25 US states sue Trump over new tariffs after Supreme Court setback

Twenty-five US states have sued the Trump administration over fresh Section 301 tariffs. The case tests whether the White House is reviving blocked import taxes through a new legal route.

In Short

• Fresh double-digit duties target 59 countries and the European Union
• Washington says the measures punish nations failing to curb forced-labour imports
• The new duties began as temporary worldwide tariffs expired on July 24

Twenty-five US states sued the Trump administration on Monday over its latest tariffs, arguing that the move is an attempt to replace import taxes the Supreme Court struck down in February. The legal challenge comes after the United States imposed fresh double-digit tariffs on 59 countries and the European Union last month.

The administration said the tariffs were aimed at countries that had not done enough to stop imports made with forced labour. The duties came into effect just as temporary tariffs introduced by President Donald Trump after the Supreme Court ruling expired.

"After losing at the Supreme Court, the administration is once again trying to illegally raise taxes on families and businesses with a new round of tariffs," New York Attorney General Letitia James said.

Trump, who has argued that high tariffs will revive American manufacturing, last year reversed decades of US policy that backed lower tariffs and freer trade. Using the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, he imposed double-digit tariffs on imports from almost every country, saying America's long-running trade deficit was a national emergency.

However, the Supreme Court ruled that IEEPA did not authorise tariffs. That decision forced the administration to refund importers who had paid the duties. After that setback, Trump turned to temporary worldwide tariffs of 10 per cent, but those expired at midnight on July 24.

The administration has now used section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose import taxes and other sanctions against countries found to be engaging in unfair trade practices. Trump had used section 301 in his first term to impose major tariffs on China, and those survived legal challenges.

Officials used section 301 to bring in the new forced-labour tariffs, which range from 10 per cent to 12.5 per cent and apply to countries that account for 99 per cent of American imports.

"The United States is using its lawful authority to obtain the elimination of unreasonable acts, policies and practices that burden US commerce," White House spokesman Kush Desai said. "A foreign country's failure to impose and effectively enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labour is unreasonable and burdens US commerce, including American workers, and must be addressed. Section 301 tariffs have proven to be a legally-durable tool since the President's first term, and they remain so now."

The lawsuit marks the latest clash over Trump's tariff policy, with the states saying the administration is trying to restore revenue lost after the Supreme Court blocked its earlier use of emergency powers.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends