New York Attorney General Letitia James and Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that New York and a coalition of 11 other states are suing the Trump administration for illegally imposing unprecedented tax hikes on Americans in the form of tariffs.
The Trump administration’s International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs raise taxes on imports from nearly every country, including America’s closest allies and trading partners, and they have already caused severe economic damage, the New York leaders said through a press release.
The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General James and a coalition of attorneys general, argues that Congress has not granted the president the authority to impose these tariffs and therefore the administration violated the law by imposing them through executive orders, social media posts and agency orders. The coalition seeks a court order halting these IEEPA tariffs, including the worldwide tariffs that were paused on April 9, and preventing the Trump administration from enforcing or implementing them.
“The president does not have the power to raise taxes on a whim, but that’s exactly what President Trump has been doing with these tariffs,” said James. “Donald Trump promised that he would lower prices and ease the cost of living, but these illegal tariffs will have the exact opposite effect on American families. His tariffs are unlawful and if not stopped, they will lead to more inflation, unemployment, and economic damage.”
The lawsuit argues the tariffs will increase unemployment, raise inflation and threaten Americans’ wages by slowing economic growth. The president’s tariffs will harm the states and their residents by making important goods ranging from electronics to building materials more expensive and scarce, according to the lawsuit.
“President Trump’s reckless tariffs have skyrocketed costs for consumers and unleashed economic chaos across the country. New York is standing up to fight back against the largest federal tax hike in American history,” said Hochul.
A report from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander estimated that even a mild recession caused by the tariffs would lead to over 35,000 lost jobs in the city. New York state agencies could end up paying over $100 million in extra costs due to tariffs increasing prices. Retaliatory tariffs imposed by Canada on the hundreds of millions of dollars in electricity that New York imports every year would cause New Yorkers’ energy bills to spike, the press release said.
Joining New York in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Vermont.
