On February 20, 2026, in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not give the president the authority to levy taxes or tariffs. This ruling ended the sweeping reciprocal tariffs that were enacted in 2025. Many big businesses that paid these tariffs have successfully navigated the tariff refund process. Apple received nearly $2.2 billion. Nike received $986 million. FedEx received $800 million, while Amazon and General Motors received $640 million and $500 million, respectively. According to the Wall Street Journal, as of August 2026, over 40 companies listed in the S&P 500 have reported roughly $9.6 billion in tariff refunds.
Although big businesses recoup their tariff refunds, small businesses have not fared so well. As a result, small business owners continue to suffer under an economic policy that disproportionately affects the . Eva St. Clair, a co-founder of the children’s fashion brand Princess Awesome, said: “We can limp along at this level for another year, maybe 18 months…I don’t know if we’ll ever get the full amount back.”
Tariffs disproportionately affect small business owners, many of whom cannot afford to wait months for the government to refund duties that were collected unlawfully. Eva’s story is a case in point.
Yet despite the negative impacts that tariffs have wrought on the lives of Americans, the administration has doubled down on its failing economic policy. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s ruling on the IEEPA tariffs, the administration introduced Section 122 tariffs. Those tariffs expired on July 24 2026 and were replaced with new ones under Section 301. Most recently, on August 22 2026, additional Section 338 tariffs on certain Canadian products took effect.
Tariffs have consequences. They harm American small business owners, and drive other countries to retaliate. The revenue the federal government receives through the collection of duties on imported goods is offset by the increased prices Americans pay for the things they need.
At Small Businesses Against Tariffs, we will continue to emphasize the downstream cost of tariffs on everyday Americans until our government pursues an economic policy that works.