At the same time, the Arizona Senate is considering their own pet bill that “would prohibit landlords and rental housing providers from setting dog breed restrictions at the properties,” according to Multifamily Dive. “Restrictions often apply to breeds considered dangerous or aggressive, but also frequently cover dogs in the working and sporting breed groups, who are larger and have high energy levels,” according to a recent MarketWatch report. “The dog breeds most commonly restricted, whether imposed by law or by individual landlords, include pit bulls, bulldogs, Rottweilers and German shepherds. “Around 43% of surveyed owners of “restricted” dog breeds have found it difficult to find affordable housing due to their dog and the restrictions compared to 31% of owners of non-restricted breeds,” continued MarketWatch. One in three pet owners of these restricted breeds were charged fees for their pets or were rejected by the landlord due to their pet. Aside from the ADA and the Fair Housing Act, there basically are no federal laws pertaining to pets. The majority of the states are enforcing breed-restrictive legislation and there are no state-level laws that prohibit the practice. Nevada, Oklahoma, New Hampshire and Alaska have no breed- restrictive legislation at all. There are only 10 states that ban breed- restrictive legislation outright and limit local governments’ ability to enforce restrictions. Most of these states have some form of breed restriction, such as a required permit for pit bulls. In the great majority of states, there is breed-restrictive legislation currently being enforced and no state-level legislation prohibiting it. GOVERNMENT RESTRICTIONS ON PETS ARIZONA SENATORS MULL NEW DOG LAWS
ASIDE FROM THE ADA AND THE FAIR HOUSING ACT, THERE BASICALLY ARE NO FEDERAL LAWS PERTAINING TO PETS.
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