UPDATE: HUD Funding Changes Blocked by the Courts

Back in December 2025, we reported on proposed funding changes from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that threatened to reshape current and future homeless assistance programs. That major policy shift is now on hold after a federal appeals court stepped in.

HUD provides nearly $4 billion each year through its Continuum of Care program, one of the federal government's largest sources of funding for housing and homelessness services. A Continuum of Care, often called a CoC, is a local network that coordinates housing and services for people experiencing homelessness.

What Was HUD Trying to Change?

Some of the proposed programs would require people to meet conditions involving sobriety, mental health treatment, or other requirements before receiving certain assistance.

That was a major departure from the federal government's longstanding Housing First approach. Housing First focuses on getting someone into stable housing first and then connecting them with services, rather than requiring them to complete treatment, maintain sobriety, or meet other conditions before they can be housed.

Housing providers warned that the change could put thousands of people who were already housed at risk of becoming homeless again.

The Courts Said, Not So Fast

A lower federal court had already temporarily blocked HUD from making the changes.

HUD tried to get that block removed while the case continued, but on April 1, 2026, a federal appeals court said no. The court found that allowing the changes to take effect while the lawsuit was still being decided could cause serious disruption to housing programs and the people who depend on them.

What Does This Mean Right Now?

For now, HUD cannot move forward with these particular funding changes. That's important for Georgia.

Homelessness organizations in Atlanta and other parts of the state had already been preparing for the possibility of losing significant funding for permanent housing. The court's decision gives those programs some breathing room while the larger legal fight continues.

But this isn't necessarily the end of the story. The court stopped the changes from taking effect for now; it did not end the larger debate over how federal homelessness dollars should be spent.

Sources: Georgia Public Broadcasting