Press Releases
09/22/2020
AG Tong Opposes Effort to Weaken Protections For Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Individuals in Shelters
(Hartford, CT) – Attorney General William Tong today joined a coalition of 22 attorneys general led by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul in opposing the U.S. Department of Housing and Development’s (HUD) new proposed rule that would weaken protections for transgender and gender nonconforming individuals in HUD-funded shelters.The proposed rule seeks to rescind and replace HUD’s 2016 Equal Access Rule, which created a uniform national nondiscrimination standard for admissions and placement of transgender and gender nonconforming persons in federally-funded single-sex temporary and emergency shelters and other facilities not covered by the Fair Housing Act (FHA). In the comments submitted today, the coalition argues that HUD should withdraw the proposed rule because it will inflict substantial and needless harm upon transgender and gender nonconforming individuals.
The proposed rule would permit shelters to establish policies and procedures regarding admissions and placement of transgender and gender nonconforming persons based on a shelter provider’s perception of an individual’s “biological sex” and will result in the exclusion of transgender and gender nonconforming individuals from shelters.
“Discrimination on the basis of gender identity and expression is wrong. Banning transgender people from using facilities consistent with their gender identity causes unnecessary stigma, isolation and harm,” Attorney General Tong said. “One in five transgender people in the United States has experienced homelessness at some point during their lives and this rule would make it more difficult for them to seek safe emergency housing. We will continue to fight the Trump Administration’s baseless and unlawful attacks against the LGBTQ community.”
The coalition asserts that temporary and emergency shelters often provide the best access point for individuals seeking safe housing and access to social service supports, a need made even more critical during the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic crisis. Research has shown that admissions and placement of individuals in single-sex facilities is most safely done in accordance with an individual’s gender identity.
The 2016 Equal Access Rule defined gender identity as “the gender with which a person identifies, regardless of sex assigned to that person at birth and regardless of the person’s perceived gender identity,” and therefore requires placement and accommodation decisions be made based on an individual’s gender identity. This uniform standard successfully protects and provides accommodations for transgender and gender nonconforming persons without imposing burdens upon the religious liberties, privacy, or safety of other shelter residents. The 2016 Equal Access Rule also requires that shelter providers arrange for privacy accommodations, where necessary, to enhance safety and privacy for all residents.
Joining Attorneys General Tong and Raoul in the comments are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.
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Media Contact:
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