REAL ESTATE LAW UPDATE
March 2011
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WHAT IS A SERVICE ANIMAL JUST BECAME
AN EASIER QUESTION TO ANSWER
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By Nathan Hannah
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I wrote in this space many months ago about the hazard to property owners who might erroneously believe that they could prohibit visitors from bringing into their premises animals that are not obviously service animals. Although the examples I wrote about involved dogs (and one dog who had an unfortunate encounter with “LC” the library cat), the description of what constitutes a service animal under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) had expanded to at least ostensibly include not only all kinds of dogs, but monkeys, iguanas, goats, and boa constrictors.
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It has received very little attention, but changes have been made to the regulations under the ADA to restrict the species that qualify as service animals and impose additional new restrictions. You can read more about it on what is still my favorite blog, overlawyered.com. From now on, only dogs and, in some cases, miniature horses will qualify as service animals. The service animals will have to be formally trained to perform a service (surprisingly, that apparently wasn’t a requirement before) and will have to be restrained unless that doesn’t fit the service required.
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At least one commentator has suggested that the new, narrower definition of service animal was actually favored by advocates for the disabled, because having more and more people claiming that such things as monkeys and iguanas should qualify tended to undermine the efforts of trainers and users of formally recognized, traditional service animals.
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Let me emphasize, as I did when I covered this subject previously, that I do not in any way intend to minimize the very worthy societal goals of disabled-access legislation, or to minimize the importance of accommodating those whom such legislation is intended to help. I can't resist pointing out, however, the unintended consequences that can result when such laws are extended to situations not foreseen when those laws are adopted (which is exactly what happened with service animals and the ADA).
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So if you’re a restaurateur, or a shopkeeper, or the owner of any other property where the public is invited, you can say that only service dogs, or miniature horses, are allowed on your premises. Just be sure you put the cat out before you let the dogs in.
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ENFORCING THE “TAN TAX”
According to a February 15, 2011, item in U. S. News & World Report, the IRS says it needs 1,054 new staffers and new facilities, at a cost of $359 million in 2012, to oversee the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. The need is described in the newly released IRS budget request as follows:
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The ACA will require additional resources to build new IT systems; modify existing tax processing systems; provide taxpayer outreach and assistance services; make enhancements to notices, collections, and case management systems to address and resolve taxpayer issues timely and accurately; and conduct focused examinations to encourage compliance.
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So, which parts of the Affordable Care Act will require “enhancements to notices, collections, and case management systems… and … focused examinations to encourage compliance?” Well, among other things, the “tan tax.” You remember the “tan tax,” right? It’s the “revenue enhancer” that I mentioned in my July, 2010, and December, 2009, Reports. Some people are calling it the “Snooki tax.” I don’t have to remind you who “Snooki” is, do I?
The same U. S. News item says that 81 of those 1,054 new IRS employees will be needed to handle the tax reporting of the 25,000 tanning salons in the U.S., making sure that the salons pay the new 10 percent excise tax. The cost of those 81 new employees: $11.5 million.
By the way, what’s an excise tax? It’s a tax on a transaction or activity or enjoyment of a privilege. The transaction privilege tax (also known as the sales tax) is probably the most common example of an excise tax. So, every time you pay the tanning salon for a service that’s covered by the “tan tax” (see my July, 2010, Report for the regulations that describe the services that are subject to the tax) the salon pays ten percent to the U. S. Treasury.
$11.5 million in the first year might sound like a lot of money to spend to enforce this tax, but Congressional forecasters predict that it will bring in $2.7 billion in revenue over a ten year period. That’s a pretty good return on investment (or profit margin, depending on how you look at it).
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QUOTE OF THE MONTH
You can't have everything. Where would you put it?
Steven Wright
US comedian and actor (1955 - )
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