Washington, D.C., December 9, 2025 – David M. Dworkin, President and CEO of the National Housing Conference released the following statement in response to the Department of Justice rescinding disparate impact under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act:
“The Department of Justice’s decision to abandon disparate impact enforcement under Title VI is profoundly misguided and harmful. It is the legal equivalent of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’
Few actors openly declare discriminatory intent. In most circumstances, the only reliable way to detect and prevent discrimination is to examine outcomes and patterns. Rolling back disparate impact tools does not end discrimination—it obscures it. We have made enormous progress over the past 50 years, but discrimination persists, and enforcement matters.
This change will not shield institutions from liability; it will heighten it. Ambiguity invites inconsistent enforcement, raises compliance costs, and increases litigation risk. The Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Fair Housing Act, and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act remain the law of the land and continue to prohibit discrimination. Americans deserve civil rights enforcement based on what people experience, and that can only be measured under disparate impact.”
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About the National Housing Conference (NHC): Founded in 1931, the National Housing Conference is the oldest and broadest housing coalition in America. NHC is a diverse continuum of affordable housing stakeholders who convene and collaborate through dialogue, advocacy, research, and education, to develop equitable solutions that serve our common interest—an America where everyone is able to live in a quality, affordable home in a thriving community. Politically diverse and nonpartisan, NHC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. To learn more about NHC, visit www.nhc.org.