Today, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, were joined by 106 Congressional Democrats in sending a letter to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner demanding answers regarding recent actions taken by the Trump Administration to gut enforcement of the Fair Housing Act of 1968 and other housing-related civil rights laws. The letter also reminds the Secretary of his legal mandate to enforce the law, including by investigating housing discrimination complaints which are at an all-time high.

This letter follows the ongoing, systematic effort led by President Trump, Secretary Turner, and co-President Elon Musk to decimate HUD and abandon the agency’s obligations to combat housing discrimination. In recent weeks, the Trump Administration: declared that “DEI is dead at HUD;” reinterpreted the Fair Housing Act to remove sexual orientation and gender identity as a protected class under sex; terminated 780 housing agency staff, with plans to fire at least 77% of staff within the Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity; canceled nearly half of fair housing grants; repealed critical fair housing enforcement including HUD’s Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Rule and the Equal Access Rule; and gave Musk access to personally identifiable discrimination data, including that of sexual assault victims.

“We write to express deep concern regarding your recent actions and reported plans for the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the effect of your actions on the Department’s ability to fulfill its statutory obligation to enforce our nation’s fair housing and civil rights law,” wrote the lawmakers. “Housing discrimination is illegal in the United States and violators may be subject to criminal penalties under the law. FHEO plays a critical role in implementing and enforcing the Fair Housing Act […] These statutes were enacted by Congress to prohibit discrimination in housing and federally funded programs based on race, color, national origin, disability, sex, familial status, religion, and other protected characteristics. You previously voiced your commitment to upholding the Fair Housing Act during your Senate confirmation hearing, yet your actions in your first month on the job have directly contradicted that statement.”

The lawmakers remind Secretary Turner that executive orders do not override existing law and warn that any abdication of HUD’s legal responsibilities risks worsening housing discrimination at a time when economic disparities are widening. The lawmakers conclude by requesting Secretary Turner respond promptly to a series of questions outlining actions the agency is taking to uphold the law and provide an in-person briefing to Members of Congress no later than March 27, 2025.

See the letter HERE.

Full list of signers include:

House: Waters, Adams, Amo, Ansari, Balint, Barragán, Beatty, Bell, Bonamici, Boyle, Brownley, Brown, Carson, Carter, Casar, Casten, Castro, Cherfilus-McCormick, Chu, Cisneros, Clarke, Cleaver, Cohen, Connolly, Correa, Crockett, Davis, Dean, DeGette, DeSaulnier, Dexter, Espaillat, Evans, Fields, Frost, Garamendi, García (IL), Garcia (TX), Goldman, Gomez, Green, Grijalva, Ivey, Jackson, Jayapal, Johnson, Kamlager-Dove, Kelly, Khanna, Krishnamoorthi, Landsman, Lee, Lofgren, Lynch, Magaziner, Matsui, McBath, McBride, McClellan, McGovern, McIver, Meeks, Menendez, Mfume, Moore, Mullin, Nadler, Norton, Ocasio-Cortez, Omar, Pettersen, Pressley, Quigley, Ramirez, Raskin, Ross, Salinas, Sánchez, Scanlon, Scott (GA), Scott (VA), Sewell, Sherman, Smith (WA), Soto, Strickland, Takano, Thanedar, Thompson, Tlaib, Tonko, Torres, Underwood, Vargas, Velázquez, Williams.

Senate: Warren, Blumenthal, Blunt Rochester, Gallego, Kaine, Luján, Padilla, Schiff, Smith, Warner, Warnock, Wyden.

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