HUD claims that Manassas, Virginia, illegally targeted Hispanic households and the city has failed to settle complaints over an ordinance regarding overcrowding. The ordinance has since been repealed.
Department of Housing and Urban Development officials claim that a campaign by Manassas against crowded housing has illegally targeted Hispanic families; and they have turned their investigation over to the Justice Department, saying the city has failed to adequately settle complaints. According to HUD, 342 complaints were made to the city's "overcrowding hotline" before the investigation began, and more than half turned up no violations. Of the 145 calls that resulted in violations, 71 percent involved families with Hispanic surnames, although only 15 percent of the city's population is Hispanic.
HUD's investigation focused on anti-crowding measures initiated by the city over the past two years. Those included a hotline that allowed residents to anonymously file a complaint about neighbors they suspected of violating city ordinances and an ordinance that narrowed the legal definition of "family." That ordinance was repealed in January under threats from civil rights groups and concerns about a federal investigation. According to Kent Willis, Executive Director of the ACLU of Virginia: "If the judge or jury determines that the City of Manassas conspired to discriminate against Latino families, the punitive damages could be hefty."
FULL STORY: Case Goes to Justice Department

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage
Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

Seattle Voters Approve Social Housing Referendum
Voters approved a corporate tax to fund the city’s housing authority despite an opposition campaign funded by Amazon and Microsoft.

The Five Most-Changed American Cities
A ranking of population change, home values, and jobs highlights the nation’s most dynamic and most stagnant regions.

USDOT Repeals Emissions Monitoring Rule
A Biden-era regulation required states to report and plan to reduce transportation-related emissions.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Ada County Highway District
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service