On June 24, 2025, Relman Colfax filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of the National Fair Housing Alliance (NFHA) and the Tennessee Fair Housing Council (TFHC) challenging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) unprecedented and unlawful refusal to administer critical grant funding under the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP). Filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the case directly challenges the Administration’s failure to fund important federal housing enforcement.
Established in 1992, Congress created FHIP to support the frontline organizations that investigate discrimination, educate communities and housing providers on fair housing laws, and enforce civil rights laws. Nonprofit groups have used FHIP funds to stop insurance and lending redlining practices; support the development of accessible housing units for people with disabilities; bring to heel landlords who sexually harass women; prevent homelessness for families with children; and much more.
Despite more than thirty years of unbroken interdependence between the federal government and fair housing organizations, HUD began flouting its FHIP mandate by refusing to spend congressionally appropriated funds. HUD refused to administer a large number of existing grants and failed to award new grants from pending application cycles.
The plaintiffs, NFHA, a non-profit organization dedicated to ensuring everyone has access to housing in communities that are free from discrimination and representing more than 70 nonprofit members, and TFHC, a Nashville-based fair housing group working to eliminate housing discrimination for Tennesseans, allege that HUD’s refusal to implement or award FHIP grants violates the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S. Constitution.
On July 28, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a Motion for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO). The motion sought to compel HUD to resume administration of the critical FHIP.
With FHIP funds at risk of expiring by the end of the fiscal year, the Court recognized that delaying action would cause “imminent and irreparable harm.”
“Based on the current record, there does not appear to be sufficient time for HUD to take the necessary steps between now and September 30, 2025, to award funds in compliance with the statutes…And because irreparable harm and the balance of equities and public interest weigh in the Plaintiffs’ favor, a temporary restraining order is warranted,” the opinion states.
In a strong rebuke of HUD’s argument that it could not be compelled to distribute the funds, the Court made clear: “That is not the law.”
The ruling marked an important step in protecting critical civil rights and housing infrastructure nationwide.
Furthermore, in August of 2025, Judge Sparkle L. Sooknanan converted the court’s temporary restraining order into a preliminary injunction that will remain in effect until further order from the Court.
This ruling reaffirms something essential: the fight for fair housing cannot be paused. Every day without funding costs families their homes, their safety, and their futures.
The litigation team consists of Reed Colfax, Lila Miller, and Robert Hunter.