Twenty-five states sue Trump administration over new round of tariffs, calling them a “pretext”

A coalition of 25 Democratic-led states, led by New York, sued the Trump administration Monday over its latest round of tariffs, arguing the president once again exceeded his legal authority just months after the Supreme Court struck down his earlier tariff regime.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade, challenges new tariffs of 10% or 12.5% imposed last month on goods from roughly 60 trading partners, including the European Union. Together, those economies account for 99.4% of U.S. imports, according to the states’ complaint. 

The tariffs were imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, a law meant to combat unfair or discriminatory economic practices by other nations, with the administration alleging the targeted countries had not done enough to stop the importation of goods produced with forced labor. 

The lawsuit is the latest in a string of legal battles over Trump’s trade agenda. Earlier this year, the Supreme Court struck down Trump’s original “Liberation Day” tariffs, ruling that the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act did not actually authorize the president to impose them. That decision forced the administration to set up a refund process for importers who had already paid the duties. 

Rather than back off, the states argue, the administration scrambled to keep tariff revenue flowing. Trump turned to temporary 10 percent worldwide tariffs, which expired at midnight on July 24—and the new Section 301 tariffs were announced by the U.S. Trade Representative on July 23, one day before those temporary duties lapsed, allowing the tariff regime to continue without interruption. 

The states argue that timing is no coincidence. According to their complaint, the sequence shows the outcome of the Section 301 process – a formal trade investigation that typically takes months – was predetermined, undercutting the legitimacy of the legal justification the administration used.