Submit Comments on HUD’s 2026 Mixed-Status Family Rule

By: Tushar Gurjal, Senior Policy Manager

March 31, 2026 – On February 20, HUD published a proposed rule titled “Housing and Community Development Act of 1980: Verification of Eligible Status.” The proposed rule, if finalized, would require certain entities that administer federal rental assistance, including housing agencies, to impose stricter requirements on families composed of both people who have documentation of citizenship and eligible immigration status and people who are ineligible non-citizens (i.e., mixed-status families). NAHRO’s coverage of the proposed rule can be found here.

NAHRO encourages all members, housing agencies, and other interested parties to comment on this proposed rule. Comments for the rule can be made here by clicking on the button labeled “Comment” on the upper left corner of the webpage and following the instructions. Comments are generally structured as letters to HUD. NAHRO’s previous comment letter in 2019 to a similar proposal from HUD can be found here (stakeholder comment letters do not need to be as long and complex).

NAHRO is providing the following bullet points to allow interested parties to write their own comment letters. We encourage all interested stakeholders to use these bullet points to write in your own words why HUD’s proposed rule would be costly, inefficient, and burdensome. We encourage commenters to use your own language in your letter and not “cut-and-paste” to avoid artificial intelligence (AI) from consolidating similar comment letters when HUD is reviewing. We also encourage housing agencies to discuss impacts to their particular agencies using their localized data.

Comments for the proposed rule are due on April 21, 2026.

Sample Bullet Points Begin Below

HUD Should Take the Following Steps

• Recommendations for HUD rulemaking:
  • Make no changes to the current eligible status verification regulations;
  • If unwilling to follow the above recommendation, then restrict the application of the new proposed rule to new applicants in covered programs; and
  • If HUD is unwilling to apply this rule only to new households, then it should make the changes stated below.

The Current System Works, Complies with the Law, and Should Remain Untouched

• The current system fulfills the goal of existing federal law:
  • The current system does not provide any federal dollars for ineligible non-citizens in mixed-status households.
  • Ineligible non-citizens are allowed to live with family members who are U.S. citizens or eligible immigrants, however, these families receive prorated assistance so the federal government is not subsidizing any individuals who are ineligible non-citizens.
• The proposed rule contradicts the law, particularly Section 214 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1980, as amended, which requires that mixed-status families be given prorated rental assistance and does not impose a timeline for that assistance for most families.

The Proposed Changes Will Adversely Impact American Citizens and Cost American Taxpayers More Money

• The proposed rule will increase costs as mixed-status families use less subsidy than non-mixed-status families.
  • In a mixed-status household, on average, each person receives $2,700 subsidy per person. In a non-mixed-status household, each person receives $7,700 subsidy per person.
  • The same amount of funding that supports 79,300 people in mixed-status families will only be able to support 24,100 people in non-mixed-status households.
• The proposed rule will adversely impact an estimated 55,110 people who are U.S. citizens or eligible immigrants in order to remove a total of 24,100 people without documentation of their immigration status.
  • This means for every ineligible non-citizen impacted by the rule, 2.29 American citizens or eligible immigrants will also be impacted.
• The proposed rule will not increase housing opportunities substantially for most American citizens and will decrease housing opportunities for the American citizens and eligible immigrants currently in mixed-status households.
  • The amount of subsidy used for mixed-status family households is small relative to the total amount:
    • Housing Choice Voucher Program – $130 million in annual HAP out of $28.491 billion (.5% of the total subsidy in 2024).
    • Project-Based Rental Assistance – $35 million in annual HAP out of $16.01 billion (.2% of the total subsidy in 2024).
    • Public Housing – $53 million in annual Public Housing subsidy costs out of $8.676 billion in both Operating Fund and Capital Fund expenditures (.6% of the total subsidy in 2024).

The Proposed Rule Will Adversely Impact Housing Agency Budgets

• Mixed-status families typically pay more in tenant rent than other families because they are receiving prorated assistance and must pay more to remain housed.
• While mixed-status families will not have a large impact on the national budget, for some housing agencies with many mixed-status families, forcing mixed-status families out of covered programs will have a large impact on their individual agency budget.
• Forcing families out of the program will have adverse impacts on housing agency budgets and increase costs to surrounding communities as former residents will rely on various local services to supplement their evictions.

The Proposed Rule Will be Difficult to Enforce and Ineligible Non-citizens Will Remain in Households

• It is highly likely that some families will report that ineligible non-citizens have left the household and then fail to have that ineligible non-citizen leave.
• The housing agency will pay more in subsidy for that family as it will no longer be paying a prorated amount.
• The end effect will be no change in family composition, but additional expenses for the housing agency.
• This will be more likely to happen in the Housing Choice Voucher Program where the PHA will have the least ability to enforce the rule on private landlords.

If HUD Finalizes This Rule, It Should Make Sure the Following Is Changed

• The proposed rule should not become effective as soon as the rule is finalized. It should give housing agencies an appropriate implementation time period to change their admissions and continued occupancy policies and administrative plans. Owners participating in the Project-Based Rental Assistance program will have to change their tenant selection plans and should also be given time to do this if this rule were to be finalized. These steps will likely take at least six months.
• The timeline for notification, asking for additional documentation, and potential program termination should start at each family’s next annual reexamination after the rule is finalized. This single step will greatly reduce administrative burden.
• Housing agencies should be able to offer multiple 30-day extensions when a family is gathering its paperwork to account for bureaucratic delays and to allow some families time to save enough money to afford costs associated with the proper documentation.
• Housing agencies should be able to offer more than three six-month deferrals for mixed-status family termination to better offer smooth transitions out of covered programs.

Comments are due on April 21, 2026 and can be submitted here.