1. Q: What are the laws that apply to my business?
A: Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), privately
owned businesses that serve the public, such as restaurants,
hotels, retail stores, taxicabs, theaters, concert halls, and
sports facilities, are prohibited from discriminating against
individuals with disabilities. The ADA requires these businesses
to allow people with disabilities to bring their service animals
onto business premises in whatever areas customers are generally
allowed.
2. Q: What is a service animal?
A: The ADA defines a service animal as any guide dog,
signal dog, or other animal individually trained to provide
assistance to an individual with a disability. If they meet this
definition, animals are considered service animals under the ADA
regardless of whether they have been licensed or certified by a
state or local government.
Service animals perform some of the functions and tasks that
the individual with a disability cannot perform for him or
herself. Guide dogs are one type of service animal, used by some
individuals who are blind. This is the type of service animal with
which most people are familiar. But there are service animals that
assist persons with other kinds of disabilities in their
day-to-day activities. Some examples include:
_ Alerting persons with hearing
impairments to sounds.
_ Pulling wheelchairs or carrying
and picking up things for persons with mobility impairments.
_ Assisting persons with mobility
impairments with balance.
A service animal is not a pet.
3. Q: How can I tell if an animal is really a service animal
and not just a pet?
A: Some, but not all, service animals wear special collars and
harnesses. Some, but not all, are licensed or certified and have
identification papers. If you are not certain that an animal is a
service animal, you may ask the person who has the animal if it is
a service animal required because of a disability. However, an
individual who is going to a restaurant or theater is not likely
to be carrying documentation of his or her medical condition or
disability. Therefore, such documentation generally may not be
required as a condition for providing service to an individual
accompanied by a service animal. Although a number of states have
programs to certify service animals, you may not insist on proof
of state certification before permitting the service animal to
accompany the person with a disability.
4. Q: What must I do when an individual with a service animal
comes to my business?
A: The service animal must be permitted to accompany the
individual with a disability to all areas of the facility where
customers are normally allowed to go. An individual with a service
animal may not be segregated from other
customers.
5. Q: I have always had a clearly posted "no pets" policy at
my establishment. Do I still have to allow service animals
in?
A: Yes. A service animal is not a pet. The ADA requires
you to modify your "no pets" policy to allow the use of a service
animal by a person with a disability. This does not mean you must
abandon your "no pets" policy altogether but simply that you must
make an exception to your general rule for service
animals.
6. Q: My county health department has told me that only
a guide dog has to be admitted. If I follow those regulations, am I
violating the ADA?
A: Yes, if you refuse to admit any other type of service animal
on the basis of local health department regulations or other state
or local laws. The ADA provides greater protection for individuals
with disabilities and so it takes priority over the local or state
laws or regulations.
7. Q: Can I charge a maintenance or cleaning fee for customers
who bring service animals into my business?
A: No. Neither a deposit nor a surcharge may be imposed on an
individual with a disability as a condition to allowing a service
animal to accompany the individual with a disability, even if
deposits are routinely required for pets. However, a public
accommodation may charge its customers with disabilities if a
service animal causes damage so long as it is the regular practice
of the entity to charge non-disabled customers for the same types
of damages. For example, a hotel can charge a guest with a
disability for the cost of repairing or cleaning furniture damaged
by a service animal if it is the hotel's policy to charge when
non-disabled guests cause such damage.
8. Q: I operate a private taxicab and I don't want animals in
my taxi; they smell, shed hair and sometimes have "accidents." Am I
violating the ADA if I refuse to pick up someone with a service
animal?
A: Yes. Taxicab companies may not refuse to provide services to
individuals with disabilities. Private taxicab companies are also
prohibited from charging higher fares or fees for transporting
individuals with disabilities and their service animals than they
charge to other persons for the same or equivalent
service.
9. Q: Am I responsible for the animal while the person with a
disability is in my business?
A: No. The care or supervision of a service animal is solely
the responsibility of his or her owner. You are not required to
provide care or food or a special location for the
animal.
10. Q: What if a service animal barks or growls at other
people, or otherwise acts out of control?
A: You may exclude any animal, including a service animal, from
your facility when that animal's behavior poses a direct threat to
the health or safety of others. For example, any service animal
that displays vicious behavior towards other guests or customers
may be excluded. You may not make assumptions, however, about how
a particular animal is likely to behave based on your past
experience with other animals. Each situation must be considered
individually.
Although a public accommodation may exclude any service animal
that is out of control, it should give the individual with a
disability who uses the service animal the option of continuing to
enjoy its goods and services without having the service animal on
the premises.
11. Q: Can I exclude an animal that doesn't really seem
dangerous but is disruptive to my business?
A: There may be a few circumstances when a public accommodation
is not required to accommodate a service animal--that is, when
doing so would result in a fundamental alteration to the nature of
the business. Generally, this is not likely to occur in
restaurants, hotels, retail stores, theaters, concert halls, and
sports facilities. But when it does, for example, when a dog barks
during a movie, the animal can be excluded.
If you have further questions about service animals or other
requirements of the ADA, you may call the U.S. Department of
Justice's toll-free ADA Information Line at 800-514-0301 (voice) or
800-514-0383 (TDD).
