Foundations
Here's a look at documents from U.S. foundations
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WLF Urges Supreme Court to Reinforce Limits on Manufactured Appeals in the Wayward Ninth Circuit
WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 [Category: Law/Legal] -- The Washington Legal Foundation issued the following news release:
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WLF Urges Supreme Court to Reinforce Limits on Manufactured Appeals in the Wayward Ninth Circuit
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WASHINGTON, DCWashington Legal Foundation (WLF) today urged the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari and reverse the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's decision permitting appellate review of an interlocutory ruling after the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed all their claims with prejudice. WLF contends that the ruling conflicts with Microsoft Corp. v. Baker by undermining
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WASHINGTON, Nov. 19 [Category: Law/Legal] -- The Washington Legal Foundation issued the following news release:
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WLF Urges Supreme Court to Reinforce Limits on Manufactured Appeals in the Wayward Ninth Circuit
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WASHINGTON, DCWashington Legal Foundation (WLF) today urged the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari and reverse the U.S Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's decision permitting appellate review of an interlocutory ruling after the plaintiffs voluntarily dismissed all their claims with prejudice. WLF contends that the ruling conflicts with Microsoft Corp. v. Baker by underminingthe final-judgment rule and encouraging plaintiffs' bar tactics to secure immediate appeals from adverse orders. WLF also asks the Court to decide whether the appeal is also barred by Article III.
The case stems from Trendsettah's lawsuit against Swisher International alleging antitrust violations over flavored cigar products, which resulted in a jury verdict in favor of Trendsettah. After the district court granted Swisher's Rule 60 motion for relief from judgment due to Trendsettah's fraud on the court, Trendsettah voluntarily dismissed its claims with prejudice under Fed. R. Civ. P. 41(a)(2). Agreeing that Trendsettah's dismissal created a "final" appealable order, the Ninth Circuit accepted jurisdiction and reinstated a portion of the jury's verdict, prompting Swisher's certiorari petition.
In its amicus brief, WLF argues the Ninth Circuit's decision distorts Baker 's prohibition on manufactured finality, ignoring Article III's case-or-controversy requirement since no live dispute remains after dismissal with prejudice. This approach erodes judicial efficiency, burdens defendants with piecemeal appeals, and invites forum-shopping. WLF urges review to clarify that inferior courts cannot subvert Supreme Court precedent.
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Original text here: https://www.wlf.org/2025/11/19/communicating/wlf-urges-supreme-court-to-reinforce-limits-on-manufactured-appeals-in-the-wayward-ninth-circuit/
Red Alert for the British Economy
DETROIT, Michigan, Nov. 19 -- The Foundation for Economic Education posted the following commentary:
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Red Alert for the British Economy
But will the Labour government listen?
By Oliver Dean
The latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) statistics paint a bleak picture for Britain's economic outlook. Growth over the last three months is even slower than expected, with the UK's GDP rising just 0.1% from July to September, half as much as forecast. That comes hard on the heels of the news on Tuesday that unemployment has hit 5%, the highest it has been in four years. With more young
... Show Full Article
DETROIT, Michigan, Nov. 19 -- The Foundation for Economic Education posted the following commentary:
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Red Alert for the British Economy
But will the Labour government listen?
By Oliver Dean
The latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) statistics paint a bleak picture for Britain's economic outlook. Growth over the last three months is even slower than expected, with the UK's GDP rising just 0.1% from July to September, half as much as forecast. That comes hard on the heels of the news on Tuesday that unemployment has hit 5%, the highest it has been in four years. With more youngpeople not in education, employment or training and businesses repeatedly voicing concerns over tax hikes, it is clear that Britain is no longer the welcome home to businesses it once was. With the Budget just two weeks away, the Chancellor still has the power to turn the British economy around. But only if she signals to businesses that she has their interests at heart.
Britain's economic woes should be ringing alarm bells in the Treasury. Despite claiming that she would lead the most "pro-growth, pro-business" Treasury that Britain has ever seen, the data tells a different story. The Chancellor must recognise what said data is telling herthat her economic plan is not working. Unemployment is rising, opportunity is shrinking and young people are becoming increasingly disengaged from the labour market. At a time like this, the Government ought to lean into what creates jobs, investment and growth, not pile on more burdens and punitive tax hikes.
