State AGs oppose HUD’s plan to roll back fair housing marketing rules

California Attorney General Rob Bonta — along with a coalition of 20 other attorneys general — is urging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to abandon a proposed rule that would eliminate federal requirements prohibiting discriminatory marketing of affordable housing.

In a letter sent to HUD on Thursday, the attorneys general argued that the proposal would repeal Affirmative Fair Housing Marketing (AFHM) regulations. These are longstanding rules intended to ensure federally assisted housing is marketed broadly, including to communities that might not otherwise learn about available units.

“The Trump Administration is working to roll back critical fair housing regulations that prohibit discrimination — protections put in place in the 70’s to combat the insidious persistence of segregated neighborhoods — protections that are essential today to ensure that housing opportunities for underserved communities remain accessible,” Bonta said in a statement.

“The national housing crisis is driven by a shortage of housing supply and unaffordability that disproportionately affects communities of color. Today, I urge the Administration to look closely at the mandate they inherited in the Fair Housing Act and understand that letting a broader range of buyers know about affordable housing opportunities that are available to them is necessary to ensure that these opportunities remain accessible for all Americans.”

AFHM regulations require owners and developers of HUD-subsidized housing to use marketing and outreach strategies that reach groups protected under the Fair Housing Act — including those based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including gender and sexual orientation), familial status and disability.

These regulations are designed to prevent housing providers from only advertising to certain populations, which has contributed to the continuance of racially segregated neighborhoods.

Under the rules, landlords are not required to select tenants from any specific demographic — nor are they prohibited from using other advertising methods — but they must demonstrate efforts to ensure outreach is inclusive, particularly in high-opportunity areas where protected groups are often underrepresented, Bonta said.

The letter was co-led by the attorneys general of California, Maryland and New York. It was also signed by AGs from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and the District of Columbia.

The AGs said the proposed repeal contradicts HUD’s obligations under the Fair Housing Act to affirmatively further fair housing.

They criticized the lack of a replacement rule, a failure to explain how HUD would prevent unlawful marketing practices in the absence of AFHM regulations, and the absence of legally or empirically sound justification for reversing five decades of policy.

In 2023, federal and state agencies reported record numbers of fair housing complaints — a trend that has persisted in recent years, the AGs added.