When someone needs a place to live or a safe place to sleep, they shouldn't have to fear being turned away because of who they are. But a new proposal from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) would allow federally funded housing providers and shelters to discriminate against transgender people — at a moment when they need help the most.

HUD's proposed rule would remove gender identity protections from agency regulations and replace them with a definition of "sex" based solely on biology. It would allow housing providers to deny applications and reject tenants based on gender identity, and permit shelter operators to demand proof of biological sex before letting someone in the door. In practice, this means transgender people — already far more likely to experience homelessness than the general population — could be denied access to the very housing programs and shelters their tax dollars help fund.

The numbers make the stakes clear. Nearly one in three transgender people surveyed in 2022 said they had experienced homelessness, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality. Researchers at the UCLA School of Law Williams Institute found transgender adults were several times more likely than cisgender straight adults to have been homeless in the past year. This rule would make an already dire situation worse.

HUD is accepting public comments on this proposal through the end of June. That means right now is the moment to act. Withdrawing this rule before it takes effect is the only way to ensure that federally funded housing remains open to everyone who needs it — regardless of who they are.

We're calling on HUD to withdraw this proposed rule immediately. No one should be denied housing or turned away from shelter by a program funded with public dollars. The federal government should be expanding access to housing, not restricting it.