Such concerns are not solely theoretical. According to the Institute of Chartered Accountants, business confidence has fallen in the UK for the fifth consecutive quarter in a row. This comes on top of business leaders outwardly expressing dissatisfaction with current government policy, with the Jobs Foundation leading a campaign just a few months ago to urge the Government to implement a number of pro-business policies such as a skills tax relief. Even the British Chambers of Commerce has warned the Government about "worrying" statistics, and the need to change tack before it is too late.
Yet the response from the Treasury suggests a complete dismissal of this dire fiscal landscape. Reeves and those close to her have already hinted at tax rises in a number of different areas. Such rises come on top of the burdensome increase to employers' National Insurance introduced last year. If the Chancellor continues to treat businesses as cash cows rather than engines of growth, they will pull back as some big names have already done. If entrepreneurs sense the Government is more eager to extract revenue than enable enterprise, creativity and ingenuity will slowly die out.
Right now, the data show we need a Chancellor who is willing to put her foot on the pedal and go for growth. Instead we have a Government that seems unable to even take the handbrake off. The result is an economy that looks increasingly defensive rather than ambitious. An economy that is scared of growth, rather than one willing to encourage it.
Reeves has time to reevaluate before the Budget. Britain suffers from a pervasive anti-business mindset that in recent years has been allowed to run amok. The way to challenge that begins at the top. If the Treasury treats business success as something to tax and subdue rather than reward and partner with, then the wider culture will adopt the same attitudes. Entrepreneurs will think twice before starting up. Investors will look elsewhere.
Neither the British economy nor the British public can afford delay. Unemployment is climbing, young people are being alienated and confidence is plummeting. The Chancellor must shift course in the remaining few days before the Budget. That means fewer raids on business, less red tape and less burdensome regulation. It also means more opportunity, more competition and more economic freedom.
The statistics are clear. The coming days present a moment of choice for the Chancellor, and if she makes the wrong choice, our economy will suffer for years. If she acts now, Britain stands a chance of turning this around.
This article originally appeared at CapX.
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Oliver Dean is a political commentator with Young Voices UK. He studies History and Politics at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) where he is the President of the LSE Hayek Society.
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Original text here: https://fee.org/articles/red-alert-for-the-british-economy/
OMRF Board greets four new members, honors another
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma, Nov. 19 -- The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation posted the following news:
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OMRF Board greets four new members, honors another
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At its biannual meeting Wednesday, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation's Board of Directors welcomed four new members and honored another.
Joining the Board are:
* Anne Greenwood of Stillwater
* Gay Kirby of Nichols Hills
* LaRue Stoller of Nichols Hills
* Craig Willis of Colorado Springs, Colorado
After ending a 30-year corporate accounting career, Greenwood made philanthropy her vocation, with a focus on endowing
... Show Full Article
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma, Nov. 19 -- The Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation posted the following news:
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OMRF Board greets four new members, honors another
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At its biannual meeting Wednesday, the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation's Board of Directors welcomed four new members and honored another.
Joining the Board are:
* Anne Greenwood of Stillwater
* Gay Kirby of Nichols Hills
* LaRue Stoller of Nichols Hills
* Craig Willis of Colorado Springs, Colorado
After ending a 30-year corporate accounting career, Greenwood made philanthropy her vocation, with a focus on endowingscholarships and programs at Oklahoma State University. She is a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame.
Kirby is a former special education teacher who now serves as a community volunteer, with a special interest in civic, cultural, philanthropic and youth education organizations.
Stoller specialized in acquisitions and divestitures at State Bank and now is a director of Great Plains Bank. She currently owns a vineyard and winery in Oregon and is co-owner and general partner of a large-scale cattle ranch.
Willis is program manager of Chapman Foundations Management and will become its trustee in January. He also has served as senior program officer of the Donald W. Reynolds Foundation.
Also during Wednesday's meeting, the Board honored Sharon J. Bell, naming her as a life director. Bell is managing partner of the Rogers and Bell law firm in Tulsa. She joined OMRF's Board in 1988 and has since served in numerous leadership capacities, including chairing the Executive Committee.
