Trump administration refunded $100bn

The Trump administration has refunded about $100 billion in tariff payments after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down a large set of duties imposed under Trump’s earlier trade program, according to a court filing reported on August 5. Customs officials told the U.S. Court of International Trade that the government has now returned roughly 60% of the $165 billion collected under the tariffs Trump had promoted as “liberation day” levies. (usnews.com) The refunds do not mean the administration has backed away from tariffs. (cnbc.com) In late July, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer’s office moved ahead with a new round of Section 301 duties tied to foreign forced-labor policies, and those new levies are already facing fresh court challenges from Democratic-led states. ### Where did the $100 billion figure come from? A filing in the U.S. Court of International Trade showed that Customs and Border Protection had refunded about $100 billion to importers after the Supreme Court invalidated the earlier tariffs, according to Reuters and other reports. (usnews.com) Those repayments cover duties already collected before the court ruled the administration lacked authority for that tariff program. The Guardian reported that the $100 billion total represented about 60% of the $165 billion the government had collected under those tariffs. (jdsupra.com) NBC News reported the same figure and said critics objected that the money was going back to companies that paid the duties rather than directly to households. ### Why are tariffs still going up if the old ones were struck down? On July 23, the Trump administration directed the U.S. Trade Representative to use Section 301 to impose new tariffs after the earlier legal authority was blocked, according to legal summaries and news reports. (usnews.com) The new action framed the tariffs as a response to foreign countries’ failure to prevent forced-labor goods from entering supply chains. CNBC reported that the replacement tariffs cover goods from 60 trading partners at rates of 10% or 12.5%, while Connecticut and allied states said the broader round affects more than 80 countries accounting for 99.4% of U.S. imports. (aol.co.uk) The difference reflects how various filings and reports describe the covered trading partners and tariff schedules. ### Who is challenging the new tariffs? On August 3, a coalition of 25 states sued the Trump administration, arguing the new Section 301 tariffs were an unlawful attempt to recreate duties that courts had already rejected. (jdsupra.com) CNBC reported the states said the White House was using a different statute to restore a global tariff regime in substance if not in name. Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said his state had joined a third lawsuit against the administration’s tariff actions. Hearst Connecticut Media and Connecticut state materials said Tong called the latest tariffs “unlawful” and “baseless.” (cnbc.com) ### What does this change for companies buying hardware and components? The practical effect for importers is that one set of duties is being refunded while another set is being imposed under a different legal theory. That leaves companies with two moving targets at once: recovery of past payments and exposure to new tariffs on future shipments. (cnbc.com) For companies buying servers, networking gear, electronics components and other imported equipment, tariff treatment now depends not only on product category and country of origin but also on which legal authority survives in court. (yahoo.com) Fortune reported that some of the newer levies were already changing sourcing decisions, while legal analysts said the Section 301 approach would likely produce another round of litigation. ### What happens next in court and in trade policy? The Court of International Trade is still receiving updates on the refund process, which means the remaining unpaid share of the $165 billion total is still being tracked through court filings, according to reports on August 5. (usnews.com) The new Section 301 tariffs are now headed into separate litigation brought by 25 states and other challengers. The U.S. Trade Representative’s July 23 action has already taken effect in part, and the court fights over those tariffs will determine whether the administration can preserve its replacement regime while the refund process continues. (jdsupra.com 1) (jdsupra.com 2) (usnews.com)