Attorney General Bonta — Once Again — Opposes Trump’s Effort to Impose Illegal Tariffs

Still illegal

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today co-led a coalition of 22 attorneys general in objecting to the Trump Administration’s proposed, unlawful tariffs on 59 countries and the European Union under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 based on allegations that these countries fail to enforce a prohibition on the importation of goods produced with forced labor. If implemented, these tariffs will add to the President’s largely failed tariff regime, which has inflicted chaos on the American economy and increased prices amid a crisis of affordability. With this attempt, President Trump appears to be using these tariffs to achieve what he could not through his previous illegal attempts — to impose broad tariffs against nearly all of the United States’ major trading partners, which in this case are responsible for over 99% of all U.S. imports. In the letter today, the attorneys general argue that the proposed tariffs are illegal and must be immediately abandoned.

“After his first two attempts to impose tariffs were declared illegal by the courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court, the President is back at it again — this time illegally attempting to impose blanket tariffs on 59 countries and the EU, which account for 99% of U.S. imports. We urge the Administration to immediately halt this attempt. Tariffs are taxes, and the American people cannot shoulder extra costs — no matter how much President Trump wants them to,” said Attorney General Bonta. “California has pushed back and challenged these unlawful taxes time and time again because we stand with businesses, consumers, and families across the state and nation who are already struggling with rising costs.” 

BACKGROUND 

For over a year, President Trump has unlawfully attempted to impose tariffs on essential goods purchased by American consumers and businesses. The President’s regime of unlawful tariffs has made the affordability crisis worse for millions of Americans and has sent shockwaves through financial markets, businesses, and consumers in every corner of the globe — including in California, which is the fourth-largest economy in the world and the country’s largest importer and second-largest exporter among the 50 states. 

Attorney General Bonta and Governor Gavin Newsom previously challenged the President’s imposition of tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA). In February 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Trump’s imposition of tariffs under IEEPA, declaring them illegal. The President then attempted to use a different law that has never been used before — Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 — and imposed 10% tariffs on most products worldwide, supposedly in response to trade deficits. In March, Attorney General Bonta and a coalition of states sued the Trump Administration over the unlawful Section 122 tariffs — and in May, a federal court ruled that those tariffs are illegal, too, calling the President’s tariff proclamation “invalid, and the tariffs imposed on Plaintiffs are unauthorized by law.” 

PROPOSED SECTION 301 TARIFFS

Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 authorizes the U.S. Trade Representative to investigate and impose tariffs to enforce U.S. rights under trade agreements and respond to certain unreasonable or discriminatory practices that burden or restrict U.S. commerce, after conducting an investigation, requesting consultations with the foreign country in question, and allowing the public to comment. These investigations usually take 12 months or more. 

In March 2026, the Trump Administration initiated an investigation into 59 countries and the European Union for alleged failure to impose and enforce prohibitions on the importation of goods made with forced labor. Following its investigation, the U.S. Trade Representative issued a report on June 2, 2026, finding that all 59 countries and the European Union failed to prohibit importation of goods made with forced labor and/or failed to adequately enforce bans on such imports. The Trade Representative proposed a 10% tariff on 15 countries and the European Union, and a 12.5% tariff on the other 44 countries, which together account for 99% of U.S. imports. 

However, tariffs imposed under Section 301 must be tailored to achieve its goal of eliminating the investigated conduct — in this case, alleged failure to ban the importation of goods made with forced labor — and cannot be used to raise tariffs for just any reason.

In today’s letter, the attorneys general argue that the proposed Section 301 tariffs are pretextual and are not targeted to address the purported harms of forced labor but instead are designed to re-create the IEEPA tariffs declared illegal by the U.S. Supreme Court. The U.S. Trade Representative’s investigation is not consistent with prior practice under Section 301. The investigation targets 60 economies at once, instead of investigating by individual country, and has occurred in a very abbreviated 2.5-month timeframe, as opposed to the 12 months or more typical of these inquiries. The rushed nature of the investigation, the breadth of the proposed tariffs, and the Trade Representative’s reliance on case studies and general macroeconomic studies as opposed to fact-intensive and case-specific findings in its investigation show that the tariffs are not designed to remedy the practice they purport to fix. 

The attorneys general call on the Administration to immediately abandon all plans for Section 301 tariffs, as they are arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act and exceed the statutory authority of Section 301.

The comment letter is led by Attorney General Bonta, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes. Also joining the letter are the attorneys general of Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.