California sues Trump over his unlawful use of tariffs — again
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Mar 5, 2026

California sues Trump over his unlawful use of tariffs — again

What you need to know: California and partner states have filed a lawsuit to stop President Trump's global tariffs — an illegally imposed tax on all Americans.

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom and California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, along with a multistate coalition, announced a new lawsuit challenging President Trump's imposition of global tariffs by unlawfully applying Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The lawsuit filed today in the Court of International Trade argues that the President's use of Section 122 to impose tariffs is illegal.

"These tariffs are nothing more than a tax on working families — shifting the burden of Trump's failed trade negotiations onto folks who are already struggling to make ends meet. Trump keeps throwing out illegal, reckless policies, hoping something sticks, while everyday Americans pay the price. Trump's tariffs were overturned by the Supreme Court, so now he's inflicting new tariffs on Californians and all Americans like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum. Chaos is not leadership. And we deserve better."

Governor Gavin Newsom

"American consumers and business owners have made it clear they do not want tariffs, yet President Trump has tried over and over again to implement them. This time, the President is attempting to use an obscure law as a tool for his tariffs, and is yet again, going about it illegally," said Attorney General Bonta. "This is not new terrain for California, but it is exasperating. Why is President Trump — who ran on the promise of making life more affordable for families — breaking the law to raise the cost of living for Americans? California has challenged the illegal imposition of tariffs time and time again because this question matters enormously for Californians who are already struggling with rising costs. For the 60th time since he took office, we'll see the President in court."

California was the first state to challenge Trump's illegal imposition of tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA). And last month, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Trump's imposition of tariffs under IEEPA, declaring them illegal. The Court's 6-3 decision confirmed what Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta argued from the beginning in California's lawsuit: President Trump lacked the authority to impose sweeping tariffs under emergency powers. The President's regime of unlawful tariffs, or taxes, has made the affordability crisis worse for millions of Americans and has sent shockwaves through financial markets, businesses, and consumers in every corner of the globe — including in California, which is the fourth-largest economy in the world and the country's largest importer and second-largest exporter among the 50 states. A recent Yale report found that the tariffs led to the average family losing $1,751 dollars last year.

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On February 20, 2026, the same day the Supreme Court struck down Trump's tariffs, the President responded by issuing a proclamation claiming authority under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose a 10% tariff on most products and countries worldwide. The very next day, President Trump decided to raise these tariffs to 15%. Tariffs under this statute cannot exceed 15% and are limited to 150 days, after which the President must seek congressional approval. Section 122 authorizes the President to impose tariffs under a very specific set of circumstances related to international payment problems  — none of which apply here.

Additionally, Section 122 requires tariffs be applied in a nondiscriminatory manner among countries and uniformly across products. Because the Proclamation exempts many goods from Canada, Mexico, Costa Rica, and other countries, today's lawsuit argues it violates the Section 122 requirement that the tariffs be applied consistently with the principle of nondiscriminatory treatment. Because the Proclamation also includes 84 pages of product exceptions, it also violates the requirement that the tariffs be applied uniformly across products. The lawsuit also includes a claim against U.S. Customs and Border Protection arguing that the agency guidance announcing its implementation of the President's Proclamation is illegal under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA).

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