Legislation Would Require Congressional Approval of New Tariffs
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee, joined fellow Finance Committee members U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), and U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Ark.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), to introduce legislation to reaffirm Congress’ key role in setting and approving U.S. trade policy. The Trade Review Act of 2025, modeled after the War Powers Resolution of 1973, would reestablish limits on the President’s ability to impose unilateral tariffs without Congress’ approval.
“President Trump’s global trade war, including against some of our closest allies like Canada and Japan, is already sowing chaos and uncertainty – and working Americans are paying the price,” said Bennet. “This legislation will restore Congress’ authority over trade policy, as dictated by the Constitution, to protect the American people from shortsighted and harmful tariffs like these.”
“Trade wars can be devastating, which is why the Founding Fathers gave Congress the clear Constitutional authority over war and trade. This bill reasserts Congress’s role over trade policy to ensure rules-based trade policies are transparent, consistent, and benefit the American public. Arbitrary tariffs, particularly on our allies, damage U.S. export opportunities and raise prices for American consumers and businesses,” said Cantwell. “As representatives of the American people, Congress has a duty to stop actions that will cause them harm.”
“For too long, Congress has delegated its clear authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce to the executive branch. Building on my previous efforts as Finance Committee Chairman, I’m joining Senator Cantwell to introduce the bipartisan Trade Review Act of 2025 to reassert Congress’ constitutional role and ensure Congress has a voice in trade policy,” said Grassley.
The bill would restore congressional authority over tariffs as outlined in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution by placing the following limits on the president’s power to impose tariffs:
- To enact a new tariff, the president must notify Congress of the imposition of (or increase in) the tariff within 48 hours. The congressional notification must include an explanation of the president’s reasoning for imposing or raising the tariff, and provide analysis of potential impact on American businesses and consumers;
- Within 60 days, Congress must pass a joint resolution of approval on the new tariff, otherwise all new tariffs on imports expire after that deadline;
- Congress has the ability to end tariffs at any time by passing a resolution of disapproval; and
- Anti-dumping and countervailing duties are excluded.
Last month, Bennet introduced legislation that would require the independent, bipartisan U.S. International Trade Commission to issue a report on the economic effects of recent and proposed tariffs. Bennet and U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued statements in both March and February warning against President Trump’s Canada and Mexico tariffs, which are a tax on American consumers and undermine crucial relationships with our neighbors and closest allies. In January, Bennet urged the then-incoming Trump administration to pursue an international economic policy that goes beyond broad-based tariffs to include additional policies, such as the CHIPS and Science Act and his and U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy’s (R-La.) Americas Act – to drive broad-based American growth, increase domestic and regional capacity, and protect U.S. national and economic security.
The text of the bill is available HERE.