Texas Workforce Solutions –
Vocational Rehabilitation Services
Rights and
Responsibilities of
People Using
Service Animals
Texas Workforce Solutions comprises the
Texas Workforce Commission, 28 local
workforce development boards and our
service-providing partners. Together we
provide workforce education, training
and support services, including vocational
rehabilitation assistance for the people
of Texas.
Service Animal Definition
Service animals are typically dogs specially
trained or equipped to help individuals with
disabilities. There is no government licensing,
registration, or certification of service animals.
Registering service animals is not required
by law.
Service animals are not pets and should not be
treated as such. An animal that provides only
comfort or emotional support is not considered
a service animal.
Your Rights
Texas law and the federal Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) guarantee the
right of a person who is blind or has other
disabilities — including post-traumatic
stress disorder — to be accompanied by a
trained service animal or a service animal
in training in all public places.
Public Places and Transportation
You have the right to enter public places and
use public transportation with your trained
service animal. The same access must be
provided to service animals in training that
are accompanied by an approved trainer per
state law. However, the law does not define
approved trainer.
Public places include:
• Hotels, motels, or other places
of lodging.
• College dormitories and
educational facilities.
• Businesses.
• Restaurants or other places
where food is offered for sale.
• Medical clinics, examining rooms,
and in hospital cafeterias and
patient rooms.
State and federal laws guarantee the
right of people who have disabilities to
be accompanied by a trained service
animal in all public places with no
additional cost for the service animal.
Housing
Under the Fair Housing Act, you have the
right to full and equal access to housing
accommodations. Reminder, service
animals are not pets. As the owner of a
service animal, you are exempt from pet
deposits and policies against owning pets;
service animals are not pets. An exception
to this rule is made for single-family
residences where only one room is rented,
leased, or furnished.
Employment
Under Title I of the ADA, a service animal
may be a reasonable accommodation if an
employer has more than 15 employees.
If applicable, you have the right to use a
service animal at your job. Your employer
may request professional written verification
when it is not obvious that the animal is a
service animal.
Questions About Your Service Animal
You have the right not to be asked about
your service animal’s qualifications or
certifications when entering a public place.
Representatives of the place may not ask you
to show documentation (for example, medical
and training records). Representatives,
however, may ask you if the service animal
is required because of your disability and
what work or task the animal has been
trained to perform.
Your Responsibilities
You are responsible for damages caused by
your service animal. You must keep the
animal properly harnessed, leashed, and
controlled. If your disability does not permit
the use of a harness, leash, or tether, the
animal must still be under your control.
A handler may be asked to remove the service
animal if control cannot be maintained. If this
happens, the establishment must still allow
you to obtain goods or services without the
service animal, including the use of other
reasonable accommodations.
You also must provide proper care for your
service animal. Service animals that are
abused or neglected are subject to seizure.
Discrimination, Fraudulent Use,
and Penalties
It is illegal for you to discriminate against
an individual who has a disability. It is also
illegal for you to misrepresent the use of an
animal as a service animal; this includes
falsely using a harness or leash that identifies
a specially trained service animal.
Each illegal act is a misdemeanor and applies
to you, a firm, an association, a corporation,
a public or private organization, and their
agent. Discrimination is punishable by a
fine of not more than $300 and 30 hours of
community service. Misrepresentation is
punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000
and 30 hours of community service.
Submit a Complaint
• T o report service animal
misrepresentations, contact your
local law enforcement agency.
• To report service animal abuse or
neglect, contact your local animal
control unit.
• To report housing and employment
discrimination, call the TWC Civil
Rights Division at 512-463-2642.
• To report public transportation
discrimination, contact the
transportation provider or the U.S.
Department of Transportation Civil
Rights Office at 202-366-4648.
For more information about the rights and
responsibilities of people using service
animals, visit: https://www.twc.texas.gov/
programs/vocational-rehabilitation/service-
animals
Your Texas Workforce
Solutions-Vocational
Rehabilitation Services Office
To locate your Texas Workforce Solutions-
Vocational Rehabilitation Services office,
visit: www.twc.texas.gov/find-locations
TEXAS WORKFORCE SOLUTIONS -
VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION SERVICES
101 East 15th Street
Austin, Texas 78778-0001
512-936-6400
Equal Opportunity Employer/Program
Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to
individuals with disabilities.
The Texas Workforce Commission accepts calls made
through any relay service provider.
Copies of this publication (10/2023) have been distributed
in compliance with the State Depository Law and are
available for public use through the Texas State Publication
Depository Program at the Texas State Library and other
state depository libraries.
TWC.TEXAS.GOV
These activities are financed under the TWC Federal
Vocational Rehabilitation grant. For the federal fiscal
year 2023 (Oct. 1, 2022, through Sept. 30, 2023), TWC
anticipates expending $243,212,287 in federal vocational
rehabilitation funds. Funds appropriated by Texas pay a
minimum of 21.3% of the total costs ($65,824,926) under
the Vocational Rehabilitation program. Revised May 2023.
For purposes of the Supported Employment program, the
Vocational Rehabilitation agency receives 94.7 percent of
its funding through a grant from the U.S. Department of
Education. For the 2023 federal fiscal year, the total
amount of grant funds awarded are $1,482,250. The
remaining 5.3 percent ($82,347) are funded by Texas
State Appropriations. Revised May 2023.
For purposes of the Independent Living Services for
Older Individuals Who are Blind program, the Vocational
Rehabilitation agency receives 90 percent of its funding
through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education.
For the 2022 federal fiscal year, the total amount of grant
funds awarded are $2,202,209. The remaining 10%
($244,690) are funded by Texas State Appropriations.
Revised May 2023.
1700 (1023) Inv. No. 866008
