May 29, 2025

Federal court strikes down tariffs, finds Trump exceeded authority

The U.S. Court of International Trade struck down many of the tariffs imposed by Donald Trump, ruling that the measures exceeded the president’s authority under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act.

Trump had cited the IEEPA in imposing the tariffs, which have created stock market chaos and uncertainty among consumers and in industries including agriculture.

The unanimous May 28 ruling (.pdf) of the three-judge panel struck down a 10% tariff imposed April 2 on all U.S. trading partners to address trade deficits, as well as Trump’s paused “reciprocal” tariffs of between 20% and 50% on around 60 countries, now scheduled to take effect on July 9 if trade deals aren’t reached.

The judgment also struck down 25% duties on Canadian and Mexican products and a 20% tariff on Chinese goods in response to a purported national drug trafficking emergency.

“Because of the Constitution’s express allocation of the tariff power to Congress … we do not read IEEPA to delegate an unbounded tariff authority to the President,” the court wrote.

The White House rejected the court’s authority in the ruling, which the Justice Department quickly appealed.

“It is not for unelected judges to decide how to properly address a national emergency,” White House spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement. “President Trump pledged to put America First, and the Administration is committed to using every lever of executive power to address this crisis and restore American Greatness.”

The ruling means that the government may have to pay back duties it has already collected.

“Anybody that has had to pay tariffs so far will be able to get them refunded,” Ilya Somin, a professor of law at George Mason University, who helped argue a case against the tariffs brought by several small businesses, told Politico.

The court’s ruling does not affect other tariffs, such as those imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which allows the president to levy new duties because of national security concerns. Trump used that provision in March to increase existing steel and aluminum tariffs and institute a 25% duty on foreign auto imports.

“Today’s court order is a victory not just for Oregon, but for working families, small businesses, and everyday Americans. President Trump’s sweeping tariffs were unlawful, reckless and economically devastating,” Oregon’ Attorney General Dan Rayfield, one of 12 state attorneys general who filed lawsuits challenging the tariffs, told Politico. “We brought this case because the Constitution doesn’t give any president unchecked authority to upend the economy. This ruling reaffirms that our laws matter, and that trade decisions can’t be made on the president’s whim.”

Potential potato impact

Millions of dollars in U.S. potato exports could be in the tariffs crosshairs, especially in regard to major trading partners Canada and Mexico.

U.S. tariffs announced March 4 were paused two days later with exemptions which applied to goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and included fresh and processed potatoes.

In an April 2 statement, the National Potato Council expressed optimism that the measures would remove trade barriers while also warning about potential price increases.

“Like most of agriculture, which operates on razor-thin margins, and with U.S. potato prices hovering near all-time lows, U.S. potato growers are concerned that tariffs could threaten the trade supply balance, impacting the prices of potatoes and the inputs that are required to farm,” NPC said in the statement. “Tariffs on imported essential goods, including fertilizer and crop protection tools, will likely increase the costs of items that are necessary for American farmers to grow their crops.”

In March, Canada’s Department of Finance announced 25% tariffs on a list of U.S. goods worth $30 billion in a rapid response to 25% tariffs levied by the Trump administration March 4 on Canadian and Mexican goods. Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs, said in a statement that an additional list of $125 billion in goods was open for a 21-day comment period and would be imposed “should the U.S. continue to apply unjustified tariffs on Canada.”

Potatoes appear twice on Canada’s additional list as fresh or chilled, seed and fresh or chilled, other.

Potato industry advocates have acknowledged that the threat of tariffs can help facilitate trade agreements while warning that permanent sanctions could threaten a supply balance that requires 20% of total U.S. potato production to be exported.

“The health of the U.S. potato industry is heavily dependent on continued access to foreign markets,” NPC said in its April 2 statement. “Approximately 20% of all potatoes grown in the U.S. are exported, in either fresh or processed form, to maintain supply and demand balance.”