Congress has tasked the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with administering many federal grant programs that organizations use to support victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, and individuals and families who are experiencing homelessness. 

Now, under the Trump-Vance administration, HUD and HHS are forcing grantees to agree to various new, sweeping, and unlawful conditions to get their funding. 

The administration’s new requirements would push providers to restrict or deny diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts, censor support for transgender individuals, and certify compliance with broad anti-equity mandates, or else face severe penalties, including liability under the False Claims Act. In some programs, the administration has also extended anti-abortion restrictions.

A nationwide coalition of advocates and organizations filed a lawsuit challenging the new requirements. The coalition is represented by Democracy Forward, Jacobson Lawyers Group, National Women’s Law Center, Lawyers’ Committee for Rhode Island, and the ACLU Foundation of Rhode Island. 

Plaintiffs are asking the court to block the administration from enforcing these new conditions.

The court granted the coalition’s motion for a temporary restraining order.

Plaintiffs in the case include Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence, California Partnership To End Domestic Violence, Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault, District Of Columbia Coalition Against Domestic Violence, End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin: The Wisconsin Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Idaho Coalition Against Sexual And Domestic Violence, Iowa Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Jane Doe Inc. (The Massachusetts Coalition Against Sexual Assault And Domestic Violence), Kansas Coalition Against Sexual And Domestic Violence, Montana Coalition Against Domestic And Sexual Violence, North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Oregon Coalition Against Domestic And Sexual Violence, Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, ValorUS, Violence Free Minnesota, Virginia Sexual And Domestic Violence Action Alliance, Wisconsin Coalition Against Sexual Assault, House of Hope Community Development Corporation, Community Care Alliance, Foster Forward, Rhode Island Coalition to End Homelessness, and Haus of Codec.

Timeline:

• July 21, 2025 — We filed a lawsuit on behalf of a nationwide coalition of organizations challenging the administration’s new restrictions on federal funding for critical services for survivors, LGBTQI+ youth, and unhoused communities.
• July 24, 2025 — Just before the court hearing began on the motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO), Department of Justice attorneys indicated that HHS was already softening one requirement in the face of litigation. The court granted the motion for a TRO to block implementation of the remaining requirements.
• August 4, 2025 — We filed a motion for preliminary Injunction

The case is Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence v. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. et al.