[Cagdu] FW: to all users of service animals

Wed Aug 13 19:07:25 PDT 2008

Subject: to all users of service animals

I got this in my inbox, and am distributing it to several lists. 

Dear Seeing Eye Family,

We need your help! The U.S. Department of Justice is seeking public comment
on its newly proposed definition of a service animal. The Seeing Eye sent
its own comments to the DOJ last Friday, and we urge you to join us by doing
the same by the August 18 deadline.

Numbers count! It is vitally important that the DOJ hear as many comments as
possible. In fact, this legislation is as significant as the early advocacy
work that Morris Frank did for the dog guide movement decades ago. The fight
isn't over, and our position needs to be heard. Submitting your comments is
one of the most important things you, personally, can do for yourself and
all other U.S. dog guide users.

The areas that seem to be most in need of revision are outlined in our
letter below. Simply stated, we ask that the DOJ eliminate the phrase
"minimal protection" in the new definition; require that the same behavior
and training standards developed for dog guides be applied to all service
animals; delete the "do work" wording by emphasizing task training as a
defining factor in qualifying animals as "service animals;" and include a
request that more guidance on taxi and private transportation access be
added to the regulations. (See the Seeing Eye comments below to further
illuminate these points, or to access a copy of the DOJ's Notice of Proposed
Rule Making in either text or PDF format, you can go to HYPERLINK
"http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocumentDetail&o=
090000648062a604"http://www.regulati-ons.gov/fdmspubl-ic/component/-main?mai
n=-DocumentDetail&-o=090000648062a6-04 .) 

You can submit an electronic version of your comments at HYPERLINK
"http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=SubmitComment&o=0
90000648062a604"http://www.regulati-ons.gov/fdmspubl-ic/component/-main?main
=-SubmitComment&-o=090000648062a6-04 but you must do so by August 18. Your
comments can be as simple as, "I support The Seeing Eye's position on
service animals," but even better is to write your own opinions on all or
some of the issues addressed in our public comment. 

You will have an option to insert comments directly into a field on the form
or send your comments as an attachment. We advise you to write your comments
first before logging onto the site because if you are on the web page too
long, it will "time out" and you will have to start over again. You should
also be aware that all comments, including your own, will be made available
for public viewing online at HYPERLINK
"http://www.regulations.gov"http://www.regulati-ons.gov .

The remainder of this email contains the text from The Seeing Eye's
submitted comment. Thank you for joining us in this effort.

Sincerely,
Jim Kutsch
****

August 8, 2008

Dr. James A. Kutsch, Jr., President
The Seeing Eye, Inc.
P.O. Box 375
Morristown, NJ 07963-0375

Re: Revisions to Service Animal Definition
Docket ID: DOJ-CRT-2008--0015-0001 

The Seeing Eye, the pioneers and innovators of dog guide services, has been
providing specially bred and trained dog guides for blind citizens of the
United States since 1929. Through the efforts of one of our founders, Morris
Frank, and other early graduates of our program, The Seeing Eye was
instrumental in gaining access to all places of public accommodation for
people traveling with dog guides. Today, as more and more people turn to
animals for improved health and quality of life, The Seeing Eye commends the
U.S. Department of Justice for its efforts to clarify its present regulatory
language regarding the use of service animals. We particularly welcome the
emphasis on maintaining control of the service animal at all times in public
settings, the requirement of housebreaking and the Department's effort to
formalize its position on emotional support/comfort animals.

In response to the NPRM published in the Federal Register on June 17th, The
Seeing Eye offers the following comments for the Department's consideration:

1. In response to question 9, The Seeing Eye believes that providing
"minimal protection" should be removed from the proposed definition of a
service animal.

The Seeing Eye is in agreement with the concerns expressed by the Coalition
of Assistance Dog Organizations (CADO). We also concur that alternative
language can be substituted for "providing minimal protection" while still
adequately representing the tasks of specific service animals. For instance,
despite the fact that dog guides provide minimal protection to their
handlers every day, e.g. stopping at changes in elevation or maneuvering
around obstacles, the Department has successfully included this concept
within the definition of the tasks under "guiding individuals with impaired
vision." Thus, providing minimal protection is intrinsically stated within
the tasks that the animal performs.