As the individual trustee of the J.A. and Leta Chapman Trusts for many years, Bell helped provide OMRF with funding for dozens of scientific and capital projects, one of which enabled construction of the foundation's seven-story research tower. A lab in that tower is named for her.
"Sharon has been a dedicated leader and a key proponent of OMRF's transformative growth," said Board Chairman Len Cason. "We are indebted for her many years of loyal service and devotion to our mission."
The Board also held a moment of silence to honor Distinguished Career Scientist Paul Kincade, Ph.D., who died in October at age 80. Kincade, a noted immunologist, spent more than three decades at the foundation, where he founded a research program and ultimately served as OMRF's vice president of research.
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Original text here: https://omrf.org/2025/11/19/omrf-board-greets-four-new-members-honors-another/
Reason Foundation Issues Commentary: Florida Must Stay the Course to Pay for Promised Pension Benefits
LOS ANGELES, California, Nov. 18 (TNSrep) -- The Reason Foundation issued the following news on Nov. 17, 2025:
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Florida must stay the course to pay for promised pension benefits
Florida's retirement system for public workers is estimated to be 17 years away from eliminating expensive pension debt.
By Zachary Christensen, Managing Director and Steve Vu, Quantitative Analyst
Florida's retirement system for public workers, which covers most of the state's teachers, police, firefighters, and other government employees, is estimated to be 17 years away from eliminating expensive pension debt.
... Show Full Article
LOS ANGELES, California, Nov. 18 (TNSrep) -- The Reason Foundation issued the following news on Nov. 17, 2025:
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Florida must stay the course to pay for promised pension benefits
Florida's retirement system for public workers is estimated to be 17 years away from eliminating expensive pension debt.
By Zachary Christensen, Managing Director and Steve Vu, Quantitative Analyst
Florida's retirement system for public workers, which covers most of the state's teachers, police, firefighters, and other government employees, is estimated to be 17 years away from eliminating expensive pension debt.However, this result will depend significantly on market outcomes. A recession during that period could undo years of progress and drive up costs for government budgets and taxpayers. Lawmakers in the Sunshine State need to stay the course and resist the temptation to add to pension promises while they remain several years away from being able to fund existing promises fully.
A new analysis (https://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/local/state/2025/09/15/study-shows-states-pension-plan-on-track-despite-past-troubles/86099480007/) by Aon Investments USA Inc. (a market consulting company), commissioned by the Florida State Board of Administrators (SBA), predicts that the Florida Retirement System, FRS, is on track to eliminate all unfunded pension liabilities by 2042. Lawmakers reformed the system in 2011 by introducing a defined contribution (DC) option called the Investment Plan, and subsequently made it the default retirement plan for most new hires in 2018. These reforms have helped FRS make progress in closing what was a nearly $40 billion funding shortfall after the Great Recession.
The latest reporting from FRS now gives the system an 83.7% funded ratio (up from 70% in 2009), indicating that the state has made progress but still needs to stay the course to return to its pre-recession, full funding status. According to Reason Foundation's recently released Annual Pension Solvency and Performance Report (https://reason.org/data-visualization/state-pension-debt/), one bad year in the market (0% returns in 2026) would essentially undo that progress, bringing the system's unfunded liabilities back to an estimated $40 billion overnight.
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Florida has a long way to go before catching up with its public pension promises
Source: Reason's Annual Pension Solvency and Performance Report, using FRS annual valuation reports (https://a8d50b36.delivery.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/image-90.png).
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If market outcomes over the next two decades resemble those of the last 20 years, FRS won't achieve full funding anytime soon. The pension system's 24-year average return since 2001 is 6.4%, falling short of the plan's 6.7% assumption. According to Reason Foundation's actuarial modeling of FRS, this seemingly small 0.3% shortfall would push the date for reaching full funding out by another three years.
Another major recession would also significantly derail the system. Reason Foundation's modeling indicates that an investment loss in 2026 similar to that of 2009 (a 20% loss) would result in a funding ratio of 62%, and it would take 15 years just to climb back to today's funding levels. The full funding date would extend well beyond 2055 in that scenario.
