FAIR HOUSING INITIATIVES PROGRAM PRIVATE ENFORCEMENT INITIATIVE

The Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) provides funding to entities to work alongside the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to prevent or eliminate discriminatory housing practices. This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) announces the availability of approximately $13,546,112 to fund new FY2026 grant awards under the Private Enforcement Initiative (PEI). The PEI provides competitive awards to eligible private, nonprofit fair housing enforcement organizations to conduct testing and other investigative activities to enforce the rights granted under the Fair Housing Act, and State or local laws with equivalent rights and remedies. Eligible applicants must be private, tax-exempt, nonprofit, charitable 501(c)(3) organizations currently engaged in complaint intake, complaint investigation, testing for fair housing violations, and enforcement of meritorious claims. The award will be in the form of a grant agreement, and the project period will be 24 months. The applicant must submit a separate Statement of Work (SOW) for each separate consecutive 12-month period of performance. Key aspects of the job and scope of work include: • Conducting testing and other investigative activities to enforce the rights granted under the Fair Housing Act • Investigating allegations of housing discrimination, including counseling on options for redress and administrative process • Referring or filing jurisdictional and meritorious complaints to HUD, DOJ, private attorneys, state or local agencies, or in state or federal court • Disseminating grant activity-related press releases communicating resolutions reached in complaints filed under this grant • Monitoring settlement agreements Some of the key requirements and expectations for the applicant include: • Being a private, tax-exempt, nonprofit, charitable 501(c)(3) organization • Having at least one year of experience in complaint intake, complaint investigation, testing for fair housing violations, and enforcement of meritorious claims • Submitting a separate SOW for each separate consecutive 12-month period of performance • Providing a detailed description of the testing methodology and tester training materials • Submitting quarterly reports and a final report at the end of the grant term