Trade Cases
Appeals Court Upholds Constitutionality of Section 232
Written by Tim Triplett
March 1, 2020
The American Institute for International Steel suffered another setback in its constitutional challenge of the Trump administration’s use of Section 232 tariffs to restrict steel and aluminum imports on the basis of national security.
In a ruling on Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals rejected the claim by AIIS that the “non-delegation doctrine” makes it unconstitutional for Congress to delegate its legislative powers to another federal agency in this manner. The case will likely be appealed to the Supreme Court, although AIIS has not yet responded to SMU’s request for comment. AIIS members include foreign steelmakers.
“Today the Court of Appeals rightly affirmed our strong belief, and the previous decision of the Court of International Trade, that the constitutional challenge to the Section 232 statute is without merit,” said Thomas J. Gibson, president and CEO of the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), which represents domestic steel mills. “This lawsuit by steel importers is a weak attempt to mask the fact that surging foreign imports have severely impacted the domestic steel industry and threaten our national and economic security. The Court today affirmed that Congress acted within its constitutional authority when it authorized the president to take action to adjust imports that threaten to impair our national security.”
AISI, in conjunction with the Steel Manufacturers Association (SMA), submitted an amicus curiae brief in the case in support of the constitutionality of the Section 232 statute.
See trade attorney Lewis Leibowitz’s comments on the case in Leibowitz on Trade: Two Interesting Cases, elsewhere in this issue.
Tim Triplett
Read more from Tim TriplettLatest in Trade Cases
Leibowitz: Renewed trade war with China over rare earths
On Oct.10, President Trump announced major increases in tariffs on Chinese goods. The trigger was a new regime of export controls on rare earth metals and products using those elements, including magnets, capital equipment, and catalysts for catalytic converters in cars and trucks.
Industry piles on new Section 232 steel derivative inclusion requests
The Department of Commerce received 97 submissions from producers, manufacturers, and groups seeking Section 232 tariff coverage for steel and aluminum derivative products.
Price on Trade: New EU steel tariffs don’t mean the US should weaken its stance
Any steel imports into the EU that exceed the new, lower quota level would be subject to a 50% tariff, which represents a major increase from the EU’s current 25% out-of-quota tariff. This move would largely align the EU’s steel tariff rate with Canada and the United States.
Global steel forum sets 2026 framework deadline as US ups pressure on excess capacity
Global steelmakers sounded the alarm Friday over the deepening excess steelmaking capacity crisis. Ministers at the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity (GFSEC) in Gqeberha, South Africa, pledged to...
CRU: China’s indirect steel exports find new destination markets
The boom in China’s direct steel exports has not stopped this year, even with a rise in protectionist measures globally. The increase is driven by...