FYI - Oklahoma Law going into effect 11/1 - assistance animals

[Bevan Houston]

Per this Tulsa World article: 

HB3282, by Rep. Chris Kannady, R-Oklahoma City and Sen. Kimberly David, R-Porter

The bill defines the term "assistance animal" to mean an animal that works, provides assistance or performs tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability, or provides emotional support that alleviates one or more identified symptoms or effects of a person's disability, including a service animal specifically trained or equipped to perform tasks for a person with a disability, or an emotional support animal that provides support to a person with a disability who has a disability-related need for such support. It permits a person with a disability to submit a request for a reasonable accommodation to maintain an assistance animal in a dwelling. The bill permits the landlord to request and verify supporting documentation. It exempts a landlord from liability for injuries by a person's assistance animal permitted on the landlord's property. It permits the landlord to remedy a person's noncompliance if a person obtains a reasonable housing accommodation by knowingly making a false claim or by knowingly providing fraudulent supporting documentation. It permits a prevailing landlord in an eviction action to be awarded court costs and fees, plus damages not to exceed $1,000 from the tenant.

[Richard McLain]

This new law has now been codified into the Oklahoma Statutes, to be effective November 1st, 2018, in the Oklahoma Residential Landlord and Tenant Act as new Section 113.2.  The easiest place to find the Oklahoma Residential Landlord and Tenant Act is:  www.oscn.net then click on "Legal Research", then click on "Oklahoma Statutes Citationized" then look in Title 41, then scroll down to the beginning of the act, which is Section 101.  It would not hurt all Oklahoma landlords to read the entire act to brush up on the statutes (believe me, the judges know these statutes frontwards and backwards).