As part of a coalition of 16 attorneys general, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced that the coalition has secured relief from unlawful conditions the Trump administration attempted to place on Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) funding. Administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the FHAP provides funding to state and local agencies that enforce fair housing laws. In Michigan, the program protects residents from housing discrimination.
In March 2026, the coalition filed a lawsuit challenging unlawful conditions in HUD’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 FHAP Funding Guidance, which could have limited state and local agencies’ ability to enforce their fair housing laws, including by restricting reimbursement for certain fair housing complaints and threatening agencies that enforce protections beyond those in federal law. Now, the Trump administration has conceded to the coalition’s challenge, confirming that HUD would not seek to impose, implement, or enforce the challenged conditions in the future and that the FY 2025 Guidance is no longer in effect. A letter from HUD (PDF) also confirms the conditions will not apply to FY 2026 FHAP funding and that HUD does not plan to include them in future guidance. As a result, the parties agreed to dismiss the lawsuit (PDF).
“Once again, our lawsuit has caused the Trump administration to rescind its imposition of unlawful conditions on critical funding, this time on a vital fair housing program,” said Nessel. “It proves that actions challenging the federal government’s illegal activities work and only strengthens my commitment to protecting Michigan residents and holding this administration accountable when it bypasses the rule of law.”
Joining Nessel in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
In March 2026, the coalition filed a lawsuit challenging unlawful conditions in HUD’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 FHAP Funding Guidance, which could have limited state and local agencies’ ability to enforce their fair housing laws, including by restricting reimbursement for certain fair housing complaints and threatening agencies that enforce protections beyond those in federal law. Now, the Trump administration has conceded to the coalition’s challenge, confirming that HUD would not seek to impose, implement, or enforce the challenged conditions in the future and that the FY 2025 Guidance is no longer in effect. A letter from HUD (PDF) also confirms the conditions will not apply to FY 2026 FHAP funding and that HUD does not plan to include them in future guidance. As a result, the parties agreed to dismiss the lawsuit (PDF).
“Once again, our lawsuit has caused the Trump administration to rescind its imposition of unlawful conditions on critical funding, this time on a vital fair housing program,” said Nessel. “It proves that actions challenging the federal government’s illegal activities work and only strengthens my commitment to protecting Michigan residents and holding this administration accountable when it bypasses the rule of law.”
Joining Nessel in this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington.
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