A dozen states are suing the Trump administration over the president’s back-and-forth tariff policy, arguing the trade taxes on foreign imports are not only hurting the American economy but are illegal.
The federal lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the U.S. Court of International Trade, challenges President Donald Trump’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose sweeping tariffs. The White House invoked the law earlier this month to address the nation’s large trade deficit created by unfair foreign trading practices, which the presidency considers a national emergency.
The twelve states argue that the president can only invoke the International Emergency Economic Powers Act when a national emergency presents an “unusual and extraordinary threat” from abroad.
“By claiming the authority to impose immense and ever-changing tariffs on whatever goods entering the United States he chooses, for whatever reason he finds convenient to declare an emergency, the President has upended the constitutional order and brought chaos to the American economy,” the lawsuit states.
Only Congress can grant the president the authority to implement tariffs, the court filing maintains. The plaintiffs take issue with the Trump administration’s tariff announcements through executive orders, social-media posts, and agency decrees.
The states that joined the lawsuit are Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Vermont. All twelve states have Democratic attorney generals.
“President Trump’s insane tariff scheme is not only economically reckless — it is illegal,” said Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes.
“The president does not have the power to raise taxes on a whim, but that’s exactly what President Trump has been doing with these tariffs,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a press release, joined by Governor Kathy Hochul.
“President Trump’s reckless tariffs have skyrocketed costs for consumers and unleashed economic chaos across the country. New York is standing up to fight back against the largest federal tax hike in American history,” Hochul said, adding that Trump’s tariffs will only push the U.S. into a recession.
The odds of a global recession occurring within the next year stand at 45 percent, Goldman Sachs estimates. The investment banking company retracted its previous recession forecast of 65 percent after Trump paused most of the reciprocal tariffs ranging between 11 and 50 percent.
The Republican implemented a 90-day partial reprieve to give more than 75 countries time to negotiate with the U.S. on lowering tariffs. China is currently excluded from the negotiating table, although the Wall Street Journal reported administration officials are considering cutting some of its 145 percent tariffs on China. The decision is not yet final.
The baseline 10 percent global tariffs still remain in effect, along with separate tariffs on steel, aluminum, cars, and auto parts imported from other countries. The Financial Times reported Trump plans to exempt American automakers from the tariffs on China intended to counter fentanyl production, as well as the levies on steel and aluminum. Trump first raised the possibility last week.
Wednesday’s lawsuit is the latest legal challenge to be brought over Trump’s tariffs.
Litigation filed by a group of small businesses was rejected on Tuesday by the U.S. Court of International Trade, which concluded plaintiffs failed to demonstrate that they stood to suffer “immediate and irreparable harm” as a result of the tariffs. The ruling leaves Trump’s tariff agenda in place for now.