TNAA eyes bills in Tennessee Legislature
The Tennessee state legislature convened for the second session of the 113th General Assembly on Tuesday, January 9, 2024. The Tennessee Apartment Association (TNAA) exists to serve and promote the Tennessee rental housing industry through advocacy, collaboration, and communication. As always, TNAA has identified bills of interest to monitor and promote during this legislative session.
Of particular interest is House Bill 2266 by Rep. Clark Boyd, R – Lebanon, and its companion bill Senate Bill 2030 by Sen. Shane Reeves, R – Murfreesboro, initiated by TNAA. As introduced, the legislation specifies that documents provided through a website with the primary function of providing certificates, registrations, licenses, or similar documents for assistance animals in exchange for payment of a fee are not reliable documentation in seeking an exemption to a prohibition on animals in rental property.
In 2020, the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued Notice FHEO-2020-01 that explains certain obligations of housing providers under the Fair Housing Act (FHA) with respect to animals that individuals with disabilities may request as reasonable
accommodations. HUD provided this guidance to help housing providers distinguish between a person with a non-obvious disability who has a legitimate need for an assistance animal and a person without a disability who simply wants to have a pet or avoid the costs and limitations
imposed by housing providers’ pet policies, such as pet fees or deposits.
There are two types of assistance animals: (1) service animals, and (2) other trained or
untrained animals that do work, perform tasks, provide assistance, and/or provide therapeutic
emotional support for individuals with disabilities (referred to as a “support animal”).
Assistance animals are not pets. A housing provider may exclude or charge a fee or deposit
for pets in its discretion and subject to local law but not for service animals or other
assistance animals.
The Fair Housing Act (FHA) makes it unlawful for a housing provider to refuse to make a reasonable accommodation that a person with a disability may need in order to have equal
opportunity to enjoy and use a dwelling. One common request housing providers receive is
for a reasonable accommodation to providers’ pet or no-animal policies so that individuals
with disabilities are permitted to use assistance animals in housing, including public and
common use areas.
By providing greater clarity through this guidance, HUD seeks to provide housing providers with a tool they may use to reduce burdens that they may face when they are uncertain about the type and amount of documentation they may need and may be permitted to request when an individual seeks to keep a support animal in housing.
Some websites sell certificates, registrations, and licensing documents for assistance animals to anyone who answers certain questions or participates in a short interview and pays a fee. Under the Fair Housing Act, a housing provider may request reliable documentation when an individual requesting a reasonable accommodation has a disability and disability-related need
for an accommodation that are not obvious or otherwise known. In HUD’s experience, such
documentation from the internet is not, by itself, sufficient to reliably establish that an
individual has a non-observable disability or disability-related need for an assistance
animal.
By contrast, many legitimate, licensed health care professionals deliver services remotely, including over the internet. One reliable form of documentation is a note from a person’s health care professional that confirms a person’s disability and/or need for an animal when the provider has personal knowledge of the individual.
House Bill 2266/Senate Bill 2030 mirrors HUD guidance and seeks to specify in state law that documents provided through a website with the primary function of providing certificates, registrations, licenses, or similar documents for assistance animals in exchange for payment of a fee are not reliable documentation in seeking an exemption to a prohibition on animals in rental property. If passed, this act takes effect July 1, 2024. TNAA will continue to advocate for its passage and will update the membership as additional information is available.
By Catie Lane Bailey, Holland & Knight
* The information provided herein does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials available in this article are for general informational purposes only.