Mr. Andrew R. Jassy, Amazon.com, Inc. — Tariff Refunds (March 12, 2026)
- Issuer
- Congressional materials
- Document type
- 2026 03 12 Markey Calls To White House Ranking Member Markey Calls On Big Businesses To Pa
- Date
- 2026-03-12
Summary
A set of letters dated March 12, 2026 from Edward J. Markey, Ranking Member of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, to the chief executives of large companies about refunds of tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). It opens with letters to Amazon.com, Inc., Costco Wholesale Corporation and DHL Supply Chain North America, which share the same text. Each letter states that on March 4, 2026 the U.S. Court of International Trade ordered refunds for importers, cites estimates that $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, and urges the company to pass refunds on to consumers and small businesses. Each asks the company to answer nine written questions by April 15, 2026, including how much it paid in IEEPA tariffs and whether it intends to refund customers.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Cite this document
“Mr. Andrew R. Jassy, Amazon.com, Inc. — Tariff Refunds (March 12, 2026).”
Dated 2026-03-12. Archived at Pandemic Darlings, https://pandemicdarlings.com/source-documents/2026-03-12-markey-calls-to-white-house-ranking-member-markey-calls-on-big-businesses-to-pay-ba/
, SHA-256 62cec5c5b17b0a99352f1848b5d20c1b52c6b6729ad6275d70bef0008b6a8502.Full text
March 12, 2026
Mr. Andrew R. Jassy
President and Chief Executive Officer,
Amazon.com, Inc.
410 Terry Avenue North
Seattle, Washington 98109-5210
Dear Mr. Jassy,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies have already pledged to issue refunds
to those who initially bore those charges. I urge you to do the same.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
Page 2
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Federal Express
(FedEx), for example, has stated that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to
shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”10 Other large businesses have
promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who paid them
rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”11 I ask that your company does
this as well to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
11
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
Page 3
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
March 12, 2026
Mr. Ron Vachris
CEO, Costco Wholesale Corporation
999 Lake Drive
Issaquah, Washington 98027
Dear Mr. Vachris,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies have already pledged to issue refunds
to those who initially bore those charges. I urge you to do the same.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
Page 2
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Federal Express
(FedEx), for example, has stated that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to
shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”10 Other large businesses have
promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who paid them
rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”11 I ask that your company does
this as well to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
11
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
Page 3
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
March 12, 2026
Dr. Tobias Meyer
Chief Executive Officer, Global Business
Services
c/o Mr. Mark Kunar, CEO, DHL Supply Chain
North America
570 Polaris Parkway
Westerville, Ohio, 43082
Dear Dr. Meyer and Mr. Kunar,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies have already pledged to issue refunds
to those who initially bore those charges. I urge you to do the same.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
Page 2
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Federal Express
(FedEx), for example, has stated that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to
shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”10 Other large businesses have
promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who paid them
rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”11 I ask that your company does
this as well to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
11
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
Page 3
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
March 12, 2026
Mr. Rajesh Subramaniam
President and Chief Executive Officer
FedEx Corporation
942 South Shady Grove Road
Memphis, Tennessee 38120
Dear Mr. Subramaniam,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies, including yours, have already
pledged to issue refunds to those who initially bore those charges. I know that America’s
consumers deeply appreciate this pledge, as do I. I ask that FedEx follows through on this
promise, and ask you to provide me with updates on how you intend to issue refunds.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
Page 2
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Other large
businesses have promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who
paid them rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”10
I was encouraged by FedEx’s pledge that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue
refunds to shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”11 I ask that your company
follow through on this promise to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
11
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
Page 3
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
March 12, 2026
Ms. Carol B. Tomé
Chief Executive, United Parcel Service
55 Glenlake Parkway NE
Atlanta, Georgia 30328
Dear Ms. Tomé,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies have already pledged to issue refunds
to those who initially bore those charges. I urge you to do the same.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
Page 2
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Federal Express
(FedEx), for example, has stated that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to
shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”10 Other large businesses have
promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who paid them
rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”11 I ask that your company does
this as well to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
11
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
Page 3
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
March 12, 2026
Mr. John Furner
Chief Executive Officer, Walmart, Inc.
702 S.W. 8th Street
Bentonville, AR 72716
Dear Mr. Furner,
On March 4, 2026, following the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Learning Resources,
Inc. v. Trump,1 the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ordered refunds for all importers on
which the Trump administration illegally levied tariffs under the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). Although the timing of and method for processing refunds is still
uncertain, there is no doubt that your company is due a refund. However, U.S. consumers and
small businesses, who actually paid out of pocket to cover these tariffs, are ultimately entitled to
receive the refunds, with interest. Several large companies have already pledged to issue refunds
to those who initially bore those charges. I urge you to do the same.
According to estimates, U.S. consumers and business paid up to 90% of the cost of
Trump’s tariffs,2 and $182 billion in tariff refunds may be owed, with hundreds of millions of
dollars more to be paid in interest.3 In court filings in the tariff litigation, the Trump
administration represented that it would expeditiously process refunds if it lost the tariff case.4
But the Administration has since changed its tune, suggesting that the refund question now “has
to get litigated” for as long as “the next two years.”5 The CIT does not appear to be buying this
1
607 U.S. ___ (2026).
2
Megan Cerullo, Consumers and businesses paid nearly 90% of Trump tariffs in 2025, new analysis found, CBS
News (Feb. 18, 2026), https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-tariffs-consumers-business-nearly-90-percent-new-
york-federal-reserve/.
