The Trump administration’s proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget would reduce or eliminate key programs that support the LGBTQ+ community, with impacts across health care, housing, and civil rights.
The proposal includes nearly $2 billion in cuts to HIV-related services and calls for eliminating the Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA) program, which provides housing support for low-income people living with HIV. While the administration argues the program is outdated due to advances in treatment, housing access remains directly tied to health outcomes. Stable housing is often a sizable factor that can impact consistent care or the possible disruption of that care.
The budget also proposes a $5 billion reduction to National Institutes of Health funding, with cuts affecting HIV research, sexual health, and research involving transgender populations. It adds a provision that would block federal funding from being used for gender-affirming care, including both medical and mental health services related to gender transition, further limiting access to care that is already difficult to find in many parts of the country.
At the same time, the proposal targets housing protections. It eliminates the Fair Housing Initiatives Program and cuts housing counseling services that help people navigate the rental and homeownership process. The administration has framed these programs as supporting “equity-focused” efforts, including services for LGBTQ+ communities and other marginalized groups.
For LGBTQ+ people, especially those with lower incomes or living with HIV, these programs are often the entry point to stable housing, and removing them narrows access at a time when housing instability remains a persistent issue across many communities.
The proposal also extends into education and youth services, eliminating funding tied to diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, including teacher training and campus-based LGBTQ+ support services such as Pride Centers. It also references early childhood programs like Head Start as part of a broader critique of materials and programming related to gender identity and race.
Throughout the budget, the administration describes these programs as “divisive,” “wasteful” or tied to “identity politics,” framing the cuts as part of a broader effort to roll back equity-focused initiatives across federal agencies and shift funding priorities away from targeted community-based services.
Advocacy organizations say the combined effect would be significant. In a statement, Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said, “Presidential budgets are a reflection of the nation’s values; and this budget shows how little this Administration values the lives of LGBTQ+ Americans despite their tremendous contribution to the American economy and society.” She added, “When you eliminate housing for people living with HIV, gut behavioral health grants, and defund fair housing protections, you leave entire communities without a safety net.”
The proposal builds on earlier federal actions affecting LGBTQ+ communities, including cuts to health research, changes to civil rights enforcement, and the rollback of diversity-focused initiatives, and now moves into the congressional process, where lawmakers will determine what ultimately becomes law.