Van Hollen, Warren, Alsobrooks Press Trump Administration for Answers on Relocation of Housing and Urban Development Headquarters

Senators seek answers to a series of questions on the move including its cost and planning behind the decision.

WASHINGTON DC - Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), and Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) wrote to Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner, pressing him on the Department's lack of transparency around the relocation of its headquarters and employees from its current location in Washington, D.C. to Alexandria, Virginia. In their letter, the Senators underscored their opposition to this move - raising concerns that these actions were taken unlawfully, threaten to further undermine the Department's capacity to address the nation's housing affordability crisis, and compound strain on HUD employees after mass firings last year that have left them under resourced. The Senators ask for answers to a series of questions on the move including its cost and planning behind the decision.

"We write to express our deep concern about and opposition to the reported move of employees from the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) headquarters in the Robert C. Weaver Building in the District of Columbia to 2415 Eisenhower Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia. HUD appears to have made the decision to undergo this move without due regard to federal law, the needs of HUD employees, nor the administration of our nation's housing programs," the Senators began.

"In response to a request from Congress, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has initiated a review of the legality of the move of substantially all HUD programmatic offices to Virginia and will report on whether there is any legal basis for the move. At the time of writing, HUD has failed to provide Congress with an official legal opinion to justify the move, and we remain deeply concerned that the move lacks legal justification," they wrote.

"As Congress awaits the results of the GAO inquiry, we have been deeply troubled by reports of the chaos and lack of respect HUD employees continue to experience," they continued, going on to outline strong opposition from members of the union that represents HUD employees. "We have also heard reports that HUD leadership has failed to provide basic information regarding the move to employees; instead, HUD has left key questions regarding building hours, commutes, and accessibility needs unanswered. […] It also has reportedly failed to provide sufficient documentation to the union related to the move, such as analyses comparing the cost of repairing and renovating HUD's existing headquarters versus moving the headquarters to Alexandria."

The Senators added that this relocation will further harm an already struggling department, writing,

"HUD is on the front lines of our nation's housing affordability crisis. HUD employees are responsible for critical programs that advance housing construction and preservation, rental assistance, affordable mortgage credit, and assistance for people who are experiencing homelessness. However, under your leadership, HUD has already lost over 30 percent of its staff. By undertaking this move over the concerns of HUD's employees and the opposition of their union, HUD risks the departure of more mission-critical staff at a time when staff capacity is already stretched thin. Losing another 20 percent of the remaining workforce at headquarters-as AFGE's survey indicates could take place-would be catastrophic. Accordingly, this process threatens to further erode the Department's ability to carry out its programs and respond to our urgent housing affordability crisis." "HUD has reportedly cited the Weaver Building's longstanding need for renovations and maintenance as a potential justification for the move. Yet the condition of the Weaver Building does not eliminate the Department's responsibility to comply with federal law, honor its collective bargaining agreements, and treat its workers with dignity and respect. Instead, the rapid and seemingly illegal move of its headquarters to Alexandria further threatens the administration of HUD programs and undermines HUD's mission," the Senators concluded, going on to list questions for Secretary Turner's response regarding the legal basis for the relocation, costs incurred to date and the total expected, and Department leadership's communications with employees.

Text of the letter can be viewed here and below.

Dear Secretary Turner:

We write to express our deep concern about and opposition to the reported move of employees from the Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) headquarters in the Robert C. Weaver Building in the District of Columbia to 2415 Eisenhower Avenue in Alexandria, Virginia. HUD appears to have made the decision to undergo this move without due regard to federal law, the needs of HUD employees, nor the administration of our nation's housing programs. Therefore, we request information regarding this move no later than April 10, 2026.

According to information received by our offices, on March 11, 2026, senior leadership at HUD circulated a schedule for moving 20 HUD program offices to Alexandria by April 10, 2026. The schedule lists all major programmatic offices, including the Office of the Secretary and Ginnie Mae. As you are aware, HUD and Ginnie Mae's authorizing statutes mandate the physical location of HUD and Ginnie Mae in the District of Columbia. In response to a request from Congress, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has initiated a review of the legality of the move of substantially all HUD programmatic offices to Virginia and will report on whether there is any legal basis for the move. At the time of writing, HUD has failed to provide Congress with an official legal opinion to justify the move, and we remain deeply concerned that the move lacks legal justification.

