Westchester County Loses HUD Funds

In 2006, Westchester County was sued for submitting false claims to obtain housing funds from HUD. In 2009, the county signed a consent decree and agreed to pay $30 million to the federal government as well as $2.5 million to the Anti-Discrimination Center of Metro New York. The county also agreed to take steps to further fair housing. Later, a federal appeals court ruled that the county must forfeit federal housing money because of its unwillingness to assess whether zoning laws impeded fair housing for minorities in Westchester. The court found that HUD didn’t violate procedural rules or other limitations on its authority by examining zoning laws, and permitted HUD to reallocate $10 million in federal funds that Westchester would have received for 2013 and 2014. The court found that because exclusionary zoning can violate the Fair Housing Act and because HUD is required to further the FHA’s policies, it was reasonable for HUD to require the county to include an analysis of its municipalities’ zoning laws. Westchester hadn't submitted an analysis of local zoning laws but simply produced a boilerplate statement that local zoning laws didn’t have a disparate impact on minorities or pose an impediment to affirmatively furthering fair housing with respect to race.

County of Westchester v. HUD: Index No. 15-2294-cv, NYLJ No. 1202738334847 (US Ct. App. 2d Cir.; 9/25/15; Cabranes, Raii, Wesley, C.JJ.)