2. In response to question 10, The Seeing Eye believes that the Department
should eliminate certain species from the definition of service animal.

The Seeing Eye agrees with the need for the Department to establish a
practical and reasonable species parameter as part of its definition of a
service animal. While we have no expertise in the breeding, training and
placement of species other than dogs, The Seeing Eye believes that only
animals that are capable of meeting or exceeding the same high training,
behavioral and safety standards as that of Seeing Eye® dogs are suitable for
public access. Some of these standards include the animal's ability to
calmly, quietly and consistently perform its specialized tasks in public, to
urinate and defecate on command and to lie quietly beside its handler
without blocking aisles, doorways, or otherwise be obtrusive in public
settings.

3. In response to Question 11, The Seeing Eye believes that the Department
should not impose a size or weight limitation on service animals.

The Seeing Eye agrees with the comments submitted by CADO and further adds
that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to enforce such a regulation.

4. The Seeing Eye is opposed to retaining the term "do work" in the
definition of a service animal and urges the Department to form the basis of
the service animal definition on task training.

The Seeing Eye is aware that, over the last several years, more than half of
the Department's settlement agreements involving the "reasonable
modification" requirement under Title III involved a public accommodation'-s
refusal to permit a service animal's entry in a place of public
accommodation. These claims make evident the need for concise, measurable
guidance for those seeking a distinction between legitimate service animals
and those used for emotional comfort or support. 

We appreciate the Department's attempt to provide the broadest feasible
access to individuals with service animals by using the term "do work" in
its definition. However, given the fact that this term has historically been
the source of much confusion and misinterpretation, we respectfully ask that
the Department eliminate this language from its newly proposed definition.
The Seeing Eye believes that the newly added examples of tasks performed by
service animals effectively and adequately expand the meaning of service
animal to include the varied services provided by working animals on behalf
of individuals with all types of disabilities. Moreover, task training
elevates the animal's status from a non-task trained animal to a trained
service animal that is more likely to consistently mitigate its owner's
disability in public and be easily identified by the tasks it performs.
Again, service animals that are suitable and appropriate for public access
must be held to extremely high standards.

5. The Seeing Eye urges the Department to include specific language about
denial of service by private transportation providers to people who use
service animals in its regulatory language.

One of the most common complaints we receive involves taxicab drivers who
refuse to transport our graduates and their Seeing Eye dogs. Many drivers
claim to have allergies, fears or religious beliefs that prohibit them from
allowing dogs into their vehicles. 

We realize that this issue is not addressed in the NPRM, but, nevertheless,
we ask that the Department consider incorporating text into the proposed
regulation guidance that specifies that allergies, religious beliefs and
fear of animals are not valid excuses for denying access to passengers with
service animals. 

The Seeing Eye appreciates the opportunity to comment on the proposed
service animal revisions. We applaud the Department for its outstanding work
and believe that with the incorporation of the comments noted above, the
revised regulations will promote the responsible use of access rights and
prevent the erosion of societal tolerance for dog guide and other service
animal teams in places of public accommodation.

----------------------------------------------------------------
You are part of The Seeing Eye family, and we want to stay in touch. If your
email address changes in the future, please be sure to notify us so that you
will continue to receive email announcements. You can go to Newsletter
Subscriptions to change subscription information or to remove your name from
our email distribution. Please also encourage other grads, who may not be on
our email distribution list, to subscribe online or send their email address
to HYPERLINK "mailto:info%40seeingeye.org"info at seeingeye.-org, specifying
the types of information they would like to receive.

If you have any questions or comments, please contact us at HYPERLINK
"mailto:info%40seeingeye.org"info at seeingeye.-org or Communications
Department, c/o The Seeing Eye, Inc. PO Box 375, Morristown, NJ 07963-0375.

---
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