Bill Text: IL HB3671 | 2019-2020 | 101st General Assembly | Enrolled

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Creates the Assistance Animal Integrity Act. Defines terms. Provides that a housing provider who receives a request from a person to make an exception to the housing provider's policy prohibiting or restricting animals on the housing provider's property because the person requires the use of an assistance animal may require the person to produce reliable documentation of the disability and disability-related need for the animal only if the disability or disability-related need is not readily apparent or known to the housing provider. Provides requirements for documentation that a person has a disability and requires the use of an assistance animal as a reasonable accommodation in housing under the federal Fair Housing Act or the Illinois Human Rights Act. Provides that a housing provider may deny a documented request for accommodation or rescind a granted request if the accommodation imposes either an undue financial and administrative burden or a fundamental alteration to the nature of the operations of the housing provider or if, after conducting an individualized assessment, there is reliable objective evidence that the specific assistance animal: (i) poses a direct threat to the health or safety of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation; (ii) causes substantial physical damage to the property of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation; or (iii) has engaged in a pattern of uncontrolled behavior that its handler has not taken effective action to correct. Provides that a housing provider may require a resident to cover the costs of repairs for damage the animal causes to the resident's dwelling unit or the common areas, reasonable wear and tear excepted, in the same manner it would for damage caused by any other resident, but may not require a resident to pay a pet-related deposit, pet fee, or related pet assessment and also may not require purchase of special liability insurance or coverage for the assistance animal. Provides that nothing in the Act shall be construed as requiring documentation of a specific diagnosis regarding a disability or disability-related need. Provides that nothing in the Act prohibits a housing provider from verifying the authenticity of the documentation submitted under the Act. Provides that, notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a housing provider shall not be liable for injuries caused by a person's assistance animal permitted on the housing provider's property as a reasonable accommodation to assist the person with a disability. Provides that nothing in the Act shall be construed to: limit individuals' rights under specified laws; or limit the liability of housing providers under such laws.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Passed) 2019-08-23 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 101-0518 [HB3671 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2019-HB3671-Enrolled.html

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AN ACT concerning animals.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Assistance Animal Integrity Act.
Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
"Assistance animal" means an emotional support or service
animal that qualifies as a reasonable accommodation under the
federal Fair Housing Act or the Illinois Human Rights Act.
"Disability" means, with respect to a person, any physical
or mental impairment, or record of such impairment, that
satisfies the definition of handicap under the Fair Housing Act
or the definition of disability under the Illinois Human Rights
Act.
"Housing provider" means any owner, housing provider,
property management company, property manager, government
entity, condominium board, condominium association,
cooperative, or related entity, and any agent or employee
thereof, engaged in the selling, leasing, management, control,
or governance of residential housing.
"Reasonable accommodation" has the meaning provided under
the federal Fair Housing Act or the Illinois Human Rights Act.
"Therapeutic relationship" means the provision of medical

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care, program care, or personal care services, in good faith,
for and with actual knowledge of, an individual's disability
and that individual's disability-related need for an
assistance animal by: (1) a physician or other medical
professional; (2) a mental health service provider; or (3) a
non-medical service agency or reliable third party who is in a
position to know about the individual's disability.
"Therapeutic relationship" does not include an entity that
issues a certificate, license, or similar document that
purports to confirm, without conducting a meaningful
assessment of a person's disability or a person's
disability-related need for an assistance animal, that a
person: (a) has a disability; or (b) needs an assistance
animal.
Section 10. Documentation of disability and
disability-related need.
(a) A housing provider who receives a request from a person
to make an exception to the housing provider's policy
prohibiting or restricting animals on the housing provider's
property because the person requires the use of an assistance
animal may require the person to produce reliable documentation
of the disability and disability-related need for the animal
only if the disability or disability-related need is not
readily apparent or known to the housing provider. A housing
provider may ask a person to make the request on a standardized

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form, but cannot deny the request because the person did not
use the form to submit documentation that meets the
requirements of subsection (b). A housing provider receiving a
request for more than one assistance animal may request
documentation under subsection (b) that establishes the
disability-related need for each animal, unless the need for an
animal is apparent.
(b) Any documentation that a person has a disability and
requires the use of an assistance animal as a reasonable
accommodation in housing under the federal Fair Housing Act or
the Illinois Human Rights Act shall:
(1) be in writing;
(2) be made by a person with whom the individual
requesting an accommodation has a therapeutic
relationship; and
(3) describe the individual's disability-related need
for the assistance animal.
(c) A housing provider may deny a documented request for an
accommodation or rescind a granted request under this Act if:
(1) the accommodation imposes either: (i) an undue
financial and administrative burden; or (ii) a fundamental
alteration to the nature of the operations of the housing
provider; or
(2) after conducting an individualized assessment,
there is reliable objective evidence that the specific
assistance animal: (i) poses a direct threat to the health

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or safety of others that cannot be reduced or eliminated by
another reasonable accommodation; (ii) causes substantial
physical damage to the property of others that cannot be
reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation;
or (iii) has engaged in a pattern of uncontrolled behavior
that its handler has not taken effective action to correct.
(d) A housing provider may require additional supporting
documentation of a person's disability or need for the
assistance animal only if the initial documentation provided
does not satisfy subsection (b). If the initial documentation
is insufficient to show the existence of the therapeutic
relationship required under subsection (b), a housing provider
may request additional information describing the professional
relationship between the person and the individual with a
disability.
(e) A housing provider may consider the documented
disability-related needs of other residents on the property
when evaluating the reasonableness of the request for the
assistance animal. However, a housing provider may not deny an
assistance animal solely due to the disability-related needs of
another resident; rather, a housing provider must attempt to
balance the disability-related needs of all residents.
(f) A housing provider may require a resident to cover the
costs of repairs for damage the animal causes to the resident's
dwelling unit or the common areas, reasonable wear and tear
excepted, in the same manner it would for damage caused by any

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other resident; however, a housing provider may not require a
resident to pay a pet-related deposit, pet fee, or related pet
assessment, even if the housing provider allows pets and
requires pet owners to pay such costs. A housing provider also
may not require a resident with an assistance animal to procure
special liability insurance or coverage for the assistance
animal.
(g) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as requiring
documentation of a specific diagnosis regarding a disability or
disability-related need.
(h) Nothing in this Act prohibits a housing provider from
verifying the authenticity the documentation submitted under
subsection (b).
Section 15. Immunity. Notwithstanding any other provision
of law to the contrary, a housing provider shall not be liable
for injuries caused by a person's assistance animal permitted
on the housing provider's property as a reasonable
accommodation to assist the person with a disability under the
Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of
1973, the Illinois Human Rights Act, or any other federal,
State, or local law.
Section 20. Rights under other Acts. Nothing in this Act
shall be construed to: (1) limit individuals' rights under the
Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of

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1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Illinois Human
Rights Act, or any other federal, State, or local civil rights
law; or (2) limit the liability of housing providers under such
laws.