Faking support animals can get you evicted from S.D. rentals beginning in July

South Dakota tenants who lie about having a disability to keep a pet in their rental unit will be subject to eviction and fees beginning in July.

The governor signed into law this month a proposal that would allow landlords to evict tenants who fake a disability or provide false documentation claiming they have a medical condition to keep an emotional support animal.

Supporters said the law is crucial in preventing tenants from lying about their medical conditions to forego payments for pets. Under current law, landlords can't deny tenants from keeping service or emotional support animals.

And there's little they can do if tenants submit questionable documentation for the animals.

But that will change when the new law takes effect July 1.

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Under Senate Bill 119, landlords can require tenants whose disability or health condition isn't "readily apparent" to provide a doctor's note affirming their need for the service or emotional support animal.

Notes from medical professionals in the state for the sole reason of greenlighting requests for emotional support animals wouldn't be accepted.

Paul Gourley, chair of South Dakota Multi-Housing Association, said that under current law, there's little if anything a landlord can do to prevent a tenant from keeping a pet and calling it an emotional support animal. 

“It goes unquestioned because (the law is) so ambiguous that unfortunately, I think landlords get taken advantage of," Gourley said. “There’s a loophole in the system that needs to be corrected."

That ambiguity has allowed for tenants to keep miniature horses, snakes and chickens as support animals, said President of Charisma Property Management Amy Miller. And in some cases, tenants used the lax law to justify keeping several animals.

"It's a huge problem," Miller said.  “Nobody wants to get sued so nobody’s pressing it."

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Trained animals, not therapy or emotional support animals, are described under the federal  Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). And as a result, landlords can't deny tenants from living with them.

But because state law didn't specifically distinguish service animals or other therapy animals, landlords have erred on the side of caution in allowing them to avoid litigation.

While the new law will help, Miller said, more needs to be done to prevent pet owners from foregoing pet deposits and monthly fees by falsifying documents to call their animals emotional support animals.

"We’re not against assistance animals, we're not against companion animals because we know those are very important," Miller said. "We just want to ensure that others aren't taking advantage."

Taiya Bunde, 21, has a support cat named Snuggles that her psychiatrist approved as an emotional therapy animal. So far the University of South Dakota junior has had no problem keeping Snuggles in her off-campus apartment, but she worried that others could jeopardize that for her if they lie about their reasons for keeping support animals.

"I just hope that people don't abuse it and ruin for those that need it," she said. 

Follow Dana Ferguson on Twitter @bydanaferguson, call 605-370-2493 or email dferguson@argusleader.com