STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
4156
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
March 21, 2011
___________
Introduced by Sen. PARKER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the transportation law and the civil rights law, in
relation to allowing therapy dogs to enter public places and public
transportation
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Section 147 of the transportation law, as amended by chap-
2 ter 404 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as follows:
3 § 147. Dogs accompanying persons with a disability. (a) Subject to
4 such rules and regulations as the commissioner may prescribe, all common
5 and contract carriers of passengers by motor vehicle shall permit a
6 guide dog, hearing dog [or], service dog or therapy dog properly
7 harnessed, accompanying a person with a disability, as defined in subdi-
8 vision twenty-one of section two hundred ninety-two of the executive
9 law, or an owner or handler of such dogs or such persons licensed to
10 train such dogs to aid and guide such disabled person, to ride on all
11 vehicles operated for transportation and no charge shall be made for the
12 transportation of such dog.
13 (b) For purposes of this section, "therapy dog" shall mean any dog
14 that is certified and trained to work or perform specific tasks for the
15 benefit of persons including those with special needs, autism, drug
16 addiction, distress due to emotional and physical abuse and clinical
17 depression or bipolar disease by a recognized therapy dog training
18 center or professional therapy dog trainer and is actually used for such
19 purpose.
20 § 2. Subdivision 1 of section 47 of the civil rights law, as amended
21 by chapter 404 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as follows:
22 1. (a) No person shall be denied admittance to and/or the equal use of
23 and enjoyment of any public facility solely because said person is a
24 person with a disability and is accompanied by a guide dog, hearing dog
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00897-01-1
S. 4156 2
1 [or], service dog or therapy dog or is an owner or handler of such dog
2 or otherwise a person licensed to train such dogs.
3 (b) For purposes of this section, "therapy dog" shall mean any dog
4 that is certified and trained to work or perform specific tasks for the
5 benefit of persons including those with special needs, autism, drug
6 addiction, distress due to emotional and physical abuse and clinical
7 depression or bipolar disease by a recognized therapy dog training
8 center or professional therapy dog trainer and is actually used for such
9 purpose.
10 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
