Iowa Laws on Service Dogs and Emotional Support Animals

Under Iowa's disability rights law and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), people with disabilities have the right to be accompanied by their service animals in public places such as restaurants, hotels, and theaters.

Public "accommodations" (places) in Iowa must comply with both state and federal law. Below, we explain which public accommodations the state and federal laws in Iowa cover and which animals qualify as service animals. We'll also review when the law protects emotional support animals (ESAs).

What Types of Service Animals Are Covered in Iowa?

Under Iowa law, if you're disabled, public accommodations must allow you to be accompanied by your service dog. The state law also covers anyone controlling a service dog for a disabled person or training a service dog. (Iowa Code § 216C.11(1).)

Iowa law uses the ADA's definition of a service animal: a dog (or miniature horse) trained to perform disability-related tasks or do work for the benefit of a person with a disability. (28 C.F.R. § 36.104.) Examples of service animals that must be allowed into public accommodations under the ADA and Iowa law include:

• hearing dogs, which alert their handlers to important sounds, such as alarms, doorbells, and other signals
• guide dogs, which help those who are blind or visually impaired navigate safely
• psychiatric service animals, which help their handlers manage mental and emotional disabilities by, for example, interrupting self-harming behaviors, reminding handlers to take medication, checking spaces for intruders, or providing calming pressure during anxiety or panic attacks
• seizure alert animals, which let their handlers know of impending seizures, and might also guard their handlers during seizure activity, and
• allergen alert animals, which let their handlers know of foods or other substances that could be dangerous (such as peanuts).

Are Emotional Support Animals Considered Service Animals in Iowa?

Neither the ADA's public accommodations law nor Iowa's service animal law cover emotional support animals (ESAs). Although these animals often have therapeutic benefits, they aren't individually trained to perform specific tasks for their handlers, so they don't qualify as service animals in Iowa.

An ESA is an animal whose presence provides a sense of safety, companionship, and comfort to someone with a psychiatric or emotional condition. Although Iowa law refers to support animals, the law only covers animals individually trained to assist someone with a disability, not animals whose purpose is to provide comfort simply by being present.

State and federal public accommodation laws treat emotional support animals as pets. And neither the ADA nor Iowa's disability law protects your right to have pets in public accommodations. However, federal and state laws are different for emotional support animals in rental housing. We'll discuss when landlords need to allow ESAs in housing below.

What Counts as a Public Accommodation?

Under Iowa's Civil Rights Law, people with disabilities can bring their service animals to any place of public accommodation. In Iowa, public accommodations include any place that provides services, goods, or facilities to the public for a fee, or for free if it receives government support. The law also covers all state and local government facilities. (Iowa Code § 216.2(13).) Under state law, that includes all:

• common carriers and forms of public transportation, including buses, trains, boats, and motor vehicles
• hotels and lodging places
• restaurants, bars, and other places to eat or drink
• places of public accommodation or amusement, including:
• stores and businesses
• parks
• zoos
• golf courses
• swimming pools, and
• other places to which the public is invited.

Under the ADA, the definition of public accommodations is also very broad and includes any place that is open to the public. (42 U.S.C. § 12181(7).)

Are There Rules for Service Animals?

The ADA and Iowa law both prohibit public accommodations from charging a special admission fee or requiring you to pay any other extra cost to have your service animal with you. But you might have to pay for any damage your animal causes.

Under the ADA, a public accommodation can't question you about your disability or demand to see certification, identification, or other proof of your animal's training or status. If it isn't apparent what your service animal does, the establishment can ask you only whether it's a service animal, and what tasks it performs for you. (28 C.F.R. § 35.136(f).)

The ADA allows a public accommodation to exclude your service animal if it poses a direct threat to the health and safety of others. For example, if your dog aggressively barks and snaps at other customers, the facility can demand that you remove it. Iowa law also requires that your service animal be under control when in public. (Iowa Code § 216C.11(1).)

The ADA also allows a public accommodation to exclude a service animal that isn't housebroken, or one that's out of control if the handler is unable or unwilling to get it under control. (28 C.F.R. § 36.302(c)(2).) But, you're still entitled to enter the public accommodation even if your service animal isn't allowed in.

Does Iowa Allow Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals in Housing?

Iowa law and the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA) prohibit discrimination in housing accommodations against those who use service animals and assistance animals. You must be allowed full and equal access to all housing facilities, and your landlord can't charge you extra for having a service animal (although you might have to pay for damage your animal causes). If your lease or rental agreement includes a "no pets" provision, it doesn't apply to your service animal.

Getting an Accommodation to Have Animals in Rentals

Under Iowa's housing rights laws, requesting to have your service dog or assistance animal in housing is a reasonable accommodation if you have a disability and a disability-related need for the animal. The state housing law defines an "assistance animal" as an animal that qualifies as a reasonable accommodation under the federal Fair Housing Act. (Iowa Code § 216.8B.) Under the FHA, assistance animals include both service animals and emotional support animals.

When the FHA Requires a Landlord to Grant an Accommodation

The Fair Housing Act requires housing facilities to allow service dogs and ESAs if a person with a disability needs the animal to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the home. As with Iowa law, to fall under this provision, you must have a disability and you must have a disability-related need for the animal. So, to qualify under the FHA, your animal must:

• perform tasks or services directly related to your disability, or
• alleviate the emotional effects of your disability.

Under Iowa's housing rights laws, your landlord can ask for documentation of your disability and your disability-related need for the service dog or emotional support animal—but only if it's not apparent. The FHA also allows your landlord to ask for supporting evidence if your need for an assistance animal isn't clearly visible or understood. So your landlord can't ask a blind tenant to prove the need for a guide dog, but could ask a tenant in a wheelchair to document the need for an ESA.

(For more guidance, see the Department of Housing and Urban Development's assistance animals page at HUD.gov.)