The directive requires state and local jurisdictions that receive funding through HUD’s Fair Housing Assistance Program “to prohibit discrimination because of gender identity and sexual orientation.” The agency cited the Supreme Court’s ruling last June that gender identity and sexual orientation are protected by the 1964 Civil Rights Act outlawing discrimination on the basis of sex.
A senior HUD official told reporters Wednesday that the agency believes a “significant” share of fair housing complaints it receives involve sexual orientation or gender identity.
The policy marks a major shift from HUD’s position under President Donald Trump and his housing secretary, Ben Carson.
Carson formally proposed a rule change in July that would have allowed homeless shelters to deny protections to transgender people. That was after he flirted with the idea for over a year and came under fire from advocacy groups over a Washington Post report that he had expressed concern about “big, hairy men” trying to use women’s bathrooms during a staff meeting in 2019. HUD officials disputed that report.
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