PRRAC Update (July 25, 2025): Former HUD Secretaries Castro & Donovan to keynote Housing Mobility Conference

HUD Does Not Have the Discretion to Drop Systemic Fair Housing Complaints: On July 18, 2025, ProPublica reported that HUD planned to drop at least seven major, systemic fair housing complaints in which the Department had either issued letters of findings that discrimination had occurred or was previously conducting an investigation. Collectively, these complaints involve important issues relating to the intersection of fair housing and environmental justice, equity in disaster recovery, exclusionary zoning, and more. It is important to note that the obligation of the Secretary of HUD to investigate fair housing complaints is not discretionary. 42 U.S.C. § 3610(a)(1)(B)(iv) states that the Secretary “shall” conduct an investigation of complaints that are filed with the Department. Although the obligation to conduct an investigation does not an imply an obligation to conclude that discrimination has occurred, mere ideological opposition to fair housing is not a basis for a conclusion that there is no reasonable cause to believe that discrimination has occurred under U.S.C. § 3610(g)(3). HUD’s regulationsrequire that there be a factual basis for a determination that there is no reasonable cause to believe that discrimination has occurred. Additionally, under longstanding principles of administrative law, unexplained changes in agency factfinding – such as from the letters of findings that HUD previously issued in some of these cases to the positions that the Department is staking out now – are found to be arbitrary and capricious. There is significant reason for concern that HUD might not have a reasoned basis, grounded in factfinding as opposed to dislike for legal frameworks like disparate impact, for the reported decision to drop these complaints. If so, the Department has abdicated its statutory obligations.

Other news and resources

HUD Sends Proposed Mixed-Status Family Rule to OMB: On July 16, 2025, HUD sent the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a notice of proposed rulemaking regarding the verification of eligibility for certain assisted housing for families with mixed immigration status. Based on a proposed rule from the first Trump Administration that was never finalized, it is anticipated that this proposed rule, if finalized, would exclude mixed-status families from assisted housing, causing tremendous harm to low-income families while significantly reducing the number of households that our assisted housing programs are able to serve. Currently, mixed-status families are able to live in assisted housing but have their subsidy prorated to reflect the proportion of household members that is eligible. Advocates can express their opposition to this harmful policy change by requesting a meeting with OMB here.

LISC Report on Extent and Implications of Corporate Multifamily Ownership in the Kansas City Region: The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) published an important report on the extent of corporate ownership of multifamily properties in the Kansas City metropolitan region and the higher rates of evictions and housing code violations at corporate-owned properties. The report has key implications for municipal code enforcement strategy and presents a cautionary tale regarding the role of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac in providing the liquidity to enable corporate landlords to increase their market share.

House HUD Budget Would Reduce Housing Assistance, Disinvest from Public Housing, and Gut Fair Housing Enforcement: The House Appropriations Committee has released its draft Fiscal Year 2026 spending bill for HUD. While the draft is not as extreme as President Trump’s proposed budget for the agency, as illustrated by a helpful analysis from the National Low Income Housing Coalition, it could result in the loss of 32,000 Housing Choice Vouchers through attrition while slashing funding for already severely underfunded public housing operations and capital repairs by about one-third and imposing even more draconian cuts on fair housing outreach, education, and enforcement. It will be critical for housing justice advocates to push back against these threatened cuts.

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