Assistance animals allowed in condos, with some limits

Question: Does Hawaii have a law permitting a person living alone in a condominium to have a companion pet even if the condo association has a no-pet rule?

Answer: It would depend on whether the person can show that he or she has a physical or mental impairment and that the animal is not just a pet.

Both Hawaii and the federal government, through its Fair Housing Act, have laws requiring “housing providers” to make “reasonable accommodations” for a person with a disability to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling.

Those accommodations must extend to “assistance animals,” not just to “service animals” as defined under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

In the ADA, the U.S. Justice Department “narrowly” defined service animals to be dogs and miniature horses trained to perform tasks with persons with disabilities, said William Hoshijo, executive director of the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission.

“One of the common misunderstandings is that ADA applies to the Fair Housing Act,” Hoshijo said. It doesn’t. Under state and federal housing laws, “assistance animals” are given a broader definition.
In a flier put out by Hoshijo’s office, assistance animals are described as animals “that work, provide assistance, or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability.”

They can be animals that “provide emotional support that alleviates one or more symptoms or effects of a person’s disability” and include “service animals,” “support animals,” “therapy animals” and “comfort animals.”

Such animals don’t necessarily have to guide the blind, pull a wheelchair, alert the hearing-impaired or fetch items, but can be there simply to provide emotional support or comfort.

Neither “service animals” nor “assistance animals” have to be certified or formally trained.

However, while no one can demand documentation of a service animal’s qualifications or necessity, housing providers are allowed to request information to establish the need for an assistance animal.

Hoshijo said a housing provider “has an obligation to engage in an interactive process, so there is an
exchange of information” when a request for an assistance animal is made. “The housing provider can ask for a doctor’s note to establish that the person is a person with a disability and that the animal ameliorates one or more conditions.”

According to the information flier, “The housing provider may not demand detailed medical records or information.”

Sufficient information could be a note from a treating physician, psychiatrist, psychologist or other mental health professional, or a social worker, that establishes a disability and the animal’s role.

The request for an assistance animal can be denied if the animal poses a direct threat to others or damages property; or if the animal “poses an undue financial and administrative burden, or fundamentally alters the nature of the housing provider’s operation,” the flier says.

Housing providers are allowed to establish “reasonable restrictions” on assistance animals, such as requiring licenses and vaccinations and being under control, and requiring the owner to pay for any damage caused by the animal. However, they may not assess any “surcharges,” Hoshijo said, such as additional deposits, fees or liability insurance that may be imposed on pet owners.

“It took a bit of public education before (housing providers) got beyond just having no-pet policies with no accommodations” for assistance animals, he said. “For a person with disabilities, these aren’t just pets.”

FILING COMPLAINTS

Complaints regarding “reasonable accommodations” can be filed with Hoshijo’s office. Call 586-8636 or go to labor.hawaii.gov/hcrc for more information. Click on “publications” for the flier on assistance animals.

In the 2012 fiscal year, the commission dealt with 40 complaints of housing discrimination. Thirteen of the complaints involving people with disabilities, including the use of assistance animals.

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