With the U.S. Supreme Court expected to decide on the legality of reciprocal tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Reuters that the government has more than enough funds to cover any tariff refunds in case of an unfavorable ruling.
His remarks came after the court held off a widely anticipated ruling on Trump’s tariffs on Friday in a case closely followed by Costco (COST) and other major companies, which are also involved in the legal fight seeking to benefit from potential refunds.
“It won’t be a problem if we have to do it, but I can tell you that if it happens, which I don’t think it’s going to—it’s just a corporate boondoggle,” Bessent said during an interview with Reuters on Friday.
With nearly $774B of cash on hand as of Thursday, the Treasury can easily cover any refunds, which, according to data from the Customs and Border Protection Agency, could approach $150B based on duties tied to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The case challenges Trump’s decision to use IEEPA to impose tariffs on nearly all trading partners of the U.S. in April
However, Bessent said that in his opinion, the longer the ruling gets delayed, the more likely it is that the court will rule in favor of the government.
“We’re not talking about the money all goes out in a day. Probably over weeks, months, may take over a year, right?” he added.
“Costco, who’s suing the U.S. government, are they going to give the money back to their clients?” he argued, noting that companies mostly were not passing tariffs to consumers. There was “very, very little, if any, pass-through,” he said.
According to a Bloomberg analysis, other publicly traded firms suing the Trump administration over tariffs include BorgWarner (BWA), Standex International (SXI), Teladoc Health (TDOC), Moog (MOG.A) (MOG.B), Astronics (ATRO), G-III Apparel Group (GII), Lifetime Brands (LCUT), Plexus (PLXS), Goodyear (GT), Weyco Group (WEYS) and EssilorLuxottica (ESLOF) (ESLOY).
Dole (DOLE) and e.l.f. Cosmetics (ELF) were among the latest to file lawsuits against tariffs this year. Subsidiaries of large corporations, such as Alcoa (AA), Yokohama Rubber (YORUF) (YORUY), Kawasaki Heavy Industries (KWHIY) (KWHIF) have also joined the legal battle.