Know Your Rights
Thank you for trusting USServiceAnimals.org with all your service and emotional support animal needs!
As a token of our appreciation for our wonderful customers, we have provided you with a welcome packet that includes the following practical advice:
- How to Ask for a Reasonable Accommodation
- How to Receive Legal Services
- How to File an Airline Discrimination Complaint
- How to File an Housing Discrimination Complaint
- How to File a Workplace Discrimination Complaint
Please don't hesitate to contact us with any questions or concerns
Housing Provider
You MUST provide in writing to your housing provider a request for a reasonable accommodation due to your disability in order to fully exercise your rights. The request should be dated and signed by the person requesting reasonable accommodation or the legal guardian.
If your disability is non apparent, the housing provider may request a letter from a licensed mental health professional that states your need for an emotional support animal. You may want to attach it to your request for reasonable accommodation to avoid any delays.
In addition, attach a copy of the FHEO Notice: FHEO-2020-01 found here to the request for reasonable accommodation. This may help the housing provider understand his/her obligation to provide reasonable accommodation.
Work
Only service animals are covered for the workplace and public accommodation under federal law. Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. Because a service dog is trained for specific tasks that adds to the quality and health of the owner, service dogs can go anywhere their human is permitted to go.
A public accommodation is a private entity that owns, operates, leases, or leases to, a place of public accommodation.
Places of public accommodation include a wide range of entities, such as restaurants, hotels, theaters, doctors' offices, pharmacies, retail stores, museums, libraries, parks, private schools, day care centers, etc.
Public accommodation also includes any entity that affects interstate commerce (this is a broad definition that encompasses just about every business). An emotional support animal is allowed in any public space in which ordinary pets are welcome.
Private clubs and religious organizations are exempt from the ADA’s title III requirements for public accommodations.
You must look to state disability discrimination laws to see if assistance animals (i.e. emotional support animals) are covered.
Companies generally have written policies and procedure for requesting reasonable accommodation. Follow them.
If there is not a written policy or procedure, then make your request in writing to the Human Resources Department or a company executive.
How to Receive Legal Services
Please keep in mind that any attorney who you speak with from our company represents US Service Animals, LLC ("USSA") and is NOT YOUR ATTORNEY. The attorney, on USSA's behalf, advocates for all people with disabilities with their service dogs or emotional support animals.
The attorney will be happy to discuss federal disability laws with you, send a letter to a potential discriminating party informing he/she of the federal law, and/or provide you with information on how to file a disability complaint.
As the attorney does not represent you, there is no explicit or implicit attorney/client relationship. He/ She will not be able to discuss state or local laws with you, file a complaint on your behalf, or initiate a lawsuit except in state(s) he/she is licensed to practice in.
To help us best assist your with your legal issue, please provide us with the following information and we will get back to you as quickly as possible:
- Order number
- Name
- Email address
- Phone number
- Landlord’s name
- Landlord’s physical address
- Landlord’s email address
- Landlord’s phone number
- Brief description of the issue
** ALL of this information is required to serve your request as quickly as possible. **
You may call 985-242-7207 to speak with a customer service representative or email us at ] [email protected] to initiate the process. We will immediately send your request to the attorney who will follow-up with you by email to which you must reply.
Then shortly thereafter, the attorney will attempt to call you.
5 "TIPS" TO HELP YOU EFFECTIVELY COMMUNICATE POTENTIAL DISCRIMINATION WITH HOUSING AUTHORITIES:
You have been diagnosed with a mental or emotional disability by your Mental Health Professional (MHP). As a result of your diagnosis, your MHP has authorized a therapy animal (emotional support animal) to mitigate the symptoms of your diagnosis in order for you to enjoy your home. Therefore, you no longer have a "pet".
Your animal is a therapy animal (emotional support animal) and should ALWAYS be referred to as such. Correct the landlord if they refer to your therapy animal (emotional support animal) as a "pet".
A great way to determine if someone is trying to take advantage of disability laws is to get a person to admit that they have a "pet" vs. a therapy animal (emotional support animal). When reporting discrimination to housing authorities, remember to say, "I have a therapy animal (emotional support animal) ..."
If you are denied reasonable accommodation by a landlord then you, as the disabled person, may have faced discrimination, not the animal.
Never say, "My landlord is discriminating against my animal by not letting it be with me."
When reporting discrimination to housing authorities, remember to say, "I have a diagnosed disability and I believe I am a victim of discrimination..."
If you have been diagnosed with an emotional or mental disability and you are refused reasonable accommodation for your therapy animal (emotional support animal), then you are being treated differently because of your disability. The correct question to ask of a landlord is, "Why are you treating me differently because of my disability?" This question cannot be asked enough when trying to receive reasonable accommodation. When reporting discrimination to housing authorities, remember to start with, "I am being treated differently because I have a disability..."
By denying reasonable accommodation -living with your therapy animal (emotional support animal), you may not be able to enjoy your home.
When reporting possible discrimination to housing authorities, remember to say, "As a result of this (action), I cannot enjoy my home."
5. Document every encounter.Always document every encounter with the landlord or housing authority. This included dates, times, names, topic, and result of the encounter. This will keep an accurate timeline should there be any need to escalate your reasonable accommodation request.
