Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a Service Animal is “any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability.” (Note: miniature horses are technically service animals, as well.)
Emotional Support Animals (ESAs), also called companion animals or assistance animals, do not require specific training and may be considered reasonable accommodations under fair housing law if the tenant has a disability and there is a disability-related need for the animal. An ESA is defined under Wisconsin law (Wis. Stat. 106.50(1m)(IM)) as “an animal that provides emotional support, well-being, comfort, or companionship for an individual but that is not trained to perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability.”
Service animals and ESAs are not pets. They are under a separate category as a reasonable accommodation for a disability.
Laws do not require tenants to disclose ESAs or service animals when applying for housing. But tenants may want to tell their landlord they have an ESA or service animal before they move in. This will give tenants and landlords time to work out any issues or for the tenant to find different housing if necessary.
An Animal as a Reasonable Accommodation
Unless an exception applies (outlined below), landlords must allow a tenant to have a service animal or ESA if the person has a disability and there is a disability-related need for the animal. Wis. Stat. 106.50(2r)(br). It may be unlawful discrimination if a landlord refuses to rent to, evicts, requires a fee from, or harasses a prospective or current based solely on the tenant having a service animal or ESA.
Documentation
Landlords can request from the tenant documentation from a medical provider that:
- the individual has a disability, unless the disability is evident (e.g. the person has a visual disability and is walking with a mobility cane), and
- the animal is necessary to treat that disability.
Wisconsin law restricts the medical providers who can provide that documentation for an ESA to a “a physical, psychologist, social worker, or other health professional” who is licensed or certified in Wisconsin and is acting within the scope of their license or certification. Wis. Stat. 106.50(2r)(br)2; Wis. Stat. 106.50(1m)mx). This state law likely does not comply with federal law that only requires a person with a disability to provide “reliable documentation.” Landlords who impose this stricter requirement for documentation from a specific type of professional licensed in Wisconsin may be violating federal law.
A landlord cannot require an individual to reveal what kind of disability they have or require that the tenant prove the animal has been specifically trained.
There is no required registry or certification for an ESA.
Fees and Charges
Because service animals and ESAs are not pets, landlords cannot charge tenants a pet fee for having a service animal or ESA. However, a landlord can charge a tenant for damages from their animals. Wis. Stat. 106.50(2r)(bg)3.
Landlord Denials
A landlord can deny a request to keep a service or companion animal for limited reasons. Those reasons are:
- If the landlord lives in the unit, and they or a member of their immediate family have an allergy to the animal.
- The tenant is not disabled, does not have a disability-related need for the animal, or fails to provide the required documentation.
- Allowing the animal would cost the landlord an unreasonable amount of money, require unreasonable changes to the unit or the services offered on the property.
- The specific animal poses a direct threat to a person’s health or safety or would cause substantial physical damage to the property, and those risks cannot be reduced or eliminated by another reasonable accommodation.
- For example: A landlord cannot deny a request for an ESA because the animal is a Great Dane but the landlord could deny a request if there is evidence that the specific Great Dane caused significant damage at a previous apartment.
Resources
City of Madison Department of Civil Rights
Wisconsin’s Equal Rights Division
More information on discrimination is available on our discrimination page