A total of 25 Democratic-led states have filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's administration in the US Court of International Trade. They claim that Trump has exceeded the authority of the law by imposing new tariffs on imports from 60 US trading partners.
According to the complaint, tariffs of 10% and 12.5% are imposed on most imported goods representing about 99.4% of total US imports.
The states are asking the court to declare the tariffs invalid, stop their implementation and order the government to refund the duties already paid.
Claims of Administrative Abuse of Power
The lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration abused Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to maintain tariff policies after two previous approaches were rejected by the courts.
According to the plaintiffs, Section 301 only allows trade action after an investigation into unfair practices by a particular country. Any tariffs imposed must also be tailored to the identified offense.
However, they claim that the US Trade Representative's Office (USTR) has expedited investigations into 60 economies in about two and a half months without adequate consultation.
The countries were then classified into four tariff categories with similar rates despite having different trade policies.
The complaint also alleges that the USTR failed to prove a link between the tariff rates imposed and the forced labor issue in each country and did not set clear conditions for the tariffs to be lifted.
White House Defends Tariff Policy
The White House rejected the allegations and insisted that the tariffs were implemented in accordance with existing law.
The Trump administration said the move was aimed at addressing the failure of several countries and the European Union to prevent products produced using forced labor from entering the global supply chain.
According to the White House, Section 301 has been proven to be valid since Trump's first term and remains a legally valid trade instrument.
Tariff Exemptions Questioned
The plaintiffs also question several exemptions granted by the administration. Among them is frozen beef from Brazil, which has been linked to the forced labor issue but is not subject to tariffs.
They argue that such exceptions undermine the administration’s argument that the tariffs were imposed to address forced labor.
New Challenges After Court Ruling
The new tariffs were announced on July 23, the day before temporary tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act expired. The move allowed Trump’s tariff regime to continue uninterrupted.
The U.S. Supreme Court previously ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act could not be used to support previous tariffs. The trade court also rejected the use of Section 122, but that decision is still on appeal.
The states claim that statements by administration officials after the court ruling showed that the plan to use Section 301 was determined in advance to ensure that Trump’s tariff policies remained in effect.
The case is at least the second legal challenge to the new tariffs after a group of small businesses also filed a lawsuit with similar arguments.
