On Nov. 5, the Supreme Court will weigh whether the president can use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs on imports around the world.

Cato Institute scholars have filed two amicus curiae briefs ahead of the hearing, on the president’s use of IEEPA to impose tariffs on imports.

Legal Brief
Cato’s Thomas A. Berry and Brent Skorup underscore that IEEPA provides no textual authority for imposing tariffs and that the Constitution vests tariff-setting power solely in Congress. The brief traces two centuries of U.S. practice showing that Congress has always retained this power, even during wars and financial crises, and has never delegated open-ended tariff authority to the executive branch.

The legal brief argues that reading tariff power into IEEPA would amount to a vast and unintended transfer of legislative authority, contrary to the statute’s purpose and constitutional design.

Trade Policy Brief
Cato’s Scott Lincicome, Colin Grabow and Clark Packard rebut the administration’s “fantastical claims” regarding the supposed calamities that would befall the nation’s economy and foreign policy if the Court were to strike down the president’s ability to impose tariffs under IEEPA. The scholars emphasize that the administration’s arguments exaggerate the potential consequences, portraying IEEPA tariffs as essential to national stability, when in reality, such tariffs have never served as a tool for U.S. trade policy.

The trade scholars urge the court to stick to the law and to ignore the government’s extralegal claims about the potential effects of a ruling against the IEEPA tariffs.

Experts from Cato’s legal and trade teams are available to discuss the implications of this case.

If you would like to speak with our scholars, please reach out to Emily Salamon at esalamon@​cato.​org.