(202) 550-1381
For Immediate Release
August 3, 2020
New Rule Illegally Uses Unfettered Regulatory Power to Undermine Fair Housing
Washington, DC (August 3, 2020) – The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities and its counsel Reno & Cavanaugh called on the Trump Administration and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to withdraw its racist and illegal attempt to eliminate the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) rule.
In a
joint letter sent today to HUD Secretary Ben Carson, CLPHA Executive Director Sunia Zaterman and CLPHA General Counsel Steve Holmquist expressed vehement opposition to rule. “HUD must withdraw the New AFFH Rule and stand with public housing authorities and localities across the country to confront the legacy of discriminatory housing policies and take affirmative actions to ensure that lower income individuals and communities most in need of decent, safe, and affordable housing have equal and fair access to housing,” said Zaterman and Holmquist.
Zaterman and Holmquist continued, “We are shocked and dismayed by HUD’s stark admission that the “abandon[ment of] its prior approach” to AFFH was produced at the direction of the President of the United States, who has recently stated that rescission of the AFFH Rule will allow ‘the people living their Suburban Lifestyle Dream’ to live without being ‘bothered or financially hurt by having low income ‘housing built in [their] neighborhood,’ that ‘housing prices will go up,’ and ‘crime will go down.’ We are left to conclude that HUD is actively attempting to eliminate decades of fair housing progress by legalizing discriminatory and racist housing policies through the New AFFH Rule.”
“In claiming unfettered regulatory power to undermine fair housing, the New AFFH Rule is a perfect storm of regressive social policy and a total disregard for the rule of law. Therefore, HUD must withdraw the New AFFH Rule,” concluded Zaterman and Holmquist.
About the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities
The Council of Large Public Housing Authorities is a national non-profit organization that works to preserve and improve public and affordable housing through advocacy, research, policy analysis and public education. CLPHA’s 70 members represent virtually every major metropolitan area in the country. Together they manage 40 percent of the nation’s public housing program; administer more than a quarter of the Housing Choice Voucher program; and operate a wide array of other housing programs. Learn more at clpha.org and on Twitter @CLPHA and follow @housing_is for news on CLPHA’s work to better intersect the housing field and other areas of critical importance such as health and education.