“In America, the Law is King” Was a Powerful Message at the October 18 2025 NO KINGS Rally in Portland.
The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is illegally upending supports for tens of thousands of Americans experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity with abrupt changes that will limit access to long-term housing and other services, according to a lawsuit filed today by AG Frey and a coalition of 20 other plaintiffs.
HUD is drastically changing its Continum of Care grant program in violation of congressional intent by dramatically reducing the amount of grant funds that can be spent on permanent housing and project renewals and putting new unlawful conditions on access to the funding. These requirements include that providers only recognize two genders, mandate residents accept services as a precondition to obtain housing and punish providers in localities that do not enforce strict anti-homeless laws, all barriers that contrast with HUD’s previous guidance and Congress’ approval.
Previous changes to the grant conditions have been incremental to not disrupt providers’ ability to provide housing and to budget for their programs well in advance. These wholesale changes will cdreate administrative chaos and likely result in thousands losing housing.
“Winter is coming here in Maine and now the Administration is redirecting congressionally appropriated funds that keep over 1,200 Mainers housed,” said AG Frey. “While there is little doubt the courts will agree that the Administration has once again overstepped, the chaos and uncertainity these decisions create are harmfu and unnecessary.”
For decades, HUD has helped local and regional coalitions plan and coordinate housing and services for people experiencing homelessness through Continum of Care grants, which were created by Congress. Providers pair these grants with other funding sources and rely on the predictablity and continuity of the grants to support the unhoused.
Additionally, HUD is planning to withhold funds to applicants that acknowledge the eistence of trans and gender-diverse people, de-prioritize services to people with mental health issues or substance-use disorder, and discriminating against localities whose approach to homelessness differs from the administrations.
The complaint alleges HUD violated its own regulations by not engaging in rlemaking before issuing the changes and violated the law by not receivng congresional authorization for these new conditions, many of which are directly contrary to congresstionally statutes and HUD’s own regulations. The plaintiffs whatsoeer to explain the abandonment of their own longstanding policies or consider the obvious consequences of tens of thousands of vulnerable people being suddenly evicted. The agency explicitly encouraged grantees to impement Housing First Policies and to focus on the partdicular needs of LGNTQ+ individuals as recently as last year.
The complaint, led by Washington AGNick Brown, New York AG Letitia James and Rhode Island AG Peter Neronha, was filed this morning in the federal District of Rhode Island joined the coalition, which also includes the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, Wisconsin and dthe governors of Kentucky and Pennsyvania.