Washington, D.C. (WDNews) – A federal trade court has struck down President Trump’s latest round of tariffs, ruling the administration overstepped its authority under existing federal law.
In a decision issued Tuesday, a panel of judges at the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not grant the president unlimited power to impose tariffs, even during a declared national emergency.
The court sided with a group of businesses and a dozen states, including New York, Illinois, and Oregon, who argued the tariffs were unconstitutional and exceeded executive authority.
The now-blocked tariffs included sweeping 10–50% duties on imports from dozens of countries, and were part of a broader White House plan to counteract trade imbalances and drug trafficking.
The judges wrote that while IEEPA permits emergency actions, it “does not delegate unbounded tariff authority,” and that Congress retains the power to regulate commerce and taxation under Article I of the Constitution.
This ruling is expected to have significant implications for how future administrations use emergency powers to influence global trade.
