Twelve States Ask Trade Court to Halt Trump Tariffs

 

Complaint argues tariffs 'upended the constitutional order and brought chaos to the American economy'

On Wednesday, twelve U.S. states filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s sweeping tariff policies, claiming that former President Donald Trump overstepped his authority and infringed upon Congress’s exclusive power to impose taxes.

The lawsuit—brought by Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, and Vermont—argues that the tariffs announced by Trump since February 1 violate both federal law and the U.S. Constitution.

“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 filing reads.

The states are asking the U.S. Court of International Trade in Washington to declare the tariffs unlawful and to block federal agencies from collecting them. The lawsuit targets tariffs imposed on countries including Canada, Mexico, China, and others, along with later modifications made under Trump.

Federal law typically limits a president’s authority to impose tariffs to specific circumstances, such as when a foreign country enforces its own tariffs or engages in practices like dumping products on the U.S. market. However, Trump used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a 50-year-old law never before used to justify tariffs.

“Not once has any other President used IEEPA to impose tariffs,” the complaint notes.

At a press conference, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes said her office had a duty to act. “I will not stand by while the federal government imposes policies that harm our economy, violate the Constitution, and ignore the limits of executive power,” she said.

New York Attorney General Letitia James added, “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.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded Wednesday, saying that “hundreds” of nations had reached out regarding trade agreements, and the White House had received 18 formal proposals.

The states’ lawsuit is the broadest challenge to Trump’s tariff policies so far, adding to ongoing suits from industries, advocacy groups, and the state of California.

The case is titled State of Oregon et al. v. Donald J. Trump et al.