TRENTON, N.J. — New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has joined a coalition of 20 other plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit alleging that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is unlawfully altering a major homelessness-assistance program in ways that could lead to a loss of housing for thousands of people nationwide.
Filed Tuesday in the federal District of Rhode Island, the lawsuit challenges HUD’s recent changes to its Continuum of Care grant program—one of the primary funding sources for local housing providers serving people experiencing homelessness. According to the complaint, HUD’s new requirements sharply reduce funding for permanent housing and renewal projects, impose conditions that were never approved by Congress, and introduce new eligibility rules that coalition members argue violate federal law.
“The Trump Administration is actively engaging in an illegal effort to hamper the work of organizations that battle homelessness in New Jersey and across our country,” said Attorney General Platkin. “HUD’s changes to anti-homelessness grants are not only unlawful, they will cause more homelessness by blocking numerous New Jerseyans from getting access to housing, all in the name of political games. We are taking the Trump Administration to court and standing up for New Jerseyans for whom this could mean life or death.”
The lawsuit alleges HUD violated the Administrative Procedure Act by implementing sweeping changes without a formal rulemaking process, abandoning longstanding “Housing First” policies, and adding new requirements that conflict with congressional directives. The coalition argues that the changes would create significant administrative disruption for housing providers who budget years in advance and rely on grant continuity to keep vulnerable individuals stably housed.
HUD’s revised structure would reduce funding for permanent housing from roughly 90 percent of Continuum of Care allocations to about one-third, beginning in 2026. It would also cut project-renewal protections from around 90 percent of existing grants to just 30 percent—conditions the lawsuit claims would “virtually guarantee” that many people in permanent supportive housing will eventually lose their placements when funding is not renewed.
The complaint further challenges new restrictions that would condition funding on residents’ acceptance of certain services, penalize providers in localities without strict anti-homelessness laws, and limit funding unless providers align with the administration’s positions on gender-related issues.
HUD has not publicly commented on the litigation.
For decades, Continuum of Care grants have supported local coalitions in coordinating housing and services for people experiencing homelessness. Providers often layer these grants with local, state, and philanthropic dollars to maintain permanent supportive housing and emergency shelter programs.
The lawsuit was led by the attorneys general of Washington, New York, and Rhode Island. In addition to New Jersey, other plaintiffs include Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
