On March 5, 2026, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, and New York Attorney General Letitia James co-led a coalition of 22 attorneys general and the governors of Pennsylvania and Kentucky in filing a lawsuit to block the Trump administration’s latest effort to impose illegal tariffs on American consumers and businesses.  

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. On Feb. 20, 2026, the Supreme Court rejected that argument, concluding that the IEEPA tariffs were unlawful. 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% tariffs on most products worldwide, puportedly to address trade deficits. But Section 122 does not apply, as that law authorizes tariffs in limited circumstances, including when there are “large and serious balance-of-payments deficits.” Notably, a trade deficit is not the same thing as a balance-of-payment deficit, meaning that once again the president is acting unlawfully. 

The coalition’s lawsuit challenges this latest round of tariffs. The complaint contends that these actions by the Trump administration violate the law, upend constitutional separation of powers, and violate the Administrative Procedure Act. 

After being rebuked by the Supreme Court for illegally taxing the American people, Donald Trump threw a temper tantrum and announced another round of illegal tariffs that will hurt Arizonans. Make no mistake—these tariffs are just another unlawful attempt to tax Arizona families and businesses without the consent of their elected representatives and they will drive up prices for every Arizonan.Attorney General Kris Mayes

The focus right now should be on paying people back, not doubling down on illegal tariffs. People are already making hard choices about what to put in their shopping cart. Prices on basics like groceries, clothing and other essentials have all been skyrocketing. At some point, the bills become unmanageable.Attorney General Dan Rayfield