DELAWARE - Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced that a federal appeals court rejected an effort by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to impose new restrictions on housing assistance funding.
The ruling preserves critical support for tens of thousands of formerly homeless people nationwide, ensuring continued access to stable housing through HUD’s Continuum of Care program, according to Jennings.
"The programs that the White House has tried to upend are, in many cases, the only thing sitting between vulnerable Delawareans and homelessness," said Attorney General Kathy Jennings. "I’m grateful to the First Circuit Court of Appeals for upholding our previous efforts to ensure that these crucial programs remain intact."
Jennings joined a multistate coalition in November to challenge HUD after the agency made abrupt changes to the Continuum of Care program, a federal source of homelessness assistance funding. The changes reduced the share of grants allowed for permanent housing and added new conditions for accessing funds.
In December, U.S. District Court Judge Mary McElroy ruled in favor of the states, determining the policy would cause irreparable harm and issuing a preliminary injunction to block the restrictions. On April 1, the First Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision, denying HUD’s request to temporarily enforce the changes while litigation continues.
The appeals court wrote that states provided strong evidence showing the proposed restrictions would be "immediately destabilizing and disastrous for their constituents."
State leaders argued the proposed changes for Delaware alone would result in an $8 million loss, more than a 70 percent reduction in funding, creating significant gaps in services for people with disabilities and others in need of housing support.