August 26, 2011
To the Honorable
Members of the
Illinois House of
Representatives,
97th
General Assembly:
I
hereby return House Bill 3440 with specific recommendations for change.
I am committed to ensuring that all
of the people of the State of Illinois, regardless of disability, have the ability
to access any and all public facilities. This legislation expands the
definition of service animals that are allowed to accompany their individual and
also allows school districts to provide reasonable accommodations for their
students who need to use a service animal. I commend the sponsors for their
efforts.
While House Bill 3440 attempts to
provide clarity as to the use of service animals, it also impacts the education
of students with disabilities. I am concerned that the application of this
legislation could conflict with the Americans with Disabilities Act if students
with service animals are denied access to school facilities and activities. My
specific recommendation for change addresses this issue and ensures that
children throughout our State have full access to educational facilities.
Therefore,
pursuant to Article IV, Section 9(e) of the Illinois Constitution of 1970, I
hereby return House Bill 3440, entitled “AN ACT concerning service dogs.”, with
the following specific recommendations for change:
on page 1, lines 7 and 8, by
replacing “Reasonable accommodations must be sought for the use of service
Service animals.” with “Service animals.”; and
on page 1, line 11, by
replacing “shall be permitted” with “shall be permitted”.
With these changes, House Bill 3440 will
have my approval. I respectfully request your concurrence.
Sincerely,
PAT QUINN
Governor