On a different, but somewhat similar note, will those with medical issues warranting legal medical marijuana be allowed to smoke on planes, particularly flights of 2 hours or longer? Will there be lawsuits.
I do not think those lawsuits will go far because there are alternative ways to consume that medicinal product, M2CK. If they cannot have a regular brownie, there are sugar-free, gluten-free, free range, no-whales-harmed-in-the-production alternatives.
No because you don’t need to smoke marijuana for medicinal benefits. In fact, it’s discouraged by many (probably most) docs.
It’s available in pill form and, in my experience at least, works just as well.
It’s federally illegal and given the incoming AG pick, that’s not likely to change any time soon. There are alternatives to smoking and vaping which include edible MJ.
The Denver based apartment company that I used to work for had a blanket no smoking ban in all but one of its properties for new tenants (the lone exception was a student focused apartment in Boulder, CO, no surprise there). Even though a CO judge would have likely sided with the tenant if my company banned only marijuana smoke and not tobacco, a blanket ban on all smoking will pass muster should the smoking ban ever be challenged in court. I imagine the same will hold true when marijuana possession ceases to be a federal crime. More than likely though, it will be regulated much like alcohol which means that states will regulate when and where it can be ingested.
<<<
There are alternatives to smoking and vaping which include edible MJ.
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
I didn’t know if the alternatives were as effective or as economical. I have no idea about this…just wondering based on someone’s comment over Thanksgiving.
Consult an attorney to be safe. Here’s how we handle it with our rentals which are inexpensive and generally sought after by young-uns. We require that the person have a qualifying mental disability. We require that the claim of mental impairment come with a physician letter stating the the mental impairment and how it impacts their life activities and that the pet is necessary to lessen the effects of the disability. We also require a certificate from a reputable certification organization and proof that the dog is licensed and has had a rabies shot. We alter the lease to reflect the acceptance of the service animal and the requirement that the animal be current on licensing (dogs are required to be licensed in my area) and rabies through the term of the lease. And finally we add an additional $250 to the cleaning fee to get rid of fur, fleas and whatever else wear and tear the animal creates on the apartment. For us, simply stating “yes we take service dogs” here are the requirements tends to sort the good guys from the scammers.
H manages hundreds of units in Ca. If a tenant has a letter from a mental health professional they are able to have an ESA. No pet fee or regulations can be enforced as the animal is not a “pet”. Even if the other roommates object. In Ca what @momofthreeboys does would be illegal.
In our rentals if someone wants to add another adult to the lease the additional person must be approved before moving in. They would need to complete an application and have their credit run.
In most areas you can google and call the local Apartment Owners Association and get information. Or if your city has a local rent control board that could also be a source of information.
<<<<
In our rentals if someone wants to add another adult to the lease the additional person must be approved before moving in. They would need to complete an application and have their credit run
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
That’s our policy as long as the person is over 18 and not a child/dependent of the resident. Maybe that could be a legit reason to exclude if the GF doesn’t pass the credit check. The BF may say that he’s guaranteeing the rent, but what if he moves out at some point and leaves her? In some places, it’s hard to evict someone, even if they’re not on the lease if they’ve been essentially living there.
Actually service dogs aren’t always with owner. Someone above mentioned sporting event. Daughter of friend has guide dog. She went to college football game wth her dad and dog stayed with her mom. Too much going and and hard for him to be comfortable with loud noise. He is good dog and had no trouble traveling to England and Scotland and all that it involved (trained at same place as wrangler on today show)
Although there may be city ordinances or state laws that allow a more liberal housing policy of ESA, the only federal law is for air travel and hotels (and it is a federal law many regret passing especially as it is abused all the time for plane travel). Florida specifically bans ESAs from grocery stores and restaurants while service animals are allowed by federal law.
Make sure the lawyer knows this is a emotional support animal and not a service animal. Many people misinterpret the ADA. It doesn’t say that any person who claims a disability gets to do whatever he wants, it requires certain businesses, schools, government offices to make accommodations IF those can be done without compromising the activity. A blind person can’t require a medical school to admit him, a person can be required to lift 50 pounds or stand for 4 hours at a time, and the business doesn’t have to hire him if he can’t. If the ESA is a pit bull, and pit bulls aren’t allowed in that city, I don’t think the accommodation can be made.
<<<
Actually service dogs aren’t always with owner. Someone above mentioned sporting event. Daughter of friend has guide dog. She went to college football game wth her dad and dog stayed with her mom. Too much going and and hard for him to be comfortable with loud noise.
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
Was this a true service dog or an ESA? Service dogs are trained not to be bothered by noise and distractions.
Either way, sure there may be some extreme exceptions…a SA doesn’t go into an operating room while his person is undergoing heart surgery. My point really was that those with ESAs often choose not to bring along their animals. Few young women would bring along an ESA on a first date. Few non-office indoor jobs let you bring along an ESA (as mentioned above, my friend’s DD is a restaurant server and obviously isn’t bringing along her ESA dog). I don’t see retail employees with an ESA by their side, yet some may have them at home.
