Wednesday, the United States Department of Transportation issued a final ruling regarding service animals on airplanes, determining that airlines are not required to recognize emotional support animals as service animals and may treat them as pets instead.
The DOT says this final rule is intended to ensure that the air transportation system is safe to the public and accessible to individuals with disabilities who need service animal assistance.
The ruling stems from rising numbers of complaints about service animals from passengers and airlines. It also comes from the “inconsistent definitions among federal agencies of what constitutes a ‘service animal’ and fraudulence among people claiming an EAS animal,” the final ruling document reads…
