Attorney General Clark Sues Trump Administration to Stop Latest Round of Illegal Tariffs

Attorney General Charity Clark today joined a coalition of 22 attorneys general and two governors in filing a lawsuit to block President Trump's latest effort to impose illegal tariffs on American consumers and businesses. President Trump's effort to increase tariffs worldwide without congressional approval disregards the law, upends constitutional separation of powers, and violates the Administrative Procedure Act.

"Frankly, we've grown weary of these repeated violations of the Constitution and federal law," said Attorney General Clark. "The U.S. Supreme Court held that under the Constitution only Congress can levy taxes, not the President. This latest scheme is a blatant attempt to circumvent the Supreme Court's decision and the limitations on the President's authority established by the Constitution and Congress. I will keep standing up for the Constitution. "

For more than a year, President Trump has inflicted chaos on the American economy by imposing tariffs without the legal authority to do so. Initially, the President claimed that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) allowed him to impose tariffs of any amount, on any product, from any country, for any length of time. In April 2025, Attorney General Clark and 11 other state attorneys general sued the Trump Administration to block these tariffs. Two weeks ago, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected the Administration's argument, concluding that the IEEPA tariffs were unlawful and ruling in the coalition's favor.

Rather than accepting that loss in court, President Trump immediately turned to a separate law that has never been used before-Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974-and announced 15 percent tariffs on most products worldwide, seemingly in reaction to the United States' trade deficit. But Section 122 does not authorize the President's action. That law authorizes the President to impose tariffs in a few limited circumstances, including when there are "large and serious balance-of-payments deficits"-an economic term describing the flow of money into and out of the country. Notably, a trade deficit is not a balance-of-payment deficit, meaning that once again the President is acting unlawfully.

A recent analysis by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York concluded that nearly 90 percent of the costs of tariffs in 2025 were paid by American consumers and businesses. By imposing another round of price increases on American consumers and businesses, President Trump is doubling down on failed economic policies.

Attorney General Clark is joined in today's lawsuit by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the Governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

A copy of the complaint, which will be filed today in the U.S. Court of International Trade, will be made available later today on our website.

This lawsuit is the 43^rd case Attorney General Clark has brought against the Trump Administration since President Trump took office in January 2025. For more information on actions taken by the Attorney General on behalf of Vermonters, visit our website .

CONTACT: Amelia Vath, Senior Advisor to the Attorney General, 802-828-3171