On Senate Floor, Shaheen Pushes for Passage of Her Legislation to Streamline Tariff Refund Process Amid Trump’s Flawed Refund Request Rollout

**Senate Republicans blocked Shaheen’s attempt to pass her Speedy Tariff Refund Act by unanimous consent** (Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and a senior member of the U.S. Senate Small Business Committee , took to the Senate floor today to call for unanimous consent to pass her legislation—the Speedy Tariff Refund Act —to issue full and timely refunds of President Trump’s illegal tariffs to provide real relief to small businesses and families in New Hampshire and nationwide. Shaheen’s effort, which comes the day after the Trump Administration announced a flawed, burdensome refund process, was blocked by Senate Republicans. Click HERE to watch Shaheen’s floor remarks. Key quotes from Senator Shaheen: “Fifteen months ago, a number of us introduced legislation to clarify that IEEPA cannot be used for tariffs. Congress submitted three amicus briefs arguing that these tariffs were unlawful. The lower courts agreed, and on February 20, the Supreme Court blocked the tariffs and said that they should be repaid. Now, two months later, here we are: No refunds have been paid, and the administration says it could take another 60 to 90 days before any refunds will be paid out.” “So, let's be clear on what's happening: President Trump's tariffs raised prices across the board and now he's slow-walking getting out the refunds that Americans are entitled to. There is a better answer. That's the Speedy Tariff Refund Act legislation that senators Markey and Wyden and I have been working on. It’s a bill that would require that Customs pay refunds automatically within thirty days, that it uses the information it already has and that all of these refunds be paid now. The bill prioritizes refunds to small businesses rather than putting them at a disadvantage to big companies.” “So, this is not complicated. The Court said these tariffs were unlawful. The money that was collected. It should be returned promptly and in full. It's time to pass our bill. It's time to return the $166 billion to the America people, because every day we delay adds another $22 million to the tab.” Full remarks as delivered: Thank you, Mr. President. More than two months ago, the Supreme Court ruled that the tariffs that President Trump had imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA, were unlawful. That means that more than $166 billion in taxes, or tariffs, under IEEPA were illegally collected and they are owed back to the importers who paid them. Now, this wasn't a shocking outcome, because the law that the President tried to use for these tariffs, IEEPA, had never been used to impose tariffs. It does not even mention the words “tariff” or “duty” once anywhere in that law. And so, fifteen months ago, a number of us introduced legislation to clarify that IEEPA cannot be used for tariffs. Congress submitted three amicus briefs arguing that these tariffs were unlawful. The lower courts agreed, and on February 20, the Supreme Court blocked the tariffs and said that they should be repaid. Now, two months later, here we are: No refunds have been paid, and the administration says it could take another 60 to 90 days before any refunds will be paid out. Yesterday, some businesses were finally able to apply for refunds in the Customs and Border Protection’s new system. But that system didn't allow businesses to even apply for refunds they've been waiting the longest for. This new system, which is called CAPE, disadvantages small businesses who may not know they need to file to receive refunds. Those who don't have large legal teams to pursue these claims and have to take time away from their businesses just to give Customs information that it already has, they're not going to be able to comply with these requirements. It also makes small businesses more likely to sell their refund claims to Wall Street banks, like the one run by the Secretary of Commerce's son, and to sell those claims for a significant discount. This administration was ready to reimpose a 10 percent tax on everything Americans import on the same day the Supreme Court ruled. But it took two months to roll out a partial refund system. That has real costs. It hurts small businesses who are already struggling with high prices and shouldn't have to wait months to get refunds for unlawful taxes. It hurts our economy, with businesses unsure of when or even if they'll be able to reinvest this money. And it hurts taxpayers, because these refunds have to be paid with interest. That means that every day of delay adds $22 million to the bill for these unlawful and damaging tariffs. That's $1.3 billion more just since the Supreme Court ruled, with billions more to come. Those are added costs, because this administration failed to prepare for the obvious outcome. So, let's be clear on what's happening: President Trump's tariffs raised prices across the board and now he's slow-walking getting out the refunds that Americans are entitled to. There is a better answer. That's the Speedy Tariff Refund Act legislation that senators Markey and Wyden and I have been working on. It’s a bill that would require that Customs pay refunds automatically within thirty days, that it uses the information it already has and that all of these refunds be paid now. The bill prioritizes refunds to small businesses rather than putting them at a disadvantage to big companies. Those businesses have already had to deal with added costs they can't easily absorb and constantly shifting tariffs that make it impossible to plan. So, this is not complicated. The Court said these tariffs were unlawful. The money that was collected. It should be returned promptly and in full. It's time to pass our bill. It's time to return the $166 billion to the America people, because every day we delay adds another $22 million to the tab. Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor. Senator Shaheen has led efforts in Congress to mitigate the harmful impacts of President Trump's tariffs. Earlier this year, Shaheen led the introduction of the Speedy Tariff Refund Act , legislation that would require full refunds of President Trump’s illegal tariffs after they were struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court by a 6-3 vote. Last month, Shaheen led several Senate Democrats in calling on the Trump Administration to put in place an automatic, streamlined tariff refund process that provides real relief to small businesses and families in New Hampshire and nationwide. In January of last year, before President Trump took office, Shaheen introduced the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes on Imported Goods Act to shield American businesses and consumers from rising prices imposed by tariffs on imported goods into the United States by clarifying that the President does not have the authority to levy sweeping tariffs under IEEPA—while preserving IEEPA’s authority for sanctions and other tools. Shaheen then led more than 30 of her Senate colleagues and 171 House colleagues made in a bipartisan Amicus Brief she filed with the Supreme Court last year. ###