Trump Appointees Hamstring HUD’s Fair Housing Enforcement

The Fair Housing Act may still be on the books, but inside HUD’s enforcement office, staff say it’s being treated like a dead letter.

Donald Trump’s appointees have sharply curtailed the agency’s ability to prosecute housing discrimination cases, according to internal memos and interviews reviewed by the New York Times.

Staff cuts, gag orders and reassignments have hollowed out HUD’s Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, which has lost nearly two-thirds of its workforce since January. Career attorneys describe being blocked from citing precedent, speaking with complainants or advancing investigations without political approval.

The shift began early in Trump’s return to office, when diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives were branded as “not a priority of the administration.”

In practice, that meant shelving cases on appraisal bias, redlining and zoning rules that excluded Black and Latino families — core issues for the Fair Housing Act since its passage in 1968. Internal communications show appointees dismissing decades of enforcement as “artificial” and “unnecessary.”

Numbers tell the story. HUD typically brings around 35 charges of discrimination a year; under the new regime, there have been four. Settlements that once delivered $4 million to $8 million annually have plunged to under $200,000. Hundreds of pending cases have been frozen or dropped, including a suit against a Texas homeowners’ association accused of barring Black voucher holders.

HUD officials deny any retreat, insisting the office is streamlining and tackling cases more efficiently. But whistleblowers say the cuts are crippling, especially for enforcement tied to the Violence Against Women Act, where only a handful of attorneys remain to handle roughly 500 annual pleas for housing protection from abuse survivors.

Civil rights lawyers and former staff warn the rollback has implications far beyond the Beltway. Discrimination claims often arise from landlords, lenders, appraisers and brokers, all core players in real estate. With watchdogs sidelined, cases that once carried financial and reputational risks for violators may never reach court.

A group of HUD lawyers has already sued the agency, alleging unlawful retaliation and forced transfers. Senator Elizabeth Warren called for an inspector general investigation, saying the allegations suggest HUD is “no longer enforcing fair housing and civil rights laws — with dire consequences.”

— Holden Walter-Warner