Fair Housing Initiatives Program Education and Outreach Initiative | FR 6900 N 21 A

Opportunity Information: Apply for FR 6900 N 21 A

The Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) Education and Outreach Initiative (EOI) is a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) discretionary grant opportunity (CFDA 14.416) that funds public-facing education and outreach projects tied directly to the Fair Housing Act. The main purpose is to prevent or eliminate discriminatory housing practices by helping the public understand their rights and responsibilities under fair housing laws and by encouraging people to recognize discrimination and know how to report it. Every activity, product, and cost proposed in the application must clearly connect to fair housing laws (or to conduct that could violate those laws), and the materials produced should share a common theme rather than feeling like unrelated outreach pieces bundled together.

A key baseline requirement applies to every funded project regardless of component: applicants must take reasonable steps to ensure meaningful program access and effective communication for individuals across all protected class groups relevant to the communities being served. In practice, that means outreach and materials should be designed so they can actually reach and be understood by the intended audiences, including people who may face communication or access barriers. HUD also draws a clear line around what it will not support under this initiative: housing counseling services are explicitly not eligible EOI activities, so proposals need to stay focused on fair housing education, outreach, and awareness rather than counseling or direct service housing navigation.

The NOFO is structured around two main components, each with its own emphasis and eligible activities. The National Media Campaign component (EOI-NMC) is built for organizations capable of producing high-quality, coordinated messaging at a national scale. Grantees in this track participate in a national effort to develop and disseminate creative, innovative fair housing education and outreach materials and media products, including activities connected to National Fair Housing Month. The campaign must provide clear information on rights and obligations under the Fair Housing Act and must explain how to file a housing discrimination complaint through HUD. HUD highlights priority content areas such as improving access to fair and accessible housing opportunities (especially in low-income communities), addressing gaps in existing fair housing materials, and explaining common forms of discrimination in real estate-related transactions as well as barriers protected groups may encounter when trying to expand housing choice. Required distribution formats are broad and media-forward, including television and/or digital video, radio and/or digital audio, print ads (such as posters, pamphlets, and brochures), social media and digital advertising, and related marketing materials. A notable design expectation is that all content must be "localizable," meaning other FHIP organizations should be able to adapt and reuse the materials for local campaigns without having to rebuild everything from scratch.

The General component (EOI-G) is designed for regional, local, or community-based education and outreach efforts. These projects focus on preventing or eliminating discriminatory housing practices through practical, community-centered strategies that inform people about fair housing rights and responsibilities. Eligible activities can include developing and distributing fair housing materials (brochures, webinars, and social media advertising are specifically mentioned), conducting educational symposia or other trainings, and delivering fair housing information through printed and electronic media. Examples include public service announcements for radio and television and newspaper advertisements. Like the national track, the general component emphasizes meaningful access and effective communication to ensure protected class groups in the target area are not left out of the outreach.

Eligibility depends on which component an applicant is pursuing, and HUD enforces these rules strictly. For EOI-NMC, eligible applicants include Qualified Fair Housing Enforcement Organizations (QFHOs), Fair Housing Enforcement Organizations (FHOs), and other nonprofit organizations that represent groups protected under the Fair Housing Act (the NOFO notes this can include entities like public interest litigation firms, religious liberty groups, and trade associations). Because this component is media-intensive, there is also an experience requirement: the applicant must have at least five years of experience as an advertising, media, or public relations organization, or it must partner with an advertising and media services organization that has at least five years of experience. For EOI-G, eligible applicants include QFHOs, FHOs, other relevant nonprofits representing protected class groups, agencies participating in the Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP), other state or local government agencies, and other public or private entities actively formulating or carrying out programs to prevent or eliminate housing discrimination (again, potentially including public interest litigation firms, religious liberty groups, and trade associations). Individuals are not eligible to apply under either component, and foreign entities and sole proprietorship organizations are also ineligible.

Applications include compliance and documentation steps that can affect whether the proposal is even reviewed. Applicants must complete and submit Appendix B, the EOI Eligibility Certification, as part of the application package, and HUD states it will not evaluate applications from ineligible applicants. If the application includes co-applicants or is submitted by a consortium, each participating organization must meet all eligibility requirements; if any do not, the entire applicant can be deemed ineligible.

From a funding overview standpoint, the opportunity is offered by HUD as a grant under Funding Opportunity Number FR 6900 N 21 A, with an original closing date of 2025-08-21. The award ceiling is listed as $1,300,000, and HUD anticipates making approximately 58 awards. The program sits in the housing activity category and is meant to support education and outreach that directly advances the Fair Housing Act's nondiscrimination goals, with proposals judged in part on whether every proposed activity stays within that fair housing scope and meets the specific component requirements.

• The Department of Housing and Urban Development in the housing sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Fair Housing Initiatives Program Education and Outreach Initiative" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 14.416.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2025-07-29.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-08-21. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,300,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 58 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

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