A federal court has blocked the Trump administration’s changes to homelessness funding, preserving more than $3 billion in relief for thousands of homeless residents nationwide. The ruling means about 170,000 people can continue to receive housing support and mental health services.
Background
In November 2025, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced changes to funding for what are called “continuums of care,” or the regional groups that organize efforts to address homelessness. Those changes prioritized funding for programs that require sobriety, push people into stays at psychiatric facilities, ask about immigration status, and recognize only two genders.
Connecticut, along with 19 other states and the District of Columbia, sued HUD over the changes, arguing that they violated the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeded Congress’s power over government spending. The court agreed, ruling that HUD “failed to substantively consider the impact that a rapid, untimely overhaul would have on the organizations that administer these programs and the individuals that rely upon them.”
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said in a statement, “The Trump Administration tried to hold homelessness funding hostage to an unlawful political agenda. We sued, and we won.”
Impact
The ruling preserves funding for continuums of care, which provided rental aid to nearly 6,000 households in Connecticut as of 2025. Many of those formerly homeless people are in permanent supportive housing, which means they have disabilities and receive services at their homes.
Connecticut Balance of State, a statewide group of homelessness services agencies, received roughly $75 million in federal continuums of care funding last year. Millions more went to local homelessness agencies across the state.
Meanwhile, Connecticut’s homeless population has been rising, reaching 3,487 in early 2026, up 3% from a year earlier, according to an annual count conducted by the state.
Original reporting: The Connecticut Mirror — read the source article.
