Autism Service Dogs

Laws are tricky things. Government agencies are even trickier. I live in a state that has inconsistent laws regarding service animals, and I've been trying to navigate the system to find out what the real story is.

The Nevada Revised Statutes contain conflicting information about service animals. In particular, the 72nd legislative session revised NRS 426.097 to remove approval by the Rehabilitation Division of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation as part of the definition of "service animal." The revised law brings the definitional criteria of service animal into closer alignment with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

However, NRS 651.075(2) states that places "of public accommodation may require certain proof...[from a school] that is approved by the Rehabilitation Division of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation to train a service animal," which clearly goes against the legislative intent of the changes to NRS 426.097.

Several calls to the Department have resulted in a vague understanding that the Department doesn't actually oversee this function, does not maintain a list of "approved schools," and is in fact quite surprised by the question. They are currently looking into the matter, and have promised me a response by the end of the day.

Because police enforcement of access rights for SD/SDIT teams relies on local laws (as opposed to federal laws such as the ADA), clarifying this issue is important. Let's hope the system provides the answers that I need, and that other advocates make similar progress elsewhere.