In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court said President Donald Trump exceeded his authority when he used a law from 1977 to enact the tariffs.
The decision lifts reciprocal tariffs he placed on countries like Canada, China and Mexico.
The president says he’s not letting this get in the way of his plans.
“Foreign countries that have been ripping us off for years are ecstatic,” President Donald Trump said. “Other alternatives will now be used to replace the ones the court incorrectly rejected. We have alternatives, great alternatives, could be more money, we’ll take in more money.”
US Customs and Border Protection says tariffs have raised around $130 billion.
However, the Supreme Court decision is already drawing praise from a St. Louis area nonprofit.
The leadership team at Ten By Three told 5 On Your Side over the last calendar year they’ve paid $64,000 in tariffs, which they hope they will recoup from the government.
“That income would be a huge blessing with us,” Felicia Miller said. “It would mean that we are suddenly able to flood so many more communities with orders. It would mean that we are able to hire another person here in our facility. That’s jobs here in the United States and in the St. Louis office.”
Ten By Three imports handwoven baskets from around the world.
The nonprofits pays 2.5x the fair market price in an effort to strengthen the lives of people living in extreme poverty.
They help people in countries like Ghana, Kenya, India, Madagascar, and Bangladesh by selling their baskets at American retailers like Whole Foods.
Their work has earned Ten By Three recognition by the United Nations.
However, Miller said tariffs forced them to leave positions unfilled and turn down customers.
The cost of doing business simply got too high.
“It has impacted the amounts we’ve had to raise prices to both our public consumers and then also raise price to our wholesale shoppers,” Miller said. “We’ve seen a drop in sales because people aren’t able to order as much as they used to.”
“The latest estimates are saying it will probably drop the tariff rate down overall from about 17% to around 9%,” Dr. Jerome Katz said. “We’re all going to be saving money.”
Katz, who serves as the Brockhaus Chair of Entrepeneurship at SLU, told 5 On Your Side local businesses should receive refunds on the tariffs they’ve already paid.
Katz cautioned that Congress may need to step in to ensure that small businesses are able to recoup tariffs at the same rate as large corporations.
“Today’s Supreme Court decision striking down President Trump’s tariff policy is a disappointing setback in the fight for fair trade,” Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL) said. “The tariffs are a strong tool to protect American workers, strengthen manufacturing, and push back against countries that cheat the system. President Trump made clear he will pursue additional paths – and I believe Congress should work with him – to ensure we’re defending American jobs, farmers, and industries from unfair foreign competition.”