HB 586

Abstract

Virginia Fair Housing Law; use of assistance animal in a dwelling; penalties. Makes it a Class 4 misdemeanor, with respect to the Virginia Fair Housing Law, for a person to knowingly and willfully misrepresent himself as needing an assistance animal. The bill provides an exception for any person, federal or state agency, or private organization participating in fair housing testing, defined in the bill, for the purpose of investigating allegations of housing discrimination. The bill also prohibits any person from providing supporting documentation in an attempt to verify the existence of a disability or disability-related need for a person seeking a reasonable accommodation in a dwelling if he does not have a therapeutic relationship with the person requesting the reasonable accommodation and provides that a violation of this provision constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act.

Virginia Fair Housing Law; use of assistanceanimal in a dwelling; penalties. Makes it a Class 4 misdemeanor,with respect to the Virginia Fair Housing Law, for a person to knowingly and willfully misrepresent himself as needing an assistance animal.The bill also prohibits any person from providing supporting documentationin an attempt to verify the existence of a disability or disability-relatedneed for a person seeking a reasonable accommodation in a dwellingif he does not have a therapeutic relationship with the person requestingthe reasonable accommodation and provides that a violation of thisprovision constitutes a prohibited practice under the Virginia ConsumerProtection Act. Lastly, the bill allows for a request for a reasonableaccommodation to be denied if supporting documentation of the disabilityor disability-related need is deemed unreliable.