Housing and Urban Policy

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has opened a formal civil‑rights investigation into the city of Minneapolis, alleging that its housing policies unlawfully prioritize resources based on race and national origin in violation of the Fair Housing Act and Title VI. In a Thursday letter to Mayor Jacob Frey, HUD Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor cited language in the city’s "Minneapolis 2040" comprehensive plan and its Strategic and Racial Equity Action Plan, including directives that the Community Planning and Economic Development department prioritize rental housing for Black, Indigenous, people of color and immigrant communities. HUD Secretary Scott Turner told Fox News the probe is tied to what he calls Minnesota’s "cynical game of racial and ethnic politics" and is being launched against the backdrop of a separate, sprawling fraud scandal in state‑administered social‑services programs. If HUD ultimately finds violations, Minneapolis could face requirements to change its housing plans or risk its federal funding, a warning shot for other jurisdictions that have built race‑conscious equity goals into housing and planning documents. The investigation puts federal muscle behind a long‑brewing legal fight over how far cities can go in explicitly race‑targeted housing policies while still taking HUD dollars.