In this week’s CEO Corner we will cover two major developments in Washington from the last few days: an Executive Order issued by the White House on homelessness and the release of the Senate’s FY2026 Transportation-HUD funding bill.
All year long, the Alliance has been closely monitoring the Trump Administration’s signals on homelessness. While there have been several deeply troubling developments over the past seven months, this most recent Executive Order (EO) released last Thursday will — if fully implemented — have far reaching negative effects on people experiencing homelessness and the services provided to them.
The Alliance strives to be a steady voice in the turbulent and quickly changing environment we find ourselves in now. With that in mind, I think it is appropriate to sound the alarm: This order seeks to dismantle the foundations of homeless response in the United States and further dehumanize people experiencing homelessness.
However, I also want to be clear that there is a lot of legal and policy analysis to be done. We believe that this EO — like many others released by the White House this year — will be subject to litigation, as it likely oversteps well-established legal boundaries and precedence. We will keep the field updated on any new information when we have it.
Today we want to spend time explaining the EO and its potential impacts. I will caution you that the language used in this EO is extremely dehumanizing and it includes numerous claims not supported by data or evidence to support an approach rooted in cruelty.
There are a lot of provisions that you all need to know about, but I’d like to focus on three right now:
Attacks on Housing First and Other Evidence-Based Approaches
Housing First is an approach that provides housing as the first step for ending people’s homelessness; from there, people have stability to access services like healthcare, addiction treatment, job training, or other supports to ensure they can thrive.
The Executive Order — which implements pledges made in Project 2025 — ends support for Housing First policies that “deprioritize accountability and fail to promote treatment, recovery, and self-sufficiency.” The Order also will institute sobriety requirements for people who reside in federally funded housing and homelessness programs, and strip funding for harm reduction approaches. It also seeks to prioritize funding for programs that strictly enforce these requirements and may freeze assistance if recipients do not comply.
Ending support for Housing First approaches represents a major step back. I encourage homeless services providers across the country to stay faithful to established, best practices that solve people’s homelessness with dignity and compassion.
A Call for Forced Institutionalization
The Executive Order seeks to defy a 26-year settled legal precedent in Olmstead v. L.C., the Supreme Court case that guarantees people with disabilities have the right to live in the community with necessary support. Specifically, this Order aims to shift people experiencing unsheltered homelessness into long-term, institutional settings under the guise of promoting public safety.
The federal government would provide support to state and local governments for implementing civil commitments, institutional treatments, and “step-down” treatments — and we know through decades of research and evidence that this type of mandated treatment does not work.
Eliminating Fundamental Privacy Protections for People Experiencing Homelessness
Another troubling aspect of the Executive Order would require recipients of federal funding to collect personal, health-related information to ensure “effective and efficient operations” of funding programs. The Order will then require these recipients to share this data with law enforcement authorities, for the purpose of connecting individuals with medical care or public health resources.
This violation of privacy follows aggressive moves by this administration to collect the personal healthcare data of scores of Americans as part of its DOGE efforts to locate, detain, and incarcerate under the guise of efficiency. It is crucial that the collective concern over the use of this data to inflict harm includes the rights of people experiencing homelessness.
In addition to these three areas, the Order includes several other harmful provisions, including eliminating funding for harm reduction efforts; mandating sobriety; and restricting the use of federal funds as a means to discriminate based on sex and gender.
I think it is fair to assume that any potential upcoming FY2025 CoC NOFO will seek to implement at least some of the policies included in the EO. We will keep you updated as we have more information.
Budget Update
Congress has been busy working on the budget for the next Fiscal Year, FY26. Both the House and the Senate have released their reports on funding proposed for housing and homelessness.
For FY2026 funding the Senate largely rejects the President’s proposed cuts, aims to fund programs at a higher level than the House version, and removes several harmful policy changes included in the House version. So, this is a step in the right direction. However, there will undoubtedly be a need for strong advocacy around program funding levels when the House and Senate negotiate a final bill.
Please stay tuned as the Alliance updates its FY26 budget analysis. You can review our recently updated FY2026 Federal Budget Resource Series for additional insight, and make sure you’re signed up for our Advocacy Alerts.
Looking Ahead
I know this is a lot to take in. Each of you reading this likely has several questions on how this Executive Order will be enforced, what steps you can take in your programs, and what the future of federal funding will look like.
Given the sheer volume of changes in the past few months, it is difficult to predict exactly how our field will have to adapt and change. The Alliance is working hard to examine the impacts of each of these components, mitigate harm, and provide updates as we can. If you have questions or concerns on specific legal implications, please seek legal advice.
But please know you have the support of Alliance staff, and we will work together to lead with love and equity in all we do, and bring people home.
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