In a 6-3 ruling Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down sweeping international tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump in the spring of 2025.
In a majority decision authored by Chief Judge John Roberts, the high court found that Congress had not given the president the authority to impose the broad tariffs under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom called on the Trump administration to issue refunds — with interest — and do so immediately.
MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! https://t.co/5UudUfHe42 pic.twitter.com/un5zFbSEJl — The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 20, 2026
The court’s decision did not directly address whether or when refunds would be issued.
California challenged the tariffs in a lawsuit filed April 16, 2025, arguing that Congress had not authorized Trump to use the IEEP Act to impose the broad tariffs.
That act gives a president power in the case of a national emergency to take a wide range of actions, including the imposition of sanctions, without advance approval from Congress.
The act — first passed in 1977 — authorizes the president to declare a national emergency when there is “any unusual and extraordinary threat,” from outside of the country to “the national security, foreign policy, or economy of the United States.”
Court: trade imbalance not an extraordinary threat
Trump declared a national emergency on April 2, 2025, finding that “domestic economic policies of key trading partners and structural imbalances in the global trading system” created an unusual and extraordinary threat to the country. He used that finding to justify his across-the-board and “reciprocal” tariffs against trading partners worldwide.
The court’s ruling found that the language of the statute did not support the administration’s broad reading of the power to declare an emergency.
“Today’s decision ends the President’s unlawful and chaotic tariff regime, which wreaked havoc on families and businesses nationwide.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta
When California sued, Newsom pointed out the harsh impact of the tariffs on California agriculture and small businesses. He said it was, “a serious and sober moment … no state has more to lose than the state of California.”
As the largest economy in the nation, he said the tariffs “have an outsized impact on California businesses, including its more than 60,000 small business exporters.”
He described the tariffs as “the largest tax increase in history.” They were, he added, “reckless at another level.”
State Attorney General Rob Bonta said Friday, “Today’s decision ends the President’s unlawful and chaotic tariff regime, which wreaked havoc on families and businesses nationwide.”
Bonta planned a news conference Friday morning in San Francisco to discuss the ruling.
