05/26/2026
Last week the Department of Housing & Urban Development announced it will stop pursuing many Emotional Support Animal (ESA) housing discrimination complaints that are filed under the Federal Fair Housing Act (FHA). For more information on what this change means for you or your ESA, please review the following summary created by the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF) and contact A2I should you need future guidance or advocacy support.
For many disabled people, including veterans and survivors of trauma, emotional support animals are vital to managing PTSD, anxiety, depression, and other disabilities so they can safely remain in their communities.
And for nearly two decades, under the Fair Housing Act and through guidance and enforcement from the department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), disabled tenants were protected from being denied housing or charged extra fees because of their Emotional Support Animals (ESAs).
Now, HUD has abruptly reversed course and announced it will stop pursuing many ESA housing discrimination complaints.
The Fair Housing Act itself has not changed. Disabled people still have rights. But HUD has signaled it no longer intends to meaningfully enforce this law.
This policy shift could leave countless disabled renters more vulnerable to discrimination, housing instability, and displacement.
DREDF breaks down what changed, what protections still exist, and what tenants can do next.
Read more: https://dredf.org/huds-esa-policy-reversal/
