National Service Dog Day, 2024

Proclamation 10815 of September 19, 2024

National Service Dog Day, 2024

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

On National Service Dog Day, we recognize the proven
benefits that service dogs bring to so many people
across our Nation.

Service dogs have long been at people's sides--acting
as an important source of comfort and an essential
resource to help with everyday life. It was not until
1990, when we passed the Americans with Disabilities
Act, that our Nation fully recognized and protected
service dogs by law. I am proud to have co-sponsored
this landmark legislation years ago, and I am proud of
its continued legacy today. Service dogs continue to
provide valuable aid and support, improving people's
lives--and even sometimes saving them. For people with
disabilities and those struggling with their health,
service dogs can help them perform everyday tasks,
alert them of oncoming medical episodes, or remind them
to take medication. For those dealing with post-
traumatic stress disorder or anxiety, service dogs can
be a source of comfort and care--waking their owner up
during nightmares or helping them navigate large
crowds.

My Administration has worked to ensure that everyone
has access to the health care and support services they
need. I signed the Puppies Assisting Wounded
Servicemembers for Veterans Therapy Act, which
established a pilot program that makes veterans
struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder eligible
to train service dogs. Additionally, the Department of
Veterans Affairs has also provided the Service Dog
Veterinary Health Insurance Benefit to over 1,400
veterans, ensuring that veterinary costs for their
service dogs are covered. And the Department of
Transportation established the first-ever Airline
Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights, which
affirmed the right to travel with a service animal, and
proposed a rule to ensure all passengers with
disabilities--including those with service animals--can
travel safely and with dignity.

Today, may we celebrate service dogs, who offer
assistance, comfort, and unconditional love to so many.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of
the United States of America, by virtue of the
authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws
of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 20,
2024, as National Service Dog Day. I call upon the
people of the United States to honor the role of
service dogs in the lives of people with disabilities
and America's veterans with appropriate ceremonies and
activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
nineteenth day of September, in the year of our Lord
two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of
the United States of America the two hundred and forty-
ninth.