EL PASO, TEXAS — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a proposed change to federal regulations Thursday, denying federally subsidized housing to entire families that include a person who is undocumented. The proposal will be formally published in the Federal Register on Friday.
About half the people in immigrant families are U.S. citizens – immigrants account for about 14% of the country’s population, while people in immigrant families account for 28%. Yet these families make up fewer than 1% of all households receiving HUD assistance. People who are undocumented are not eligible for subsidized housing under HUD’s “Section 8” program. In cases where a person in the family is ineligible based on immigration status, the family’s Section 8 subsidy is reduced proportionally.
The proposal released today is similar to one issued by the agency in 2019 but never finalized. HUD estimated that the 2019 proposal would have denied housing assistance to 25,000 families, which included 55,000 children. As before, the administration has falsely claimed that the proposal will mitigate housing costs, which have remained persistently high under President Trump. FactCheck.org has debunked White House claims about immigrants and housing, citing experts who attribute high housing costs to “low mortgage interest rates that fueled demand, a subsequent rise in interest rates, and a low housing supply.”
In response to the proposal, the Protecting Immigrant Families coalition (PIF) released the following statement from its executive director, Adriana Cadena.
“HUD’s proposal would force families to choose between separation or remaining together, on the street. Don’t believe the lie – this policy will do nothing to bring housing costs down. It is simply an attack on lawfully present immigrants and U.S. citizens in immigrant families.”
