Setting Forth the Congressional Budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2026 and Setting Forth the Appropriate Budgetary Levels for Fiscal Years 2027 Through 2035
Floor Speech
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Ms. SHAHEEN. Mr. President, more than 2 months ago, the Supreme Court ruled that the tariffs that President Trump had imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, were unlawful. That means that more than $166 billion in taxes--or tariffs--under IEEPA were illegally collected, and they are owed back to the importers who paid them.
Now, this wasn't a shocking outcome because the law that the President tried to use for these tariffs--IEEPA--had never been used to impose tariffs. It does not even mention the words ``tariff'' or ``duty'' once, anywhere, in that law.
And so 15 months ago, a number of us introduced legislation to clarify that IEEPA cannot be used for tariffs.
Congress then submitted three amicus briefs, arguing that these tariffs were unlawful. The lower courts agreed. And on February 20, the Supreme Court blocked the tariffs and said that they should be repaid.
Now, 2 months later, here we are. No refunds have been paid, and the administration says it could take another 60 to 90 days before any refunds will be paid out.
Yesterday, some businesses were finally able to apply for refunds in the Customs and Border Protection's new system, but that system didn't allow businesses to even apply for refunds they have been waiting the longest for. This new system, which is called CAPE, disadvantages small businesses who may not know they need to file to receive refunds.
Those who don't have large legal teams to pursue these claims and have to take time away from their businesses just to give Customs information that it already has, they are not going to be able to comply with these requirements.
It also makes small businesses more likely to sell their refund claims to Wall Street banks like the one run by the Secretary of Commerce's sons and to sell those claims for a significant discount.
This administration was ready to reimpose a 10-percent tax on everything Americans import on the same day the Supreme Court ruled, but it took 2 months to roll out a partial refund system. That has real costs.
It hurts small businesses who are already struggling with high prices and shouldn't have to wait months to get refunds for unlawful taxes. It hurts our economy, with businesses unsure when or even if they will be able to reinvest this money. And it hurts taxpayers because these refunds have to be paid with interest.
That means that every day of delay adds $22 million to the bill for these unlawful and damaging tariffs. That is $1.3 billion more just since the Supreme Court ruled with billions more to come. Those are added costs because this administration failed to prepare for the obvious outcome.
So let's be clear on what is happening. President Trump's tariffs raise prices across the board, and now he is slow-walking getting out the refunds that Americans are entitled to. There is a better answer. That is the Speedy Tariff Refund Act, legislation that Senators Markey and Wyden and I have been working on. It is a bill that would require that Customs pay refunds automatically within 30 days, that it use the information it already has, and that all of these refunds be paid now.
The bill prioritizes refunds to small businesses rather than putting them at a disadvantage to big companies. Those businesses have already had to deal with added costs they can't easily absorb and constantly shifting tariffs that make it impossible to plan.
So this is not complicated. The Court said these tariffs were unlawful. The money was collected. It should be returned promptly and in full. It is time to pass our bill. It is time to return the $166 billion to the American people because every day we delay adds another $22 million to the tab.
BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT
Source