Since I’ve written many times on my blog and in my newsletter about how increasing tariffs is costing consumers in the United States money, it’s discouraging to report that President Trump will likely try to find another way to raise tariffs after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against him.
In fact, Justice Brett Cavanah even listed in his minority opinion the other laws Trump could use to continue his tariff campaign.
Over the past year, Trump raised average U.S. tariffs to about 17 percent, the highest level since 1932, under the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, according to an article in The New York Times. The United States collected an estimated $287 billion in customs duties, taxes and fees last year, nearly triple the amount in 2024.
The Tax Policy Center estimates that tariffs announced by the Trump administration through Dec. 4, 2025, will impose an average burden of about $900 per household in 2026.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Friday that the sweeping tariffs imposed by the Trump administration under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, violate the law. The court ruled in favor of a coalition of 12 attorneys general who sued the Trump administration in April 2025 for violating the law by imposing massive new tariffs that severely disrupted the economy for workers and businesses.
About $130 billion of the tariff revenue raised under the Trump administration’s policies has been imposed under IEEPA.
“These illegal tariffs caused immense economic chaos, raising costs for families and businesses throughout our country,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. “The Supreme Court has agreed that this administration has no authority to impose massive new taxes on a whim.”
James called the decision a critical victory for the rule of law and the nation’s economy.
However, Trump railed against the members of the Supreme Court who voted against his use of IEEPA for his massive new tariff surge. The ruling was written by Chief Justice John Roberts. Three liberal justices – Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Ketanji Brown Jackson – were joined by two conservatives – Neil Gorsuch and Amy Coney Barrett – who signed on to the ruling.
Trump said on social media that he signed a global 10 percent tariff, which would be a reduction for nearly all foreign nations, according to NBC News. The White House outlined the new temporary tariff as being under Trump’s authority in section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, and will begin Tuesday at 12:01 a.m. ET.
The question now is whether money paid for illegal tariffs will need to be repaid. Among those calling for refunds is Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D.-Mass.
