WASHINGTON, DC – FWD.us President Todd Schulte issued the following statement today on the Trump Administration’s proposed policy that would eliminate federal housing aid, including vouchers and public housing, to U.S. citizens living in households with mixed-status family members:

“The Trump Administration’s proposal to eliminate federal housing aid to tens of thousands of U.S. citizens who live in mixed-status households is a cruel attack on American families. More than 108,000 people would be displaced by the proposed change, about 70% of whom are U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents. Nearly three-quarters of those who would be impacted are children – meaning almost 55,000 kids could be at risk of housing instability.

“The proposal to evict more than 100,000 people is unconscionable. Denying housing assistance to tens of thousands of U.S. citizen children will force these families to be separated. We urge the Administration to reconsider this damaging proposal.”

Background

Under current rules, undocumented immigrants do not receive federal housing benefits; however, aid is available to certain mixed-status famlies where at least one member of the family is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. In this scenario, rents are prorated to ensure that none of the subsidy assists with the undocumented immigrant’s portion of rent.

Under the new rule proposed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, families with even one undocumented family member would lose all of their housing aid, including vouchers and public housing.

An impact analysis from the Department of Housing and Urban Development acknowledges the new rule could have devastating impacts, citing that “HUD expects that fear of the family being separated would lead to prompt evacuation by most mixed households, whether that fear is justified. However, an alternative option would be for the household to ask ineligible members to leave.”

If the families do not leave freely, the agency estimates it would need to spend between $3 million to $4 million to evict low-income families.