Published June 29, 2026
On June 29, 2026, EPPC scholar Rachel N. Morrison submitted a public comment encouraging the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to finalize a proposed rule that would revise regulations on equal access in housing in HUD programs.
The proposed rule would “harmonize” HUD’s Equal Access regulations with President Trump’s Executive Order 14168, “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government” by defining “sex”; removing references to “gender,” “gender identity,” and “sexual orientation” in all of HUDS’s regulations; and replacing such references with “sex.” These changes would ensure that access to single-sex or sex-specific facilities (including emergency shelters) in HUD programs is based on sex, not gender identity. The rule would also permit facilities to require “reasonable assurances and evidence” to confirm the sex of an individual seeking service.
Morrison urged HUD to adopt these changes and finalize its rule. As she explained in her comment:
These changes are welcome and necessary to protect safety and privacy interests, especially for women and girls, in single-sex and sex-specific spaces—spaces where women and girls engage in stages of undress, intimate personal hygiene, and sleeping, among other private acts. By requiring that access to single-sex and sex-specific spaces be based on biology, not subjective self-asserted identity, HUD’s rule helps promote human dignity and individual freedom by supporting bodily privacy. … HUD regulations prioritizing gender ideology over women’s safety and privacy interests have real consequences for women who are homeless and who have suffered sexual abuse or domestic violence.
Morrison pointed out how the proposed changes comport with the agency’s obligations to respect the religious exercise of faith-based facilities, writing: “Eliminating faith-based housing programs based on their religious beliefs about biological reality not only violates the Free Exercise Clause, but it also reduces available housing and resources for those in need.”
Finally, Morrison concluded by providing several suggestions on ways HUD could provide further clarity and guidance related to its rule and housing regulations.
Other organizations submitting comments on the proposed rule include:
Rachel N. Morrison is a Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, where she directs EPPC’s Administrative State Accountability Project, which advocates for an authentic understanding of the human person in the drafting, implementation, and rollback of government regulations.
