The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development plans to provide agency business and services nationwide exclusively in English, according to an announcement made by HUD Deputy Secretary Andrew Hughes on Monday.
Hughes instructed that all materials provided in other languages be removed from offices. In conformance with applicable law, the department will solely produce flyers and pamphlets in English.
"We are one people, united, and we will speak with one voice and one language," Hughes said in a statement.
The move comes after President Donald Trump signed an executive order designating English as the official language of the United States in March. Department of Justice Attorney General Pam Bondi followed up by directing the Department of Justice to decrease multilingual offerings and "redirect resources to English-language education and assimilation."
State, local and municipal governments will have to decide whether to follow the federal government's lead. Some advocacy groups are lobbying for a multilingual approach.
"It's extremely important for public housing" resources to be offered in multiple languages, especially in cities rich with diversity, including New York City, Los Angeles and Miami, said Annie Lord, executive director of the non-profit Miami-based Miami Homes for All. The organization pursues housing research, advocacy work and community engagement with the goal of boosting affordable housing supply in Miami-Dade County.
"That’s important, because if you don’t speak English," Lord said, "those people will struggle to [gain] access or fill out applications wrong."