a. Public spaces
A public space means anywhere where the public is invited or permitted such as schools, hotels, museums, hospitals, restaurants, etc. Assistance dogs are also welcome on any kind of public transportation.
The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) guarantees people with service dogs access to public spaces and require those places to modify their practices to accommodate the dogs, if necessary. There are some restrictions but only when it’s absolutely necessary. In California zoos for example, assistance dogs must be kept out of the areas where zoo animals aren’t separated from the public by a physical barrier.
Service dogs don’t have to wear any special equipment and the owner is not required to carry a special ID. Nevertheless, it is recommended for a service dog owner to carry both identification for the dog and a copy of the federal regulations, in case the access to a public space would be denied. In order to protect the privacy of disabled people, there is a strong limitation concerning what questions can be asked of the owner of a service dog. Anyone who has a doubt about a service dog can only ask two questions: 1) is this a service dog? 2) which tasks was the dog trained for? If you are denied access to a public space because of a service dog, feel free to call the police.
b. Housing
Landlords can’t legally refuse to rent their apartment to someone with a service dog. The Federal Fair Housing Act requires that landlords make “reasonable” accommodations for tenants with disabilities. It is difficult to know what the word “reasonable” stands for in this instance but it probably allows a tenant with a disability to have a service dog. Usually service dogs are really well behaved so there is not much risk for the landlord in having his property damaged. However, in case the service dog would cause any damages to the property, the owner of the dog will be liable.
c. The workplace
The Federal Americans With Disabilities Act bans any kind of discrimination against a person with disabilities and companies with 15 employees or more must make any “reasonable accommodations” for workers with disabilities. However, it is not always easy to know what the world “reasonable” means and to know if service dogs are included in it. Therefore, some state laws such as in New York insist on clarifying to make sure that disabled workers are protected. Indeed, it is illegal to deny a qualified person a job or a promotion simply because the person is accompanied by a guide, hearing or service dog.