Nearly Half the Country Sues Trump Over Massive Cut to Housing
Twenty states are suing the Trump administration over cuts made to funding for housing the homeless.
A coalition of 19 attorneys general and two governors made the move Tuesday to seek a court order that would block “cuts and illegal new conditions” to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care program, which works with local organizations to connect unhoused people with resources and housing.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced that more than half of the program’s 2026 funding for permanent housing will be cut and reallocated to temporary transitional housing with work or service requirements. The new conditions will also allow HUD to deny funding to any organizations that acknowledge transgender or nonbinary people.
This month, HUD instituted a cap on the amount of its program funds that can go to permanent housing at 30 percent. Previously, no cap existed, and 90 percent of its funds supported permanent housing.
The lawsuit argues that the conditions placed on the program are “unlawful and unconstitutional” because the funds were mandated by Congress to be distributed based on need. New York Attorney General Letitia James, the coalition’s leader, said in a press release that “communities across the country depend on Continuum of Care funds to provide housing and other resources to our most vulnerable neighbors.”
“These funds help keep tens of thousands of people from sleeping on the streets every night. I will not allow this administration to cut off these funds and put vital housing and support services at risk,” James said.
At a time when the country is in the midst of a housing crisis exacerbated by the Trump administration, these cuts will make things even worse if they are allowed to stand. Americans who end up losing their homes already have a tough time getting assistance. If this lawsuit doesn’t stop or slow the administration’s cuts, Americans without homes will get even less from the government.