1.1 A bill for an act
1.2 relating to housing; requiring the Housing Finance Agency to require reasonable
1.3 pet policies in buildings financed by the agency;proposing coding for new law in
1.4 Minnesota Statutes, chapter 462A.
1.5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
1.6 Section 1. [462A.41] REASONABLE PET POLICY REQUIREMENT.
1.7 Subdivision 1.Requirement. The agency shall require each housing development that
1.8 is financed, on or after January 1, 2024, by a grant, by a loan, or by any other money
1.9 administered or otherwise provided by the agency to authorize a resident of the housing
1.10 development to own or otherwise maintain one or more common household pets within the
1.11 resident's dwelling unit, subject to applicable state laws and local government ordinances
1.12 related to public health, animal control, and animal anticruelty, and subject to other reasonable
1.13 conditions.
1.14 Subd. 2.Reasonable conditions allowed. Reasonable conditions on pet maintenance
1.15 or ownership include but are not limited to policies on nuisance behaviors, leashing
1.16 requirements, requirements to carry liability insurance coverage, limitations on the number
1.17 of animals in a unit based on the unit's size, and prohibitions on dangerous or potentially
1.18 dangerous dogs, as defined by section 347.50, subdivisions 2 and 3. A prohibition on a
1.19 breed of common household pets or a limitation on the weight of a pet is not a reasonable
1.20 condition. A onetime nonrefundable or monthly fee for the ownership or maintenance of
1.21 common household pets is not a reasonable condition.
1.22 Subd. 3.Defense to eviction action. Tenants may use the protections afforded in this
1.23 section as an affirmative defense in an eviction action.
2.1 Subd. 4.Common household pet. For the purposes of this section, "common household
2.2 pet" means a domesticated animal, such as a dog, cat, bird, rodent, fish, or turtle, that is
2.3 traditionally kept in the home for pleasure rather than for commercial purposes.
2.4 Subd. 5.Limitations. (a) This section does not alter or affect the rights and duties of a
2.5 landlord with respect to preventing harm to third parties caused by a resident's pet.
2.6 (b) This section shall not be construed to limit or otherwise affect applicable state laws
2.7 and local government ordinances related to public health, animal control, and animal
2.8 anticruelty, or other statutes or laws that require reasonable accommodations to be made
2.9 for an individual with a disability who maintains an animal to provide assistance, service,
2.10 or support.
2.11 EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.
