As used in the Service Animal Act:

A. "emotional support animal", "comfort animal" or "therapy animal" means an animal selected to accompany an individual with a disability that does not work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability and does not accompany at all times an individual with a disability;

B. "qualified service animal" means any qualified service dog or qualified service miniature horse that has been or is being trained to provide assistance to an individual with a disability; but "qualified service animal" does not include a pet, an emotional support animal, a comfort animal or a therapy animal;

C. "qualified service dog" means a dog that has been trained or is being trained to work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; and

D. "qualified service miniature horse" means a miniature horse that has been trained or is being trained to work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

History: Laws 1989, ch. 242, § 1; 1999, ch. 262, § 1; 1999, ch. 288, § 1; 2005, ch. 224, § 2; 2013, ch. 57, § 2.

Cross references. — For the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, see 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.

The 2013 amendment, effective June 14, 2013, added terms and definitions relating to emotional support and service animals; added Subsection A; in Subsection B, at the beginning of the sentence, after "qualified", deleted "assistance" and added "service", after "means any", deleted "assistance" and added "qualified service", after "dog or", deleted "other animal" and added "qualified service miniature horse", and after "disability", deleted "and includes" and added "but 'qualified service animal' does not include a pet, an emotional support animal, a comfort animal or a therapy animal"; deleted former Subsection A, which provided that an assistance dog was a qualified assistance animal; deleted former Subsection B, which provided that a guide dog was a qualified assistance animal; deleted former Subsection C, which provided that a hearing dog was a qualified assistance animal; deleted former Subsection D, which provided that a service dog was a qualified assistance animal; and added Subsections C and D.

The 2005 amendment, effective June 17, 2005, deleted the former definition of "qualified assistance animal", which was defined to mean a dog trained by a recognized school to assist persons with disabilities, an animal recognized as a service animal pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act or an animal approved by the committee on concerns for the handicapped and added the definition of "qualified assistance animal".

The 1999 amendment, effective June 18, 1999, rewrote the section to the extent that a detailed comparison was impracticable.