Trump admin aims to shift homelessness grants toward addiction treatment, enforcement

The Trump administration is proposing to redirect Continuum of Care grant bonuses toward localities favoring treatment-first policies: sober housing, law enforcement partnerships and transitional housing over the Housing First model that has guided federal policy since the Obama era. HUD posted the notice September 11 and will take comments through October 13, its third attempt at this shift after two prior efforts were struck down in court for procedural violations.

HUD points to Anchorage, Houston, Portland and San Francisco as models, all enabled by the Supreme Court's 2024 Grants Pass ruling that let cities enforce public camping bans; more than 350 cities and 14 states have since passed similar crackdowns. The agency argues chronic homelessness has risen since 2013 despite Housing First's dominance, though a coalition of 22 states, D.C., and groups including the National Alliance to End Homelessness sued over HUD's earlier attempts at this same overhaul.

Housing advocates counter with a 2020 review of 26 studies finding Housing First cut homelessness by 88% and improved stability by 41% compared with treatment-first approaches. HUD's own notice doesn't grapple with that evidence directly, leaning instead on the fact that some cities have already moved toward enforcement.

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