Lower market returns would also drive up the annual costs of FRS, which taxpayers and lawmakers should be wary of. In 2024, employers contributing to the FRS pension paid an amount equal to around 12.7% of payroll (totaling $5.6 billion statewide annually). If everything goes as planned, with returns matching the system's assumptions, this cost will remain relatively stable and drop significantly once the system is free from pension debt. Under the scenario of a major recession, annual costs will need to rise to as high as 22.9% of payroll to maintain full pension benefit payments.
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A recession would necessitate much larger government contributions
Source: Reason actuarial modeling of FRS. Recessions use return scenarios reflective of Dodd-Frank testing regulations (https://a8d50b36.delivery.rocketcdn.me/wp-content/uploads/image-91.png).
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When it comes to public pensions, policymakers can hope for the best, but they need to prepare for the worst. At a minimum, they should structure pension systems to withstand the same market pressures and funding challenges that created today's costly pension debt.
Florida lawmakers should consider these risks as they weigh proposals to expand benefits. During the 2025 legislative session, lawmakers saw (and rejected) a proposal to unroll the state's crucial 2011 reform by again granting cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) to all FRS members.
Reason Foundation's analysis of the proposal warned that even under a best-case scenario, the move would add $36 billion in new costs over the next 30 years. A scenario in which the system sees multiple recessions over the next 30 years would have driven the estimated costs of the proposed COLA to $47 billion.
For a pension fund that is still many years away from having the assets to fulfill existing retirement promises, the last thing it needs is to double down on more costs and liabilities.
Current proposals to cut taxes in the Sunshine State should also factor into any consideration of granting additional pension benefits to public workers. A new group of bills introduced in the state's House of Representatives signals that lawmakers intend to offer several property tax-cutting measures to voters on the 2026 ballot. It is safe to say that the idea of increasing pension costs on Florida's local governments while simultaneously facing the prospect of reduced tax revenue is ill-advised.
Through prudent reforms, Florida has made some laudable progress in improving the funding of its public pension system. However, the state is still several years away from achieving the end goal of all these efforts, and any level of market turbulence would push the finish line out by decades. Policymakers need to be aware of Florida's long-term pension funding strategy and avoid any proposals to add to the costs and risks imposed on taxpayers through new pension benefits.
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Zachary Christensen is a managing director of Reason Foundation's Pension Integrity Project.
Steve Vu is a quantitative analyst at Reason Foundation.
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Original text here: https://reason.org/commentary/florida-must-stay-the-course-to-pay-for-promised-pension-benefits/
Health Foundation Responds to the Public Accounts Committee Report on Reducing NHS Waiting Times
LONDON, England, Nov. 18 -- The Health Foundation posted the following news release:
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Health Foundation responds to the Public Accounts Committee report on reducing NHS waiting times
Responding to the Public Accounts Committee report on reducing NHS waiting times for elective care, Dr Hugh Alderwick, Director of Research and Policy at the Health Foundation said:
'While the elective waiting list is in slightly better shape than when Labour took office, analysis of recent trends shows that achieving the government's pledge to restore the 18-week standard by the end of this parliament will
... Show Full Article
LONDON, England, Nov. 18 -- The Health Foundation posted the following news release:
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Health Foundation responds to the Public Accounts Committee report on reducing NHS waiting times
Responding to the Public Accounts Committee report on reducing NHS waiting times for elective care, Dr Hugh Alderwick, Director of Research and Policy at the Health Foundation said:
'While the elective waiting list is in slightly better shape than when Labour took office, analysis of recent trends shows that achieving the government's pledge to restore the 18-week standard by the end of this parliament willbe challenging. Progress on reducing waiting lists will depend on sustained focus and resources, and may mean slower progress on other political promises, like boosting prevention or investing in primary care. These trade-offs matter, not least because the public's top priority for improving the NHS is better access to GP appointments, not the elective waiting list.
'The committee is right to question the government's approach to major policy change in the NHS. The government has embarked on yet another round of top-down restructuring of the health service, at a time when the NHS is under massive pressure and political ambitions for improvement are sky-high. This is risky, at best, given experience from a long line of previous reorganisations suggests they cause widespread disruption, take years to deliver, and rarely deliver the benefits policymakers expect. The big worry is that NHS leaders are distracted from the task of improving services.
'Rather than reforms to the structure of the health service, like merging or scrapping organisations, greater attention is needed on what happens within it, including by developing the skills and capabilities for the NHS to identify, implement, evaluate and spread improvements to care in different contexts. Cuts to local NHS bodies risk making this harder.'
