Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Scott Turner has halted a draft hurricane relief plan presented by Asheville in North Carolina. The plan included an initiative for diversity, equity, and inclusiveness (DEI), which would have given priority to some residents.
Turner stated that the DEI plan was dead in HUD. We will not fund any grantee or program that doesn’t comply with the Executive Orders of President Trump.
Turner continued, “HUD is looking forward to assisting thousands of North Carolinians to rebuild following Hurricane Helene. This will be done by providing funding to businesses, non-profit organizations, and neighborhood areas that have been affected. Asheville, however, incorporated DEI to give priority to some residents, and this was unacceptable. Asheville’s plan had been deemed unsatisfactory by HUD and would not receive approval. The city promised to update its draft action plan in order to comply.”
On March 4, the city of Asheville – a Democratic stronghold located in an area that has elected Republican candidates for president since 2012 – posted on its website a plan on how to distribute money from Hurricane Helene relief funds, with a special section on DEI.
HUD awarded $225 million in Community Development Block Grants in January under the Biden Administration, following Hurricane Helene, which devastated the state, especially in western Appalachia, in September 2024. The storm caused flooding, strong winds, and power outages, destroying entire communities. According to state officials, at least 106 residents of the Tar Heel State died during Hurricane Helene.
In a draft of its plan, the city of Asheville outlined that businesses owned by women and minorities would receive priority assistance.
The draft plan stated, “Within Small Business Support Program the City will give priority to Minority and Women Owned Businesses (MWBE). This is within the criteria outlined in the policies and procedure.”
HUD took action after a thorough investigation into the issue and was made aware of the problematic language.
HUD reported that President Donald Trump signed executive orders on his first day of office aimed at “ending radical, wasteful DEI government programs”, and another focused on restoring opportunity based on merit and ending illegal discrimination. This ended DEI systems on the federal level and replaced them with merit-based ones.
Turner said that HUD takes a deliberate and detailed approach to every part of its work in order to serve all communities, regardless of their race, color, or creed. Let this be a message to all that the Executive Orders of President Trump will not go unnoticed. Asheville is working with us now to make this right.
Democratic Asheville mayor Esther Manheimer, stated that the city “works closely with HUD to continue to navigate changing compliance requirements under the new administration.”
Manheimer added, “We appreciate the support of the administration in our recovery effort. The City will meet federal standards to ensure that funding is approved to assist the city in recovering from Tropical Storm Helene’s devastation.”
The city did not release an updated version of its draft Monday, which included a section focusing on minority and woman-owned businesses.
HUD had canceled $4 million worth of DEI contracts in February after the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency Task Force (DOGE), a federal agency, discovered $260 million earlier in the month.
According to HUD, the DEI contracts were focused on “culture change” and included “outward mind training,” which is a DEI initiative that teaches people how to pay attention to inclusivity, needs and goals of others, and diversity and inclusion subscription services.
Turner stated at the time that it was inexcusable for the American taxpayer to pay the bill of DEI propagandists. Not only did this waste taxpayer money, it also wasted valuable time that could have been better spent on helping individuals, families, and communities in rural, urban, and tribal areas. DEI has died at HUD.”
