Pelosi Joins House Democrats in Challenging Trump’s Unlawful, Chaotic Imposition of IEEPA Tariffs in Appeals Court

Washington, D.C. - On Tuesday, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi joined 161 Members of Congress and 29 Senators in filing an amicus brief before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit challenging President Donald Trump's sweeping and chaotic tariffs that were unlawfully imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The lawmakers' brief stands up for Congress's Article I executive legislative powers and argues that the IEEPA is not a tariff statute and that Congress did not intend or provide for the IEEPA to be used as a tariff statute.

The amicus brief was led by House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Task Force Chair Joe Neguse, House Judiciary Ranking Member and Task Force Co-Chair Jamie Raskin, House Foreign Affairs Ranking Member Gregory Meeks, and Ways and Means Ranking Member Richard E. Neal, as well as Senate Foreign Relations Ranking Member Jeanne Shaheen and Senate Finance Ranking Member Ron Wyden. It was filed in the matter of Oregon, et al., v. Trump, et al., which was brought forth by 12 States' Attorneys General.

In May, the Task Force successfully filed a brief in the same matter before the Court of International Trade (CIT). The CIT decision referenced our brief and struck down the President's illegal tariffs under IEEPA. The Administration has now appealed the lower court's ruling, and the matter is now before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

The Constitution gives Congress, not the President, the authority to impose tariffs, and the President can only raise tariffs if Congress has clearly delegated its authority to him. Although IEEPA (enacted in 1977) grants the president authority to impose sanctions, block foreign assets, and regulate economic transactions in response to "unusual and extraordinary threats" originating abroad, it is not a tariff statute and has never been used that way. Congress knows how to delegate tariff authority and has clearly done so on a number of occasions. When Congress does delegate such authority, it imposes substantive, procedural, and temporal limits on the president's power in order to avoid economic chaos and protect the American people.

The full brief is available HERE.(link is external)