US Supreme Court to Hear Tariff Case as Lower Court Cites Independent Amicus Brief

Oakland, CA—On August 29, a federal appeals court ruled that President Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs overstepped his authority. The Trump administration held that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) justified his unilateral tariff orders. The court’s ruling cited an amicus brief that the Independent Institute joined, along with Americans Advancing Freedom and other critics of the IEEPA tariffs.

At the heart of the legal issue is the nondelegation doctrine, which prohibits Congress from granting or delegating legislative authority to other branches of the government. Trump’s IEEPA tariffs amount to an unconstitutional usurpation of Congress’s tariff-setting powers, according to Independent Institute Senior Fellow and David J. Theroux Chair Phillip W. Magness.

“The President’s claim of an emergency, due to a trade imbalance, does not apply to his protectionist action. He has basically invented a new presidential power,” said Magness. “Everything Trump has done over the last six months, concerning tariffs, is unconstitutional and in direct opposition to a representative government.”

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to overturn the appeals court decision finding that most of Trump’s tariffs are unconstitutional. Article I of the US Constitution gives Congress—not the President—the power to “lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises,” and requires such actions originate in the House of Representatives.

“As our amicus brief’s accompanying review of early constitutional history shows, tariffs by executive decree fall far outside of the letter and original intent of the Constitution,” Magness added. “The ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs break the established doctrine regarding the separation of powers and concentrate power in the hands of the executive.”

Earlier this year, Magness co-authored and co-organized a bold free trade declaration, which has been signed by hundreds of economists and scholars in adjacent fields, including Nobel Laureates.

The Supreme Court has scheduled the hearing for early November, and they claim they will expedite the ruling. A final ruling from the court could be issued by December.

For more information, contact Robert Ade, [email protected], or (510) 635-3690.

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