the occurrence or the termination of an alleged discriminatory housing practice” [42 U.S.C. § 3613(a)(1)(A)].
In addition, HUD has warned that the discriminatory housing practice—failure to design and construct the building in compliance—doesn’t terminate until the building is brought into compliance with the FHA.
QUESTION #6
Correct answer: d
All doors that allow passage into and within all premises must be wide enough to allow passage by people in wheelchairs, including both doors to a bathroom.
The specific design and construction standards can be found in the appropriate requirements of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines (FHAG), and in HUD’s Fair Housing Act Design Manual. To help you with your site’s initial assessment, you can use our Site Accessibility Checklist.