New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin has joined a coalition of 20 other plaintiffs in filing a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), alleging that recent changes to federal housing policy will increase homelessness and violate congressional intent.
The lawsuit challenges HUD’s overhaul of its Continuum of Care grant program, which provides funding for local and regional efforts to address homelessness. According to the complaint, HUD is reducing the proportion of grant funds available for permanent housing and project renewals, while imposing new requirements on recipients. These requirements include making residents accept certain services as a condition for obtaining housing, penalizing providers in areas without strict anti-homelessness laws, and withholding funding from organizations unless they adopt specific views on gender identity.
Attorney General Platkin stated, “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. 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.”
For decades, HUD has supported a “Housing First” approach—providing stable housing without preconditions such as sobriety or minimum income—which research shows improves stability and public health outcomes while lowering costs related to homelessness.
Under previous policy, about 90% of Continuum of Care funding went toward permanent housing. The new rule would reduce this by two-thirds starting in 2026. Similarly, grantees were previously able to count on renewing about 90% of their funding each year; under the new rules, only 30% would be guaranteed renewal. The coalition argues these changes will lead to widespread evictions among formerly homeless individuals who rely on this support.
The complaint also contends that HUD’s planned restrictions would deny funds to applicants acknowledging transgender or gender-diverse people, deprioritize those serving individuals with mental health or substance use disorders, and discriminate against communities whose approaches differ from current federal preferences.
Plaintiffs argue that HUD failed to follow required procedures before implementing these changes—including neglecting formal rulemaking—and did not obtain congressional approval for many provisions that contradict existing statutes and agency regulations.
The lawsuit was filed in federal District Court in Rhode Island by a group led by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha. Other participants include attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Vermont, Wisconsin; as well as governors from Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
