In a move that threatens to reverse decades of progress, the Trump administration has launched a devastating assault on the most vulnerable Americans, slashing funding for permanent housing and replacing it with a system of temporary shelters that could leave thousands of New Jersey residents out in the cold—quite literally.
This isn’t merely a policy shift; it’s a human catastrophe in the making, orchestrated by bureaucrats who’ve apparently never had to wonder where they’ll sleep tonight.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has announced it will cut funding for long-term housing assistance by nearly two-thirds, shifting money toward transitional housing that requires work and addiction treatment.
The numbers are as brutal as they are simple: where nearly 90% of the $3.9 billion Continuum of Care program currently funds permanent housing, that figure will now be capped at 30%.
The Trump administration frames this as “restoring accountability,” but what they’re really restoring is the spectacle of human suffering on American streets.
The Body Blow to New Jersey’s Safety Net
Here in New Jersey, where the homeless population has swelled to 13,748 people—the highest in a decade and an 8% increase from last year—these changes couldn’t come at a worse time. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates the new policies could put 170,000 people at risk of losing their housing nationwide.
For New Jersey, which received over $2 billion in federal rental assistance in 2023, supporting more than 300,000 residents, the timing is particularly cruel.
The state’s own efforts to address homelessness through programs like the State Rental Assistance Program (SRAP) now face being overwhelmed. SRAP, which provides housing subsidies to very low-income residents and prioritizes veterans, homeless individuals, the elderly, and persons with disabilities, recently closed its waiting list after selecting 6,000 households through a lottery.
These state-level efforts represent a desperate attempt to keep pace with a crisis that Washington seems determined to worsen.
The administration’s sudden shift has created chaos for service providers. Applications for the new funding cycle are due January 14, with awards not coming until May 1—leaving a months-long gap when current funding runs out.
“They are setting communities up for failure,” said Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness and a former HUD official.
The Conservative Backlash to Housing First
For twenty years, federal policy has prioritized “Housing First”—getting people into permanent housing before offering treatment. This approach had bipartisan support and a proven track record.
Conservatives have argued it failed to stem rising homelessness. Despite those criticisms, Housing First has led to significant decreases in homelessness in many areas and has been successful in other countries.
“The influence of Housing First just became too powerful,” says Stephen Eide of the conservative Manhattan Institute, claiming the policy left out people who “may want the enforced sobriety it does not offer”.
HUD Secretary Scott Turner has been more blunt, calling previous funding a “Biden-era slush fund” that created a “homeless industrial complex”.
The new approach reflects an executive order Trump signed in July seeking to “restore accountability” and address “root causes of homelessness, including illicit drugs and mental illness”. The order also made it easier to confine unhoused people in mental institutions against their will.
The Human Cost of “Accountability”
What gets lost in this lofty talk of “accountability” and “self-sufficiency” are the human beings who will pay the price. We’re talking about disabled individuals, veterans, and seniors—the very people HUD itself acknowledges need protection.
The administration’s cold calculus seems to be that some suffering is necessary to encourage “self-sufficiency.”
Stephanie Klasky-Gamer of LA Family Housing in Los Angeles notes the policy will lead more shelters to bar people unless they’re already sober or enrolled in recovery programs. “That’s a high bar for many people,” she says, “and it could backfire”.
Meanwhile, the practical reality of converting permanent housing to transitional facilities is nearly impossible.
“You cannot take a building that has a 75-year deed restriction and just—ding—call it interim housing,” Klasky-Gamer notes. “It can’t be”.
States Fight Back Through Courts
In response, a coalition of 20 states, including New Jersey, has filed a lawsuit alleging the administration’s changes are “unlawful and unconstitutional” . New York Attorney General Letitia James, leading the coalition, stated: “I will not allow this administration to cut off these funds and put vital housing and support services at risk”.
The lawsuit argues the administration “cannot impose its own conditions on funds that Congress mandated should be distributed based solely on need” . It also challenges HUD’s ability to deny funding for organizations that acknowledge transgender or nonbinary individuals.
Even some Republicans have expressed concerns. Twenty-two House Republicans asked for a one-year funding extension in a letter to the agency, warning that policy changes “should be implemented carefully to avoid destabilizing programs that serve individuals with severe disabilities”.
The Bigger Picture of Suffering
This housing cut is part of a broader pattern of budget reductions targeting vulnerable Americans. The Trump administration has proposed slashing the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s budget by 43% overall.
Additional cuts threaten the Superfund program—particularly concerning for New Jersey, which has more toxic waste sites than any other state.
Also on the chopping block are heating assistance for 245,000 New Jersey households, education funding that provides $1.2 billion annually for low-income and disabled students, and environmental programs that protect the Jersey Shore.
It appears the administration’s vision of “accountability” means the most vulnerable must account for every scrap of help they receive, while the comfortable remain accountable to no one but themselves.
The Road Ahead
As winter approaches, New Jersey faces a perfect storm: rising homelessness, dwindling resources, and a federal government that seems determined to make both problems worse. The state’s lawsuit may provide temporary relief.
Still, the underlying philosophy of this administration—that suffering builds character, that housing is a reward rather than a right—represents a fundamental shift in how America cares for its most vulnerable.
What we’re witnessing is a national experiment in human endurance, with real people as the test subjects. The results will be written in the growing encampments on our streets, the overcrowded shelters, and the desperate faces of those who’ve been told their government believes their suffering is good for them.
The Trump administration may see this as restoring accountability.
The rest of us will recognize it for what it is: a cruel and dangerous abandonment of our shared responsibility to care for one another. And that, unfortunately, is the way it is.