As Congress awaits the results of the GAO inquiry, we have been deeply troubled by reports of the chaos and lack of respect HUD employees continue to experience. The union representing HUD's headquarters, the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 476, recently conducted a survey that indicates 77 percent of respondents oppose the relocation; 82 percent expect longer and more complex commutes; and nearly 20 percent indicate they may transfer, retire or resign within six months if the relocation proceeds. Respondents noted the impact of the rushed move on their families, with some raising concerns regarding access to childcare. We have also heard reports that HUD leadership has failed to provide basic information regarding the move to employees; instead, HUD has left key questions regarding building hours, commutes, and accessibility needs unanswered. Reports indicate many employees received only one or a few days' notice of their actual move date, and the move schedules and floor plans are constantly changing. Employees have reported to the Eisenhower Avenue building as directed on their move date, only to be turned away and told an office was not yet ready.

In addition, according to public reporting, HUD is refusing to comply with its duty, pursuant to its collective bargaining agreement, to negotiate the terms of the proposed move with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 476. It also has reportedly failed to provide sufficient documentation to the union related to the move, such as analyses comparing the cost of repairing and renovating HUD's existing headquarters versus moving the headquarters to Alexandria.

HUD is on the front lines of our nation's housing affordability crisis. HUD employees are responsible for critical programs that advance housing construction and preservation, rental assistance, affordable mortgage credit, and assistance for people who are experiencing homelessness. However, under your leadership, HUD has already lost over 30 percent of its staff. By undertaking this move over the concerns of HUD's employees and the opposition of their union, HUD risks the departure of more mission-critical staff at a time when staff capacity is already stretched thin. Losing another 20 percent of the remaining workforce at headquarters-as AFGE's survey indicates could take place-would be catastrophic. Accordingly, this process threatens to further erode the Department's ability to carry out its programs and respond to our urgent housing affordability crisis.

HUD has reportedly cited the Weaver Building's longstanding need for renovations and maintenance as a potential justification for the move. Yet the condition of the Weaver Building does not eliminate the Department's responsibility to comply with federal law, honor its collective bargaining agreements, and treat its workers with dignity and respect. Instead, the rapid and seemingly illegal move of its headquarters to Alexandria further threatens the administration of HUD programs and undermines HUD's mission. Accordingly, we request answers to the following questions no later than April 10, 2026:

1. On what legal basis does HUD believe that it can relocate its programmatic offices, including the Office of the Secretary and Ginnie Mae, outside the District of Columbia, given clear statutory requirements establishing HUD "at the seat of government" in the District of Columbia? If HUD's Office of General Counsel has produced any legal opinions on this issue, please provide them. If HUD's Office of General Counsel has not produced any legal opinions on this issue, explain why not.
   
2. How much money has HUD spent on the move to date? How much additional money does HUD anticipate spending on the move? What is the total anticipated cost of the move? What is the source of these funds?
   
3. Provide a detailed summary of HUD's meetings with AFGE Local 476 regarding the move. What information has AFGE Local 476 requested from HUD, both verbally and in writing? What information has HUD provided to the union? Provide all relevant documents and communications.
   
4. What is the scope and status of all grievances and statutory labor disputes related to the move to the Alexandria building? Provide all relevant documents and communications.
   
5. What information has HUD provided employees regarding the move, including but not limited to information regarding move schedules, transportation, childcare, and accessibility needs? Provide copies of all documents sent to HUD employees and a schedule of all meetings or information sessions held to discuss the move.
   
6. What steps is HUD taking to address increased transportation and child care costs associated with the move?
   
   1. Will HUD commit to providing transportation subsidies to employees for whom the move to Alexandria will increase their transportation costs? If not, why not? What is HUD doing to ensure consistent application of these measures across the Department?
      
   2. Will HUD commit to providing child care subsidies for employees for whom the move to Alexandria will increase their child care costs? If not, why not? What is HUD doing to ensure consistent application of these measures across the Department?
      
   3. Is HUD restoring telework agreements, as recently directed by a third-party arbitrator,^[1] and what communications has HUD provided to its employees about the recent ruling?
      
7. Has HUD determined how many and which staff will be located at Potomac Center Plaza? If so, please provide the staff and office list, as well as any legal opinions produced by the Office of General Counsel.
   
   1. Will HUD commit to prioritizing the use of Potomac Center space by HUD employees whose commute time substantially increased due to the move to Alexandria?

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[1] Drew Friedman, "Arbitrator orders HUD to restore telework for thousands of federal employees," Federal News Network (Feb. 19, 2026). https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2026/02/arbitrator-orders-hud-to-restore-telework-for-thousands-of-federal-employees/