NEW YORK, March 4 (Xinhua) -- A judge in the New York-based Court of International Trade on Wednesday ordered U.S. Customs and Border Protection to pay refunds for tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
The ruling offers some clarity about the tariff refund process, and could speed refunds for thousands of companies that have paid IEEPA tariffs over the past year, local media reported.
More than 2,000 lawsuits now pending before the court would be resolved through this order.
The federal government confirmed in a separate court filing on Wednesday that it would pay interest on the refunds. It has collected more than 130 billion dollars in tariffs through mid-December and could ultimately pay refunds worth 175 billion dollars, according to Penn Wharton Budget Model estimates.
In a 6-3 ruling on Feb. 20, the Supreme Court ruled that IEEPA did not grant U.S. President Donald Trump the authority to impose tariffs.
As an alternative to IEEPA-based tariffs, the Trump administration has imposed 10 percent global tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, a separate legal authority that allows such levies to remain in place for 150 days. ■