# ESA Letter in Kodiak, AK: Why AS 11.76.130 Is Not Your Statute

> A Kodiak ESA letter does not rest on AS 11.76.130, a crime about certified service animals in public places. Why that is not a housing law, and which one is.

- Source: https://supportanimal.com/blog/alaska-emotional-support-animal/kodiak/
- Publisher: Support Animal (supportanimal.com)
- Updated: 2026-09-19
- License note: informational content; not legal or medical advice.

**In short:** In Kodiak, AK, AS 11.76.130 is not your statute: it protects a service animal certified by a training school, in public places, and is a crime a prosecutor charges. An ESA in a rental rests on the federal Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B), because no Alaska statute names emotional support animals. A refusal can go to the State Commission for Human Rights within 300 days.

## Key facts

- Population: 5,399
- Households renting: 50.2%
- Typical pet deposit (as a pet): Pet deposit capped at 1 month
- Typical pet rent (as a pet): Market rate, no cap
- Breed/weight limits common: yes
- Pet fees, deposits and breed or weight limits with a qualifying reasonable accommodation: may be waived or modified, not automatically void (FHA reasonable accommodation)

## How many Kodiak households rent?

Every Kodiak number on this page is an estimate with a wide margin, and it is worth saying so first.
The Census Bureau's 2020-2024 American Community Survey five-year estimates count 943 renter
households in Kodiak, plus or minus 180, out of 1,880 occupied homes. That works out to 50.2 percent
renting, but the true share could sit some way either side. Median gross rent is estimated at $1,571,
plus or minus $256, so anywhere from about $1,315 to $1,827 is consistent with the survey.

The Vintage 2024 population estimate is 5,399. Kodiak sits in the Kodiak Island Borough, off the road
system. Treat the rental figures as a rough sketch of the town, not a ranking against anywhere else.

What is not an estimate is the law. And one Alaska statute that surfaces when people look up
service-animal rights is the wrong one for a renter.

## What does Alaska's criminal service animal statute, AS 11.76.130, cover?

**AS 11.76.130** sits in Alaska's criminal code. Paragraph (a)(2) makes it an offence to intentionally
prevent a person with a disability "from being accompanied or assisted by a certified service animal,
without an extra charge for the service animal, in a common carrier, place of public accommodation,
or other place to which the general public is invited."

Subsection (c)(1) then defines the animal: "certified service animal means an animal trained to assist
... and certified by a school or training facility". Under subsection (d), the offence is a class B
misdemeanor. A school-certified guide dog turned away from a bus or a café is exactly the case the
section was written for.

It is easy to see why the section gets quoted. It says "service animal". It forbids an "extra
charge". It carries a penalty. A tenant looking for something with teeth might wave it at a
landlord. That would be a mistake, for reasons set out in the last section below.

## Does Alaska state law say anything about emotional support animals?

Search all of the Alaska Statutes for "emotional support" and you get nothing. The same is true of
"assistance animal" and "support animal". Only one sentence in the statutes speaks to animals in a
rented home, and it points the other way.

The landlord-tenant act's pet deposit rule, **AS 34.03.070(h)**, spares only a service animal, and
**AS 34.03.070(i)(2)** defines that as "an animal that is individually trained to do work or perform
tasks". The Commission for Human Rights carries its service animal rule into rented housing through
**6 AAC 30.610(n)**, yet subsection (q)(4) of the same rule limits it to "a dog or miniature horse that
is trained". An emotional support animal helps without training, so none of these reaches it by name.

## Which law protects an emotional support animal in a Kodiak rental?

The protection is federal. **42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B)** treats as discrimination a refusal "to make
reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services" when an accommodation may be
necessary for a person with a disability to use and enjoy a dwelling. A no-pets clause is a policy.
Letting the animal stay is the accommodation.

Alaska's own rules point the same way. Subsection (p) of 6 AAC 30.610 says the regulation "does not
limit the rights or remedies ... granted by federal fair housing laws". The Department of Law's
landlord-tenant handbook adds, in footnote 15, that the federal Act "prohibits charging a pet
deposit for a service animal or a support animal, which includes animals that provide therapeutic
emotional support". So a Kodiak lease may name a pet deposit of up to one month's rent for a pet, but
not as the price of an accommodated animal.

State law is not idle either. **AS 18.80.240** forbids refusing to rent because of disability and
bars a landlord from making "a written or oral inquiry or record" of an applicant's disability. It
has no accommodation clause, but the State Commission for Human Rights has still pursued emotional
support animal exclusions as discrimination, in two cases involving owners in condominium or
homeowners' associations rather than tenants.

## Does a Kodiak renter need an ESA certificate or registration?

Alaska keeps no registry of emotional support animals and issues no certificate or ID card for them.
A certificate bought online proves nothing to a Kodiak landlord. Alaska also has no crime of
misrepresenting an animal as a service or support animal. That is no invitation to try: the federal
duty exists only where the disability and the need are real.

