24 states file case challenging tariffs imposed by President Trump

Twenty-four states filed a case against U.S. President Donald Trump, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and others on March 5, 2026, in the U.S. Court of International Trade.

The lawsuit challenges President Trump’s imposition of global tariffs under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. The states argue that “The President’s purported justification … cannot meet the statutory requirements of Section 122, and his effort to impose tariffs under this statute is unlawful.”

The plaintiffs include the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

The defendants include the president; the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; Kristi Noem, secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; and Rodney Scott, commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

The full text of the case is available at oag.ca.gov/system/files/attachments/press-docs/Section%20122%20Complaint.pdf.