Wyoming lawmaker hopes to make misrepresenting service animals illegal

A Wyoming lawmaker wants to make misrepresenting a pet as a service animal a crime.

The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports that the Senate Travel Committee on Tuesday advanced a bill that would criminalize pet owners calling their dogs’ service animals in order to bring them places like restaurants, stores or rental properties. The bill already passed the Wyoming House.

Rep. Landon Brown, R-Cheyenne, sponsored the bill. He says misrepresenting pets de-legitimizes actual service animals and endangers the people they assist.

Anyone found misrepresenting their pet would be guilty of a misdemeanor and could be fined up to $750.

Julie Gliem of the Cheyenne Landlords Association says there has been a huge uptick in people claiming their pets are service animals. She says they can be all breeds and species.