## What can a Kodiak renter do if the landlord still says no?

A complaint to the State Commission for Human Rights must be filed within 300 days of the refusal,
under **6 AAC 30.230**. Under the federal Act you have a year to complain to HUD (its Alaska office is on C Street in
Anchorage) or two years to bring a federal lawsuit. Because the state Commission has no partnership
with HUD, filing with one never counts as filing with the other.

Alaska also lets an aggrieved person skip the Commission and apply straight to superior court under
**AS 22.10.020(i)**. The routes have different clocks and different powers, so get free advice before
picking one.

## Where can Kodiak renters get legal and housing help?

Alaska Legal Services Corporation keeps a Kodiak office at 518 W. Marine Way (907-512-0499). Its landlord and tenant helpline, 1-855-743-1001, is generally open Monday to Thursday from 6 to 8
p.m. The Fair Housing Project handles discrimination cases for free, with no income limit, on 1-855-679-3247. The
Independent Living Center's Kodiak office is at 211 Mission Road, Suite 223 (907-486-0493).

For housing itself, the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation's office at 521 Maple Street (907-486-5513)
offers Housing Choice Vouchers. Kodiak Island Housing Authority, 3137 Mill Bay Road, says it has
"rental programs for those who are American Indian/Alaska Native(AIAN), non-AIAN, 55 or more years
old"; its own rental voucher is limited to Alaska Native and American Indian applicants.

## Why doesn't AS 11.76.130 protect an ESA in a Kodiak rental?

Here is why AS 11.76.130 is not the statute behind an emotional support animal in a Kodiak rental.

1. **It needs a certificate from a trainer.** The section protects only a "certified service animal",
   one "certified by a school or training facility". An emotional support animal is neither trained
   for tasks nor certified, and nothing in the section stretches to cover it.
2. **It covers public places, not your home.** Its reach is a "common carrier, place of public
   accommodation, or other place to which the general public is invited". An apartment you rent is
   none of those.
3. **It is a crime, not a tenant's remedy.** A class B misdemeanor is charged by a prosecutor. It
   gives a tenant no order to keep the animal and no refund of a deposit.

The statute that is yours is 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B). It asks two things: that you have a
disability, and that you need this animal because of it. Alaska's definition in
**AS 18.80.300(15)(B)** counts "emotional or mental illness" as an impairment, and it is those two
findings, in writing from a qualified professional, that a landlord weighs.

A clinician who already treats you is a natural choice to write them. In an off-road town the catch
is access: behavioral health providers are few, a first appointment can be a long wait, and a
provider who barely knows you may properly hold back from a finding they have not had time to make.

A licensed evaluation exists for that situation. A licensed clinician looks at both questions and
records what they conclude, and the conclusion can be no. That is exactly why a Kodiak landlord can
rely on a yes, in a way no training school's certificate was ever meant to support.

## What Kodiak landlords can and cannot do

**Cannot:**
- Cannot refuse a reasonable accommodation to a no-pets rule where it may be necessary to give a person with a disability equal opportunity to use and enjoy the home, under 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B). Alaska's own Human Rights Act has no accommodation clause, so this federal duty does the work.
- Cannot refuse to rent because of a physical or mental disability, or discriminate because of disability in a term, condition or privilege of the tenancy, AS 18.80.240(1) and (2).
- Cannot make a written or oral inquiry into, or keep a record of, an applicant's disability, AS 18.80.240(3). Asking whether a need exists for an accommodation is different from asking for a diagnosis.
- Cannot condition an emotional support animal on a pet deposit or monthly pet rent. The federal accommodation duty forbids pricing the exception, even though AS 34.03.070(h) exempts only an individually trained service animal from the state pet deposit.
- Cannot require certification or registration of a service animal from an organisation purporting to certify service animals, 6 AAC 30.610(k), and no Alaska registry for any kind of assistance animal exists.
- Cannot keep a security deposit and prepaid rent above two months' rent, AS 34.03.070(a), unless the rent exceeds $2,000 a month, in which case the whole section, cap included, does not apply.

**Can:**
- Must mail the itemised deposit notice and refund within 14 days, or 30 days where damages are deducted or proper notice was not given, AS 34.03.070(g). A wilful failure can cost up to twice the amount withheld under AS 34.03.070(d).
- May charge an ordinary pet an additional deposit of up to one month's rent, held separately and usable only for pet damage, AS 34.03.070(h).
- May recover for damage an animal actually causes, as with any tenant damage under AS 34.03.120(a)(5). That is a bill for real damage after the fact, not a fee charged in advance.
- May decline where a specific animal would be a direct threat to others' health or safety, or would cause substantial physical damage to others' property, 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(9). The judgment has to be about this animal, not its species or breed.
- May be outside the state Act only when renting a room in a home the owner lives in and shares, 6 AAC 30.990(b). An owner-occupied duplex or fourplex is not exempt under Alaska law.