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Notes to editors
1. One year on: is the government on track to meet its waiting times pledge?
2. Mind the gap: public perceptions of the NHS and social care
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Original text here: https://www.health.org.uk/press-office/press-releases/health-foundation-responds-to-the-public-accounts-committee-report-on-reducing-nhs-waiting-times
Getty's PST ART Releases Largest-Ever Dataset on Climate Impact of Exhibition-Making
LOS ANGELES, California, Nov. 18 (TNSrep) -- The J. Paul Getty Trust issued the following news release:
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Getty's PST ART Releases Largest-Ever Dataset on Climate Impact of Exhibition-Making
Arts organizations across Southern California measured exhibition emissions and waste for the nation's largest art event
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Getty announced today a new report (https://www.getty.edu/publications/pst-art-climate-impact-report-2025/) on its inaugural PST ART Climate Impact Program, with baseline measurements about carbon emissions, material waste, and more from 40 exhibitions tied to the latest edition
... Show Full Article
LOS ANGELES, California, Nov. 18 (TNSrep) -- The J. Paul Getty Trust issued the following news release:
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Getty's PST ART Releases Largest-Ever Dataset on Climate Impact of Exhibition-Making
Arts organizations across Southern California measured exhibition emissions and waste for the nation's largest art event
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Getty announced today a new report (https://www.getty.edu/publications/pst-art-climate-impact-report-2025/) on its inaugural PST ART Climate Impact Program, with baseline measurements about carbon emissions, material waste, and more from 40 exhibitions tied to the latest editionof the nation's largest art event, PST ART.
The project creates the most expansive dataset on the carbon impact of exhibition-making and will inform the next edition of PST ART in 2030. It also jump-started greener exhibition practices among participating institutions, with many completing their first-ever climate impact report and taking concrete steps to reduce their carbon footprint.
Art museums have the highest average energy consumption of all cultural institutions in the United States, and the activities and materials connected to planning and mounting exhibitions are prime targets for reducing emissions and waste. While museums recognize data tracking is essential in order to take action, there has been little standardization for measuring the climate impact of exhibition practices. The regionwide collaboration created by PST ART offered a strong network to unify data reporting.
"Organizations of all sizes were eager to participate--from larger museums to university art galleries--and PST ART gave us all the chance to learn together and tackle these issues as a community," said Joan Weinstein, director of the Getty Foundation. "You can't reduce your carbon footprint if you don't measure it, so data collection was a crucial first step. We were heartened to see how many partners across the region took this opportunity to try alternative methods and materials and commit to new eco-friendly exhibition practices right away."
Many of the nearly 70 exhibitions in PST ART's latest edition, PST ART: Art & Science Collide, were focused on themes of climate change and environmental justice. Getty responded to this common interest by rallying the community and developing the Climate Impact Program with the climate strategy firm LHL Consulting and its founder Laura Lupton along with artist Debra Scacco.
Participation in the program was voluntary, yet all PST ART partners joined at least one educational webinar led by LHL Consulting about climate impact reduction tactics and nearly every institution met with the LHL team one-on-one to receive support. LHL also provided climate action tools and a standardized reporting framework to the entire PST ART cohort, with more than two-thirds of the group completing reports.
"One thing that is abundantly clear is that art institutions want to take climate action. Some previously lacked the resources to begin, while others simply did not have the bandwidth to take on this work," said Laura Lupton at LHL Consulting. "There is no one-size-fits-all approach, so we worked with Getty to ensure a welcoming community and reinforce with our PST ART partners that just by making an effort--big or small--they are making an impact."
According to the report, flights were among the highest emissions, followed by air freight. Data analysis revealed that switching from air to sea travel for art transport could have reduced the total PST ART emissions by 18 percent. The total emissions--with just over half of all PST ART projects reporting--was 2,167 tCO2, which equates to enough carbon dioxide to power the electricity of 452 homes in the U.S. for an entire year.
The Climate Impact Program became a catalyst for change as partners prepared for their exhibitions, even though it was not an explicit goal to reduce PST ART's carbon footprint. Some institutions chose to partner with local artists to reduce the need for travel and artwork shipping, including the University of California, San Diego and Birch Aquarium at Scripps. At Getty, curators opted for train travel instead of flying during research trips.
