Attorney General Phil Weiser sues Trump administration again to stop illegal tariffs

Aug. 3, 2026 (DENVER) – Attorney General Phil Weiser today joined a coalition of 25 states in filing a third lawsuit against the Trump administration’s efforts to impose illegal tariffs on American consumers and businesses. The case challenges the administration’s recent decision to increase tariffs on more than 80 countries that together account for 99.4% of all U.S. imports.

“Once again, we are taking action to challenge an unlawful executive order imposing tariffs that will be passed on to Coloradans already struggling to pay the price of essential consumer goods. Studies show that nearly 90 percent of the costs of tariffs in 2025 were paid by American consumers and businesses. The administration is tripling down on tariff policies that the federal trade courts and the U.S. Supreme Court have ruled unlawful, and I’m confident they will do that same with this latest round,” said Attorney General Weiser.

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. In February, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected that claim, agreeing with several state attorneys general that the IEEPA tariffs were unlawful.

President Trump then turned to a separate law that had never been used before—Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974—and announced 10 percent tariffs on most products worldwide. But state attorneys general challenged those tariffs, too, and in May the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that the president acted unlawfully.

Rather than accepting those losses, President Trump turned to another law—Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974—and directed the United States Trade Representative to investigate the European Union and 59 other countries, to determine whether those countries are doing enough to combat forced labor in global trade. Late last month, the trade representative did what Trump wanted all along, imposing 10% and 12.5% tariff rates on nearly every economy that trades with the U.S. In other words, instead of taking actions that would combat forced labor, the trade representative reached a foregone conclusion and imposed across-the-board tariffs like those that courts have struck down twice before.

Today’s lawsuit challenges this latest round of tariffs. The complaint contends that these actions exceed the administration’s legal authority and violate the Administrative Procedure Act. The case was filed in the U.S. Court of International Trade.

A recent analysis by researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York concluded that nearly 90 percent of the costs of tariffs in 2025 were paid by American consumers and businesses. By imposing another round of price increases on American consumers and businesses, the Trump administration is tripling down on failed economic policies.

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

Read a copy of the complaint (PDF).

###

Media Contact:
Lawrence Pacheco
Chief Communications Officer
(720) 508-6553 office
lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov