[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 769 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 769

  To amend title 38, United States Code, to prevent the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs from prohibiting the use of service dogs on Department 
                     of Veterans Affairs property.


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                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 8, 2011

Mr. Harkin (for himself and Mr. Isakson) introduced the following bill; 
                  which was read twice and referred to

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                                 A BILL


 
  To amend title 38, United States Code, to prevent the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs from prohibiting the use of service dogs on Department 
                     of Veterans Affairs property.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Equal Treatment for Service 
Dogs Act of 2011'' or the ``VETS Dogs Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The usage of medical service dogs among veterans is 
        increasing.
            (2) The Department of Veterans Affairs currently allows 
        seeing-eye dogs in Department facilities.
            (3) The Department does not place any limitations on the 
        access of seeing-eye dogs to Department facilities.
            (4) Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities 
        Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131 et seq. and 12181 et seq.) require 
        that a public entity or place of public accommodation modify 
        its policies, practices, and procedures to allow an individual 
        with a disability to use a service animal.

SEC. 3. USE OF SERVICE DOGS ON PROPERTY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS.

    Section 1714 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) The Secretary may not prohibit the use of service dogs 
provided under subsection (c) in any facility or on any property of the 
Department or in any facility or on any property that receives funding 
from the Secretary.''.
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