Recently I was about to board a plane and the woman behind me was “wearing” her ESA in a front-body-carrier, similar to what parents use to carry babies (a medium-sized dog of about 30-40lbs). Her dog was blind (literally had no eyes). Don’t get me wrong, she probably can’t easily leave him behind (I have a blind dog, too, so I understand). Sure, maybe the dog gives her some comfort, many of us are nervous flyers, but it just looked like some sort of scam in order to bring along her special-needs pet onto the plane who would normally be too big to be crated to fit under the seat. This way, the dog didn’t have to fly cargo, and could sit on “mommy’s” lap the whole flight…for free. A child that size would not be allowed to sit on a parent’s lap the whole flight.
Although this may not apply to NY, I did read that some areas will allow a landlord to insist that the renter show proof that the renter is mentally DISABLED and needs the ESA to live. Simply having a mental illness is not enough. Being disabled is the benchmark in some areas. If the OP’s renter’s girlfriend is not disabled (has a job, etc) then she would not meet the req’t.
I was curious - and found this brochure from the NY Attorney General.(Since you said you were in NY) As usual, logic doesn’t apply.
One might think that dogs should be “certified” as service dogs, not just declared to be a service dog by the owner.
some exerpts: (emphasis added by me)
Housing may be a separate cagegory: (my rat is a service animal!)
Here is the brochure: https://www.ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/pdfs/publications/service_animals_brochure.pdf
<<<
individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability,
[QUOTE=""]
[/QUOTE]
That is a key phrase, I believe. ESAs aren’t trained to do work or perform tasks to the benefit of someone with a DISABILITY.
Simply having anxiety or depression or PTSD doesn’t often rise to the level of “disability” and furthermore, the ESA is simply that, a pet that helps the person “feel better”. It isn’t trained to do tasks/work like a SA is.
Well, as I mentioned in Michigan you can ask for a physician’s order or note to confirm that the potential tenant has a disability and requires emotional support from an animal. You can ask (any) tenants for a reasonable cleaning fee. You cannot ask for a “pet fee” unless you allow all tenants to have a pet and then you charge a pet fee. If it is a service animal you can ask to see what the dog does for the person who needs the service animal although generally it’s pretty easy to see why a person might have a service animal…
Frankly in my opinion this is one of those things the scammers are going to ruin for the small, small amount of people who absolutely need a living dog as opposed to a stuffed animal or living friend. At a minimum they need to tighten up the regulations so that they mirror service animals. That would help alot. A cottage industry as grown up around fake ESAs for people that are feigning maladjustments.
The OP said there are only 3 units in the building, so it might not be a FHA issue. There might be city or state requirements. If the building is small, the owner is not required to make it ADA complaint, so doesn’t have to put in wheelchair ramps, remodel for special kitchen features, put in bars in the bathrooms, etc. If it is a bigger building, the landlord may have to remodel a percentage of the units, provide better access, etc.
I agree that it is not a service animal TRAINED to provide a benefit to the disabled person and this person may not be disabled under the ADA anyway. The ADA is to provide a person accommodations to complete a life activity - working, going to school, housing.
Honestly, I’d line up the arguments: 1. Can the current tenant add a new tenant? If so, 2. Is there a disability? (a real one, not a ‘my turtle needs to go on the airplane with me’), 3. Is this situation covered by ADA, FHA, city or state regulations?
These are the type of things that make me shudder as a landlord. I have had people call about a rental and be quite demanding on the phone regarding their right to have their ESA, as in the 2nd sentence on the phone. Most of the time, it’s fairly easy to do the first, quick sort of prospective tenants within the first few minutes of meeting. These were people to whom I’d have never rented, with or without an animal.
Unfortunately, I’ve had some landlord clients who were sued over issues such as these, and in the end, advised to settle to get rid of the problem. Argggg. I do wish the government would tighten up these restrictions. My state is relatively landlord friendly too.
Support animal is not the same as a trained service animal. In my state, restaurants and stores post signs that only service dogs can enter the premises. I’d check your lease with a lawyer
@mom2collegekids Friends D’s dog is certified guide dog for blind. The D is mostly blind and intellectually disabled. D and dog live independently. I’m sure he could have handled SEC football game -he flew to England for a family trip, etc. they just felt like with father along there was no reason to put dog thru crowd. Just saying that saying the difference between ESA and service is that service dogs never left in home (as some poster mentioned) is not a good determination.
Two things with crazy unintended consequences - ADA laws and those privacy policy HIPAA things that kill so many trees with their required mailings!
Greenwitch: as noted above, the federal ADA does NOT include emotional support dogs, only specifically trained service dogs. ADA also does not include other animals. This is not an unintended consequence of ADA. It could be if a blind person requested the apartment and needed his or her seeing eye dog, but not an ESA. So not an unintended consequence of this very important law.
Fair Housing law does seem to allow an ESA, but the landlord can request documentation from a licensed mental health provider that the person has a disability and prescribes an ESA. It sounds like, in general, the landlord must then allow the animal, cannot charge extra rent, but can evict the animal if it is not controlled or is destructive, and can require the tenant to pay for any damages. The animal does not need to be specially trained.
Local laws and definitions may be different, as may the definition of a service/support animal.
Very interesting!