When it came to exhibition materials, 80% of partners implemented waste reduction strategies, with five institutions reporting zero waste to landfills and three using entirely reused and recycled materials. The Huntington opted to eliminate the use of drywall in favor of reusable plywood panels for temporary walls. The plywood walls have already been repurposed for at least five subsequent installations, saving the institution money in the long-term.
"During the run of our PST ART exhibition, 'Storm Cloud: Picturing the Origins of Our Climate Crisis,' we found that our involvement in the Climate Impact Program sparked meaningful conversations both with our visitors and among our own colleagues," said The Huntington's Melinda McCurdy, curator of British art, and Karla Nielsen, senior curator of literary collections. "The program offered resources and structure to think collectively and intentionally about the environmental impact of our temporary exhibitions, and it has pushed us to set a higher bar for our future work."
Change was also possible for smaller museums, and curators at Craft Contemporary turned climate-conscious decisions into real budget savings. The team switched from vinyl to paper wall labels for their exhibition, a sustainable solution that reduced expenditures by $10,000. They also devised new packing methods to use less tape, and chose off-the-shelf, recyclable, and reusable materials whenever possible.
"The sustainability decisions for our PST ART exhibition have inspired Craft Contemporary to commit to a goal of producing zero waste exhibitions within five years," reported the museum's director Rody Lopez. "The response from our team and peer institutions is truly energizing. We've already hosted visits to share our methods and help spread the word that climate action is possible."
Additional waste reduction efforts include Getty's reuse of past exhibition seating and opting for QR codes instead of purchasing new video display monitors. The Lancaster Museum of Art and History and Self Help Graphics & Art reused exhibition walls from a previous display that were originally scheduled for demolition, avoiding landfill waste. The Wende Museum also reused past exhibition walls and display cases, consolidated art shipments, and created a new reusable art object label design--all of which helped them lower costs compared to previous exhibitions.
Many museums even reconsidered which vendors to work with for exhibitions. "Publications can generate harmful pollutants, so we chose Conti Tipocolor to produce our catalog because of their commitments to sustainable printing practices," said Cassandra Coblentz, the independent curator behind the Oceanside Museum of Art's "Transformative Currents" exhibition about art and environmental action in the Pacific Ocean. For the Hammer Museum's exhibition catalog, they made sustainable production choices in collaboration with the graphic design studio Polymode. Another institution, Fulcrum Arts, invited the fabricator for two major installations in their "Energy Fields" exhibition co-presented with Chapman University to join Climate Impact Program educational webinars. As a result, the team at Studio Sereno switched to eco-friendly wood and sheep wool insulation, committed to complete reuse of all materials, and radically transformed their approach to fabrication for the future.
Getty is committed to continuing this work with partners for PST ART and has long been working towards greener practices, including its Managing Collection Environments initiative, which began in 2013 with the goal of advancing scientific research and field work for the sustainable management of collection environments in museums, libraries, and archives. Another initiative, Getty Global Art & Sustainability Fellows, is fostering a new generation of leaders focused on arts and sustainability through research and professional development. Getty also appointed its first sustainability director Camille Kirk in 2023 to help advance the institution's sustainability goals. Read more news about sustainability at Getty.
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Original text here: https://www.getty.edu/news/pst-art-releases-largest-ever-dataset-on-climate-impact-of-exhibition-making/
Billionaire Trump's Regime to Defund Housing for 170,000 Americans
CHICAGO, Illinois, Nov. 18 -- The AIDS Foundation of Chicago issued the following news on Nov. 17, 2025:
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Billionaire Trump's Regime to Defund Housing for 170,000 Americans
By Patty Conway, Director of Communications
A recent change to funding policy could cause 170,000 people across the country and 21,000 in Illinois to lose housing. Directed by the Trump administration through the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Continuum of Care (CoC) Program, the change will take funding away from programs that use evidence-based, housing-first, permanent supportive housing models
... Show Full Article
CHICAGO, Illinois, Nov. 18 -- The AIDS Foundation of Chicago issued the following news on Nov. 17, 2025:
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Billionaire Trump's Regime to Defund Housing for 170,000 Americans
By Patty Conway, Director of Communications
A recent change to funding policy could cause 170,000 people across the country and 21,000 in Illinois to lose housing. Directed by the Trump administration through the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Continuum of Care (CoC) Program, the change will take funding away from programs that use evidence-based, housing-first, permanent supportive housing modelsfor people who are formerly homeless - the vast majority of housing funded nationally by the CoC project. Instead, the Trump administration will prioritize short-term housing programs with mandatory substance use treatment, mandatory mental health treatment, and work requirements. This policy change will directly affect people who are formerly homeless and disabled - including people living with HIV - who are living in CoC-funded permanent housing programs and could lose their homes.