3
See David Lawder, Trump Tariff Refunds May Total up to $182 Billion, Estimates Find, Reuters (Mar. 5, 2026),
https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/trumps-tariff-refunds-may-total-up-182-billion-estimates-find-2026-03-
05/.
4
Reply brief for Appellants at 30, 33, V.O.S. Selections, Inc. et al. v. Trump, Nos. 2025-1812, -1813, U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Federal Circuit (July 18, 2025),
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105/gov.uscourts.cafc.23105.147.0.pdf.
5
Megan Messerly and Daniel Desrochers, Trump’s next tariff fight: Keeping the money, Politico (February 26,
2026), https://www.politico.com/news/2026/02/26/trumps-next-tariff-fight-keeping-the-money-00799774.
Page 2
flawed argument. In its most recent rulings, the CIT required the Trump administration to report
by March 12, 2026 on its tariff refund plan.
According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), its Automated Commercial
Environment (ACE) system, the centralized digital system for processing imports and exports,
could be used to consolidate refunds and interest payments.6 CBP reports that this approach
would require minimal work for importers and could save 4 million hours compared with manual
processes.7 But CBP claims this process would take 45 days to implement.8 Had CBP been ready
to issue refunds immediately following the Supreme Court’s decision, as I had requested in
August 2025,9 those entitled to them would already be receiving them and the government would
have saved nearly $1 billion in interest payments.
Instead, in the absence of a government plan to issue refunds, several large companies
have pledged to do their part to make consumers and small business whole. Federal Express
(FedEx), for example, has stated that “[i]f refunds are issued to FedEx, we will issue refunds to
shippers and consumers who originally bore those charges.”10 Other large businesses have
promised to return tariff refunds, or to issue automatic refunds to customers who paid them
rather than “waiting around for a rebate that may never come.”11 I ask that your company does
this as well to help ease America’s affordability crisis.
To help me and the public better understand whether and how your company will refund
tariff payments to U.S. consumers and small business, please respond to the following questions
in writing by April 15, 2026:
1. How much did your company pay in tariffs imposed under IEEPA?
2. Does your company maintain records linking tariff payments to specific
customers, shipments, or tracking numbers?
6
Dan Mangan, Trump Tariffs: Customs and Border Protection tells judge it can’t comply with refund order, CNBC
(Mar. 6, 2026), https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/trump-trade-tariffs-refunds-customs-border-protection.html.
7
Id.
8
Doug Palmer, CBP tells judge it needs 45 days to start tariff refunds, Politico (Mar. 6, 2026),
https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/06/cbp-tells-judge-it-needs-45-days-time-to-start-tariff-refunds-
00816862?experience_id=EXYF89KVT5UQ&template_id=OTJIR2CRKUD6&variant_id=OTV632IE7RALS&is_l
ogin_link=true.
9
Press Release, U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Ranking Member Markey Calls
on Trump Administration to Prepare Tariff Refund Plan for Small Businesses (Aug. 21, 2025),
https://www.sbc.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2025/8/ranking-member-markey-calls-on-trump-administration-to-
prepare-tariff-refund-plan-for-small-businesses.
10
Peter Eavis, Consumers Paid Tariffs on Overseas Items. Now They Want a Refund, N.Y. Times (Mar. 9, 2026),
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/09/business/tariff-refunds-consumers.html.
11
Jason Lalljee, The companies pledging tariff refunds to customers and how to get them. Axios (Feb. 28, 2026),
https://www.axios.com/2026/02/28/trump-tariffs-refund-fedex-supreme-court.
Page 3
3. Did your company negotiate with countries of origin or suppliers to share the
costs of tariffs imposed on imports? If so, please summarize any agreements and provide
copies of any written agreements.
4. What percentage of the IEEPA tariffs paid by your company do you estimate was
passed on to customers, including through higher prices? For bulk sales, are tariffs listed
as a separate line item on invoices?
5. Of the IEEPA tariff payments your company advanced to CBP, what percentage
was bundled into service charges or landed-cost fees rather than billed directly to
customers?
6. If your company receives a refund of IEEPA tariff payments, do you intend to
refund the corresponding amounts to your customers? If not, please explain why.
7. If your company plans to compensate customers for refunded tariff payments,
how will you do so? Please describe the process you will use to issue refunds, including
expected timelines, and provide copies of any communications sent or planned to notify
customers of this process.
8. How will your company notify customers who may be eligible for tariff-related
refunds?
9. If your company does not intend to provide direct refunds to customers, do you
plan to lower prices or provide other compensation? If not, please explain why.
The tariffs that the Trump administration imposed under IEEPA, which the Supreme
Court struck down, sowed chaos in our economy and hurt consumers and small business. They
are now entitled to refunds of the money they paid under the unlawful Trump tariff scheme. I
write on their behalf to urge your assistance in helping to expeditiously right this wrong.
Sincerely,
__________________________
Edward J. Markey
Ranking Member, Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship
File and source
- File
- 2026-03-12_markey-calls-to-white-house_ranking-member-markey-calls-on-big-businesses-to-pay-ba.pdf
- Size
- 471,568 bytes
- SHA-256
- 62cec5c5b17b0a99352f1848b5d20c1b52c6b6729ad6275d70bef0008b6a8502
- Our copy
- 2026-03-12_markey-calls-to-white-house_ranking-member-markey-calls-on-big-businesses-to-pay-ba.pdf
- Original
- No public link identified.