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HUD Issues Significant Changes to Emotional Support Animals Regarding Accommodation and Training

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This is general legal information, not legal advice. Oregon manufactured home community law is specialized and complex. Both landlords and tenants should consult a licensed Oregon attorney.

The HUD Policy Change (May 22, 2026)

HUD issued new enforcement guidance on May 22, 2026, confining disability-related assistance animals that are exempt from housing providers' pet policies to trained service animals. The guidance removes the presumption that untrained Emotional Support Animals must be accommodated by housing providers, and places all open HUD cases concerning ESAs on hold for individual review under the new standard. 

Signed by FHEO Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor and effective immediately, the memo permanently cancels HUD's prior ESA guidance and instructs agency staff to stop pursuing complaints from tenants whose ESAs have not been individually trained to perform disability-related work or tasks. DREDF

However, it's important to understand what did not change:

  • The Fair Housing Act has not been repealed. Emotional support animals have not been made illegal. ESA letters from licensed mental health professionals have not been invalidated. What has shifted is which agency is going to enforce ESA rights, and how aggressively. Certapet
  • Courts are not bound by HUD's enforcement posture. State and local fair housing laws are entirely unaffected. DREDF
  • Your right to sue in court is explicitly preserved by the memo. You have two years from a discriminatory act to file a lawsuit in federal or state court. DREDF

Oregon's ESA Laws and Regulations

Oregon's ESA protections come from two sources: federal law and Oregon state statutes.

Federal Foundation: The Fair Housing Act (FHA)

Under the FHA, housing facilities must allow service dogs and emotional support animals if the animal is necessary for someone with a disability to have an equal opportunity to use and enjoy the home. The FHA only exempts: owner-occupied buildings with no more than four units; single-family houses sold or rented by the owner without the use of an agent; and housing operated by religious organizations or private clubs that limit occupancy to members. Nolo

Oregon State Law: ORS Chapter 659A

Oregon does not have a standalone state ESA statute. ESA housing protections come from the federal Fair Housing Act and Oregon's general disability discrimination law under ORS 659A. Oregon's "construe broadly" disability mandate (ORS 659A.139) can benefit ESA owners by expanding who qualifies as having a disability. USA Service Dogs

Specifically:

  • ORS 659A prohibits housing discrimination based on disability. Landlords cannot treat ESAs as regular pets under the law and may not charge pet fees or deposits for them in most cases. Tenant-rights
  • Oregon's fair housing protections under ORS 659A extend to disability discrimination in housing. Landlords must make reasonable accommodations for assistance animals, and the Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) enforces housing discrimination claims. USA Service Dogs
  • Under ORS 659A.143, places of public accommodation may not require an individual to provide documentation proving that an animal is an assistance animal, and may not charge pet fees for assistance animals. Oregon Public Law

What Oregon Landlords Must Still Do

Under both the federal FHA and Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 659A, pet rent, pet fees, and pet deposits must be waived for ESAs. You remain responsible for actual physical damage beyond normal wear and tear. Breed and size restrictions do not apply to ESAs in Oregon when proper documentation is provided. CertaPet

Will Oregon Continue to Enforce ESA Protections?

Yes — through its own independent enforcement mechanism. Housing providers operating in jurisdictions with independent ESA protections must continue to comply with those requirements regardless of HUD's new position.

Oregon's Bureau of Labor & Industries (BOLI) enforces housing discrimination claims at the state level, independently of HUD. BOLI handles complaints of unlawful housing discrimination, and you must bring a complaint within one year of the alleged discriminatory act. McKissockTenant-rights

In other words, a tenant in Oregon who is denied a reasonable accommodation for an ESA can:

  1. File a complaint with Oregon BOLI (independent of HUD), at 971-245-3844 or boli_help@boli.oregon.gov
  2. File a private lawsuit in state or federal court within 2 years
  3. Still file with HUD, though HUD is now less likely to pursue cases involving untrained ESAs

The Practical Bottom Line for Oregon Landlords and Tenants

The HUD change is significant nationally, but Oregon tenants retain meaningful state-level protections through ORS 659A and BOLI enforcement. The biggest practical shift is that HUD itself will no longer be a reliable avenue for ESA complaints involving untrained animals — but Oregon's own civil rights infrastructure remains fully intact and independent. A valid ESA letter from a licensed mental health professional, combined with a properly documented accommodation request, still carries legal weight under Oregon law.