HUD Administrator Lynne Patton Skeptical of HUD's Immigrant Rule

The top federal housing official in New York distanced herself from the Trump administration’s proposal to exclude undocumented immigrants from federally-subsidized housing.

“Do I think that this proposal is a priority when we have so many other issues going on, particularly here in Region II?” said Lynne Patton, Region II administrator for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, who oversees HUD activities in New York and New Jersey. “No.”

Currently, undocumented immigrants cannot receive federal housing subsidies unless they are part of a household with legal residents. Earlier this year, the Trump administration proposed a change so that none of these so-called mixed-status households would be able to stay in public housing or receive other federal housing assistance — a move that would affect 3,000 households in New York State. Most other mixed-status households reside in California and Texas.

Patton, a former Trump family aide whose appointment to a government post was controversial, said she wanted instead to focus on improving conditions at the New York City Housing Authority, which has long-standing issues with lead paint, heat and elevator outages and vermin infestation.  

“My priority right now is getting rats the size of cats out of NYCHA,” she said. “Whether or not an undocumented immigrant lives in those houses is not my personal priority. “

According to HUD’s own analysis, replacing mixed-status families with legal residents could end up costing $227 million annually. Mixed status families get pro-rated subsidies based on the number of family members with legal status. But if all members of the family are legal residents their subsidies would need to increase. HUD assumes that instead of Congress increasing funding to cover that liability, “the number and quality of public housing units likely could decline” if the rule goes into effect.

“The Trump administration wants to make kids homeless and call it immigration policy,” Mayor de Blasio said in a statement released earlier this month, when his administration submitted comments opposing the rule. “This proposed rule would hurt some of the most vulnerable members of our community, and we’ll fight it every step of the way.”

While acknowledging that the city had a serious affordable housing shortage and a homeless crisis, Patton said there was room to balance those issues with the Trump administration’s goal of giving priority to U.S. citizens on waitlists for public housing. She said she plans to get more involved with the proposal and thinks the best solution might be to let undocumented immigrants currently residing in public housing to stay and to prioritize citizens and immigrants with legal status moving forward.

“If I can help influence the powers that be at both the White House and HUD, I will be happy to do so,” she said.

HUD is currently reviewing comments to the proposed rule and has not given a date when it will decide whether to approve, amend or abandon the proposal.

UPDATED: The headline to this piece was altered slightly at 3:15 p.m., July 23, 2019, to prevent any misunderstanding about whom the proposed rule would affect.