HUD Issues New Guidance on Assistance Animals Under the Fair Housing Act
Effective immediately, HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) has announced updated enforcement priorities for assistance animal accommodation requests. HUD will now focus enforcement actions on cases involving animals that are individually trained to perform disability‑related work or tasks, consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) definition of a service animal. Requests involving untrained emotional support animals (ESAs) will not receive enforcement consideration under this guidance. Housing providers should consult qualified legal counsel when reviewing and revising their assistance animal policies to ensure compliance with federal and state law.
