Air Carrier Access Act Comments

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is seeking comment in this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on proposed amendments to the Department’s Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) regulation on the transportation of service animals by air. The proposed amendments are intended to ensure that our air transportation system is safe for the traveling public and accessible to individuals with disabilities.

https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=DOT-OST-2018-0068-12959  

Canines for Disabled Kids encourages you to read and submit your comments prior to April 6^th

At Canines for Disabled Kids we have seen many issues with a variety of pets, ESA, and not properly trained or maintained service animals and we look forward to new rules which support service dogs and their users.  The independence to fly with service dogs and all tools needed for full access to life in the United States is something all people with disabilities deserve. 

The current proposal will be more restrictive and cost prohibited to service dog users.

Canines for Disabled Kids has several areas of concern in the current proposed amendments.

            *the restriction on large breeds that they be required to fit within the handler’s foot space; we ask  DOT reconsider their proposed guidelines around large service dogs, which will have a dramatic impact on most service dog users’ access to air travel due to the necessary size of the service dog to perform tasks or work for the handler.  The size of large breed dogs like Golden Retrievers, Labradors, Shepherds and others is necessary for the work they do but makes it impossible to them to fit in the limited space of 1 seat.

            *the proposed early check-in requirements and documentation requirements for service dog handlers, both of which would be a significant undue burden on people with disabilities, many of whom already arrive 2 hours prior to the flight departure as advised for all passengers

            *the health form requirement as it will be cost and time prohibitive for service dogs users who fly frequently to continually obtain this health checks with veterinary appointments required for each form.

We ask that you consider the proposal careful and submit your comments.

Thank you