Two recent legislative proposals aim to put hundreds—if not thousands—of dollars back in shoppers’ pockets in the form of tariff refunds or rebates.
The American Consumer Tariff Rebate Act of 2026 (H.R. 7865), introduced last week by Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Tex.), would provide direct payments worth about $231.35 billion—the amount the Congressional Budget Office estimates shoppers have paid in tariffs—to American taxpayers to offset the continually rising costs associated with President Donald Trump’s tariff regime.
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Tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court on Feb. 20. However, newly released research from Democratic lawmakers reveals that the household impact of duties is still slated to rise in 2026 to $2,512 up from $1,745 last year amid new efforts from the administration to reconstitute the tariffs using other statutes.
“Tariffs function as hidden taxes on families and create uncertainty for businesses,” Rep. Cuellar said. “When companies pay more to import goods and materials, those added costs are passed on to consumers, driving up prices on groceries, fuel and energy, vehicles and auto parts, building materials, and other everyday household items.”
The Supreme Court did not designate a mechanism for providing refunds to importers, much less consumers. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has been ordered to begin repaying the tariffs, a task it said should begin when it finishes developing a new capability within its electronic system of record for imports to streamline the processing of refunds in the coming weeks.
Under the American Consumer Tariff Rebate Act, using current Internal Revenue Service (IRS) estimates, single filer taxpayers in Cuellar’s South Texas district could receive a $1,020 tariff rebate, while a head of household could see $1,530 and joint filing couples could see $2,040, for example. Taxpayers with gross adjusted income above $400,000 would be excluded from the payments, while families will receive a $125 payment for qualifying child.
Meanwhile, a proposal from seven Senate Democrats called the Tariff Refunds for Working Families Act, introduced by Senator Martin Heinrich (N.M.) and co-sponsored by Senators Ruben Gallego (Ariz.), Chris Van Hollen (Md.), Chris Coons (Del.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), Cory Booker and Andy Kim (N.J.), Tammy Duckworth (Ill.) and Jack Reed (R.I.) would create a tax rebate program for both individuals and families.
A statement from Sen. Heinrich’s office maintains that while the IEEPA tariffs are now defunct, the subsequently imposed Section 122 tariffs, as well as the recently announced Section 301 investigations into more than 60 countries will continue to raise prices on imported goods. Consumers will bear the brunt of those increases, and the bill aims to funnel revenue directly from the “illegal tariffs” imposed under IEEPA and perhaps other authorities into tariff refunds. Doing so “reaffirms that the power to tax and regulate commerce resides with Congress,” his office said.
“It is the policy of the United States to use revenue raised from unlawful tariffs applied on foreign imports, including unlawful tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, to provide relief for working people through immediate tax rebates,” the bill text reads.
“President Trump’s illegal tariffs have cost New Mexico families an average of $1,355. This is money that belongs to working families—not the CEOs of Walmart or Amazon or any other big corporation,” said Sen. Heinrich. “The President may call the affordability crisis a ‘hoax,’ but working people feel it every time they pay for groceries or everyday essentials. This bill will return the money lost to Trump’s tariffs back to the people who paid the price.”
Heinrich’s bill provides a framework for a “Working Families Refund” system. Under the legislation, individual tax filers making $90,000 or less and heads of household making $120,000 or less would receive a tax rebate worth $600. Joint filers making $180,000 or less collectively would receive $1,200, plus an additional rebate of $600 per each dependent child.
