Judge Richard G. Stearns of the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts granted a temporary injunction stopping the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) termination of dozens of Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) grants. Fair housing groups had filed suit against HUD and DOGE after they terminated 78 HUD fair housing grants for organizations operating in 33 states. FHIP grants, which are authorized by Congress and receive annual appropriations, have been provided for decades to fund local community efforts to educate the public about housing discrimination and investigate fair housing complaints. On Feb. 27, affected organizations received a letter stating that the funding "no longer effectuates the program goals or agency priorities." The court ordered HUD to immediately restore the funding and temporarily enjoined HUD from terminating any FHIP grants except to the extent authorized by statute, regulation and the court.
Source: NAR; 3/26/2025