Governor Burgum will be asked to sign a bill making it a crime to knowingly misrepresent a pet as a qualified service animal… Fairmount State Senator Larry Luick…
“…Mr. President, we have a certain group of individuals that need support animals in very serious ways. They have serious health conditions and need the support animals. The animals themselves become a lifeline to their existence in some cases. Dogs and miniature ponies are the only species today that can be registered as support or service animals.”
Luick says a tremendous amount of time and money is invested in an animal to have it qualified as a trained service animal. He says service dogs are the main area of concern…
“…Each dog is specifi to their owner. They are far more than just pet and far more expensive. A trained service dog is approximately $20,000 and has a working life of 8-to-12 years depending on the breed of the dog.”
The bill unanimously passed the Senate, but not without some concerns. Minot Senator Oley Olson says he was disappointed the bill scaled back the level of fines for an infraction…
“…What I’ve noticed when discussing with people about confusion between the service animals and the care animals and how that is starting to become quite a deal where folks are even going on to get them harnesses and all that stuff to have these counterfeits to be able to bring them into the stores and where-ever else. I’ll support the bill, but I think it was a mistake that were not holding these people more accountable.”
