State law after the 2026 rescission
For landlords
The federal route got quieter. The state route did not, and that is where your exposure now sits.
What actually changed
HUD rescinded its 2020 assistance animal guidance and narrowed its own enforcement to individually trained animals. That is a decision about how one federal agency handles complaints under one statute. It is not a change in the law, and it has no effect on any state statute at all.
What that means for you
- Most states have their own fair housing statute and an agency HUD recognises as substantially equivalent. Those complaints are decided on state law, which did not change.
- State exemptions are frequently narrower than the federal ones. A property you believe is exempt may not be.
- Seven states legislated on assistance animals directly, and in those the documentation standard is written into statute rather than inferred.
- The pet fee question now turns on state landlord-tenant law, because the federal guidance that answered it is gone. Several states prohibit non-refundable pet fees for any animal.
The private right of action under the Fair Housing Act is also unchanged, including its fee-shifting provision. That is the route with damages attached, and it was never the route HUD controlled.
The practical posture
Keep granting well-documented requests, keep refusing on the grounds that were always available, and read your own state page before changing any policy. A provider who adopts a blanket rule on the strength of the 2026 headline has swapped a settled, low-cost process for an argument in a forum the headline does not reach.
Common questions
- Can I stop waiving pet fees?
- It moved from prohibited to contested federally, and your state may answer it directly. Check before changing anything, and weigh the sums against the cost of defending a complaint.