## How to get an ESA letter in Kodiak

1. **Check that you qualify**, Answer a short screening about how your condition affects daily life in Kodiak. No diagnosis paperwork needed up front. (About 5 minutes: free)
2. **Connect with a licensed professional**, You are matched with a provider licensed for Alaska clients who reviews your situation in a telehealth evaluation. (Telehealth evaluation)
3. **Complete your evaluation**, The professional considers whether an emotional support animal is clinically appropriate for a condition recognized in the DSM-5. The DSM-5 can inform that assessment, but the housing question is whether you have a qualifying disability and whether the animal is necessary because of it. Honest evaluations: not everyone qualifies. (Most of Our Applicants Qualify)
4. **Receive your signed letter**, Your letter arrives on the professional's letterhead with their license number: supporting documentation for a reasonable accommodation that Alaska landlords may lawfully request. (Typically within days of approval)
5. **Send it to your landlord**, Submit the letter with a short reasonable-accommodation request. Where the accommodation is required, ordinary pet-related rules and charges, including pet fees, pet deposits and breed or weight limits, may need to be waived or modified. You remain responsible for any damage the animal actually causes. (Protection under FHA + state law)

## Conditions that can qualify for an ESA

No fixed government list exists. A licensed professional assesses whether an emotional support animal is clinically appropriate for a condition recognized in the DSM-5. The DSM-5 can inform that assessment, but the housing question is whether a qualifying disability is present and whether the animal is necessary because of it. Commonly:

- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Major depressive disorder
- Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- Panic disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
- Bipolar disorder
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
- Phobias with housing impact
- Chronic stress affecting daily function

## Housing help in Kodiak

- [Alaska Legal Services Corporation (Kodiak office, 518 W. Marine Way)](https://www.alsc-law.org/contact-us/) (legal aid)
- [Independent Living Center, Kodiak](https://peninsulailc.org/locations/kodiak) (disability services)
- [Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (Kodiak office, 521 Maple Street)](https://www.ahfc.us/contact-us/housing-assistance-locations) (local housing authority)
- [Kodiak Island Housing Authority (AIAN and non-AIAN rental programs)](https://www.kodiakislandhousing.com/) (local housing authority)
- [Fair Housing Project of Alaska Legal Services Corporation](https://www.fairhousingalaska.org/legal-representation/) (fair housing agency)

## Frequently asked questions

### Can a Kodiak tenant use AS 11.76.130 against a landlord who refuses an emotional support animal?

No. AS 11.76.130 is a criminal statute about a "certified service animal", one certified by a school or training facility, in common carriers, places of public accommodation and other places the general public is invited. A rented home is not one of those places, and an emotional support animal is not a certified service animal. The tenant's protection is the federal Fair Housing Act.

### What does AS 11.76.130 actually cover in Kodiak?

It makes it a class B misdemeanor to intentionally keep a person with a disability from being accompanied or assisted by a certified service animal, or to charge extra for it, in a common carrier, a place of public accommodation or another place open to the general public. It is enforced by prosecutors. It gives a Kodiak renter no remedy against a landlord.

### Does any Alaska statute name the emotional support animal?

No. A search of every title of the Alaska Statutes finds "emotional support", "assistance animal" and "support animal" zero times. The one housing sentence about animals, AS 34.03.070(h), exempts only an individually trained service animal from the pet deposit. A Kodiak emotional support animal rests on 42 U.S.C. § 3604(f)(3)(B), the federal reasonable-accommodation duty.

### How reliable are the Kodiak rent and renter figures?

Treat them as rough. The American Community Survey's 2020-2024 estimates put Kodiak at 943 renter households, plus or minus 180, and a median gross rent of $1,571, plus or minus $256. With margins that wide the figures describe the town in outline only, and this page does not rank Kodiak against other Alaska cities on either measure.

### Is Kodiak Island Housing Authority only for Alaska Native renters?

Not entirely. It says it has "rental programs for those who are American Indian/Alaska Native(AIAN), non-AIAN, 55 or more years old". Its own rental voucher is limited to Alaska Native and American Indian applicants, as are its weatherization and homeownership programs. Its office is at 3137 Mill Bay Road, 907-486-8111.

### Do I need to register or certify my emotional support animal in Kodiak?

No. Alaska has no registry or certificate for emotional support animals, and a certificate or ID card bought online carries no legal weight with a landlord. What matters is documentation from a qualified professional that you have a disability and need the animal because of it. Alaska also has no crime of misrepresenting an animal, but the federal duty applies only where the need is real.

### Where can a Kodiak renter get free legal help?

Alaska Legal Services Corporation has a Kodiak office at 518 W. Marine Way, 907-512-0499. Callers anywhere in the state can also use the evening helpline, 1-855-743-1001, or reach the Fair Housing Project, which charges nothing and applies no income limit, on 1-855-679-3247. The Independent Living Center's Kodiak office, 211 Mission Road, Suite 223, supports people with disabilities.

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Get evaluated by a licensed provider: https://my.supportanimal.com/qualify?sa_source=blog&sa_medium=blog&sa_campaign=esa-guides&sa_content=markdown&ref=blog&sa_term=alaska-emotional-support-animal%2Fkodiak