At AIDS Foundation Chicago and our subsidiary Center for Housing and Health, CoC funding supports housing for 721 people and accounts for $13.9M in revenue for the two organizations. Stable housing for these participants is at risk because of the Trump administration's proposed policy.
The HUD notice was issued months after the normal CoC funding cycle concluded and represents a major shift away from proven housing programs and toward incarceration for people experiencing chronic homelessness, addiction, and mental illness. According to the notice, some of the new funding policies include: support of housing-first programs will be capped at 30% of CoC fund recipients; essential harm reduction work - like syringe exchange or safer use spaces - would not be permitted; and all funded organizations must only consider gender as binary. In addition to the cap on funds for proven permanent supportive housing programs, the funding notice also implements a scoring system that prioritizes funding for states and localities that criminalize homelessness, deny housing to immigrants, and eschew diversity and equity initiatives.
Not only is this position cruel and punitive, it will not reduce incidence of homelessness, mental illness, or addiction. If implemented, this new policy will drastically increase the number of people experiencing homelessness. The cuts to permanent supportive housing and harm reduction programs will be devastating to our progress toward ending the HIV epidemic, of which stable housing and harm reduction are key pillars. There will be an increase in HIV transmission as thousands lose housing stability and access to sterile syringes, and all communities across our state will feel the impact. The cost of supporting our community members in crisis will fall to us to cover, while our federal tax dollars are directed elsewhere.
In Illinois, CoC funds support housing for 21,000 Illinoisans and 27,000 emergency shelter beds. Across the state, federal CoC funding currently supports more than 330 CoC grants, totaling approximately $182.5 million, to nonprofit and local government agencies. The National Alliance to End Homelessness estimates that 60% of all permanent supportive housing in Illinois is federally funded, and in some downstate and rural communities, the percentage is much higher. Under the policy, existing CoC grantees could run out of funding as soon as early 2026.
Let's be clear - this change is not about improving or reforming housing policy. It is about gutting the social safety net programs upon which our communities rely to ensure that people experiencing chronic homelessness and illness can find stability and support. It is about criminalizing poverty and punishing the Black and Latine communities disproportionately impacted by homelessness. At the same time as issuing this policy change to how housing is funded by HUD, the Trump administration is seeking to build institutions that many fear will function as de-facto prisons or work camps to incarcerate people experiencing homelessness, mental illness, or addiction.
At AIDS Foundation Chicago and the Center for Housing & Health, we know permanent supportive housing and housing-first programs work and are the best way to interrupt chronic homelessness, substance use, and mental health challenges for our unhoused neighbors. As the name describes, housing-first programs provide participants with housing and then offer supportive services like mental health care and substance use treatment, to which people are more able and likely to adhere once they have the safety and stability of housing. This is a proven approach that is critical to our work to end the HIV epidemic. The root cause of homelessness in the United States is the soaring, unaffordable cost of housing, not an individual's choices or behavioral health challenges.
Together with our partners, we are advocating for HUD to rescind this change. Over 300 housing providers in Illinois issued a joint letter to HUD's Secretary Scott Turner, and we call upon all of our partners and supporters to contact your congressional representatives and loudly voice your opposition to this HUD directive.
TAKE ACTION:
Participate in this campaign from The National Alliance to End Homelessness: ACT NOW: Tell Congress to stop HUD!
Call your Congress person via the Capitol Switchboard and tell them you support permanent supportive housing and oppose the new funding requirements for HUD's Continuum of Care program: (202) 224-3121.
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Original text here: https://www.aidschicago.org/hudchange/
