Court orders refund as govt weighs new tariffs

NEW YORK — A judge in the New York-based Court of International Trade on Wednesday ordered United States Customs and Border Protection to pay refunds for tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.

The ruling offers some clarity about the tariff refund process, and could speed up refunds for thousands of companies that have paid IEEPA tariffs over the past year, local media reported.

More than 2,000 lawsuits now pending before the court would be resolved through this order.

The federal government confirmed in a separate court filing on Wednesday that it would pay interest on the refunds. It has collected more than $130 billion in tariffs through mid-December and could ultimately pay refunds worth $175 billion, according to Penn Wharton Budget Model estimates.

In a 6-3 ruling on Feb 20, the Supreme Court ruled that the IEEPA did not grant the president the authority to impose tariffs.

As an alternative to IEEPA-based tariffs, the administration has imposed 10 percent global tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, and vowed to raise this level to 15 percent.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that an increase in the administration's new temporary global tariff to 15 percent from 10 percent was likely to be rolled out this week.

Asked when the hike will be implemented, Bessent told CNBC, "That's likely sometime this week."

5-month window

Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 only allows for a duty lasting 150 days unless Congress extends it. During this five-month window, Bessent said, the administration will move to wrap up investigations linked to concerns over so-called national security and unfair trade.

"During the 150 days, we will see studies from USTR (United States Trade Representative) on Section 301, tariffs from Commerce on Section 232," he said, referring to other tariff authorities that have withstood court challenges.

These probes, in turn, could bring about new waves of tariffs.

"It's my strong belief that the tariff rates will be back to their old rate within five months," Bessent said, referring to levels seen before the Supreme Court decision.

"They have survived more than 4,000 legal challenges. They are more slow moving, but they are more robust," he said.

Agencies - Xinhua