Federal court blocks new restrictions that threaten proven solutions to homelessness

SAN FRANCISCO, CA (December 19, 2025) — San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu and Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti issued the following statements today after U.S. District Court Judge Mary S. McElroy granted motions for preliminary injunction, temporarily blocking the Federal administration’s attempts to implement unlawful and unreasonable restrictions that seek to shift funding away from proven solutions to homelessness.

On December 1, 2025, San Francisco and Santa Clara County joined a broad coalition of cities and nonprofit organizations and filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for unlawful restrictions on its Continuum of Care (CoC) Program. The lawsuit seeks to prevent HUD’s harmful attempt to stop funding permanent housing projects that are keeping more than 170,000 Americans out of homelessness as cold winter months arrive.

“HUD’s Continuum of Care program provides tens of millions in funding to house thousands of our most vulnerable,” said San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu. “San Francisco has relied on this program for decades to fund permanent supportive housing. We are grateful the Court blocked the Federal Administration’s attempt to push our most vulnerable citizens out of their homes without a place to go. We will continue to oppose these efforts and stand up in court for San Francisco’s values, funding, and communities.”

“The Trump Administration’s callous, last-minute attempt to upend Continuum of Care funding threatens housing stability and access for hundreds of thousands of Americans,” said Santa Clara County Counsel Tony LoPresti. “The Court’s action to block the Trump Administration from implementing its illegal changes to critical federal funding ensures continuity for local governments and service providers while providing much-needed stability for neighbors in our community. We will continue to stand up to this brazen and unlawful attempt to take housing away from vulnerable seniors, children, and families.”

Background
Under multiple federal administrations, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)’s Continuum of Care (CoC) Program has helped provide the necessary resources for local governments and organizations to fund permanent housing projects for veterans, seniors, people with disabilities, and individuals and families with children experiencing homelessness.

On November 13, 2025, without explanation, HUD rescinded the program’s Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), which would have awarded San Francisco $56 million for fiscal year 2025, and replaced it with one that threatens deep funding cuts. The new NOFO made drastic changes to every aspect of the CoC program, changing the types of projects eligible for funding, the criteria for selecting awardees, and the conditions grantees will be required to accept in order to receive funding. This move was withdrawn by HUD about an hour before a hearing last week in the case brought by local governments and nonprofit organizations. Judge Mary S. McElroy’s order from the bench today, which will be followed by a written order, restores the status quo and blocks for the time being the implementation of dangerous changes to the CoC program even as the government has threatened to issue another new funding announcement.

After more than a decade of prioritizing evidence-based approaches that reduce homelessness, as the complaint explains, any changes to the Notice of Funding Opportunity threaten to upend the stability of the program required by law, will have devastating impacts for plaintiffs, and cause hundreds of thousands of children, youth, adults, and families to be evicted from their homes.

In addition to San Francisco and Santa Clara County, the coalition behind the lawsuit includes the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH), the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), Crossroads Rhode Island, Youth Pride, Inc., King County, WA, Boston, MA, Cambridge, MA, Nashville, TN, and Tucson, AZ in the lawsuit, which was filed in federal district court in Rhode Island. Democracy Forward represents the coalition of nonprofit organizations in the matter; the National Homelessness Law Center represents NAEH and NLIHC; Public Rights Project represents the cities of Boston, Cambridge, Nashville and Tucson; and Santa Clara County and San Francisco represent themselves. The Lawyers’ Committee for Rhode Island represents San Francisco as local counsel.

The case is National Alliance to End Homelessness, et al. v. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, et al., U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, Case No. 1:25-cv-00636. View the complaint.