Blue-state coalition sues to block Trump’s new tariffs

Suit sends Trump administration back to court just days after the Supreme Court invalidated a separate set of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

Published: March 6, 2026 11:52am

A coalition of two dozen states led by Democratic attorneys general from Arizona, California, New York and Oregon has filed a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s newly imposed tariffs on imports.

The suit filed Thursday sends the administration back to court just days after the Supreme Court invalidated a separate set of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The same day the Supreme Court handed down its IEEPA ruling, Trump announced a new tariff regime to impose a 10% tariff on most imported goods worldwide. He invoked Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 as legal support for the tariffs.

The next day, the president stated in a Truth Social post that he intends to increase the tariff rate to 15%.

The states filed their complaint in the U.S. Court of International Trade, arguing that the Section 122 proclamation exceeds the president’s statutory authority and violates the Constitution’s separation of powers. According to the complaint, the measure is ultra vires and represents an unprecedented use of Section 122.

The plaintiffs contend that the section – like IEEPA – has never before been used to impose tariffs, and they argue that the statute does not authorize the sweeping global trade restrictions announced by the administration.

The next move now belongs to the federal government, which will likely respond by filing either an answer or a motion to dismiss.

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