HUD Restarts Court-Ordered Processing of GRRP Preservation Awards as New VAWA Forms Come Under Review
(April 29, 2025) Following a preliminary ruling by a federal judge, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has restarted processing awards made under the Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP).
Around 50 LeadingAge members were awarded significant funding amounts through the GRRP, a congressionally established program that supports critical rehab at affordable housing properties located in climate-vulnerable areas. After legally obligating the grant funding over the past two years, HUD abruptly and arbitrarily halted the program early in the new administration, following guidance from the White House’s Office of Management and Budget.
On April 14th, a federal judge for the U.S. District of Rhode Island ruled that a lawsuit challenging HUD’s program freeze was likely to succeed and granted immediate relief nationwide while the lawsuit continues to play out. The judge ordered HUD and other agencies to restart both processing and disbursements for the GRRP and similar climate-related programs; three LeadingAge members have so far reported hearing from HUD on next steps for resuming award processing.
However, restarting the program will likely take additional steps because the agency terminated the contract for administering the program; HUD has told some awardees to await further instruction. LeadingAge is thrilled with this development and will continue advocating with HUD to immediately restart the critical preservation program.
In other news, LeadingAge has learned that the Trump administration is reviewing Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) forms released by HUD earlier this year, which housing providers use to comply with VAWA reauthorization.
VAWA is a federal law that provides protections for survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking, including housing protections for those living in federally subsidized housing. HUD requires covered housing providers to use HUD-approved VAWA forms, after customizing each form with their program-specific information where identified; to notify residents of their VAWA rights; to create a model emergency transfer plan for residents; to certify VAWA-related documentation; and to establish emergency transfer requests.
The newly published forms (HUD-5380, HUD-5381, HUD-5382, and HUD-5383) replace the previously expired versions. HUD also published a new VAWA form, HUD-5384 (VAWA Emergency Transfer Data Collection Form); however, at this time, covered housing providers are not required to submit form HUD-5384, and HUD will release further guidance at a later date.
The Trump administration’s review of these materials is reportedly intended to confirm that they align with presidential priorities, and further revisions may be released soon that impact the use of the forms by housing providers. LeadingAge will keep members up to date; in the meantime, the current forms are available for download here.
Contact: Annalyse Komoroske Denio, akomoroskedenio@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8866