Cato Institute this week released a new commentary arguing that the Trump administration is appealing a court order to refund $166 billion in tariffs collected under IEEPA, which the Supreme Court struck down as illegal, in order to retain revenue it was never entitled to collect.
The commentary states that courts should hold the administration accountable for issuing legally owed refunds, rather than permitting procedural obstacles to deny importers — particularly small businesses — the money that was illegally taken from them.
Quote:
Whatever the legal merits of the CIT’s universal injunction, the fact remains that the government took billions of dollars from American businesses through an illegal tariff regime. Holding on to this money by using procedural hurdles to deny importers their legally owed refunds should not be allowed. Courts allowed the administration to keep collecting these duties after assurances that the government would issue refunds if the tariffs were struck down. They should now hold them accountable for doing so.
Read the full commentary: Trump administration will not give back tariff money it illegally collected