The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) authorizes the President, upon declaring a national emergency in response to an 'unusual and extraordinary threat', to regulate importation.
November 04, 2025
high
legal
Statutory powers available to the executive branch during declared national emergencies.
The text of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not use the word 'tariff'.
November 04, 2025
high
legal
Textual characteristic of the IEEPA relevant to legal debates about whether its authorities include tariff imposition.
Litigants have asserted that, in the roughly 50 years since the International Emergency Economic Powers Act's enactment, U.S. presidents had not used IEEPA to impose tariffs.
December 28, 1977
medium
historical
Claim about historical usage of IEEPA in relation to tariff imposition.
Since its enactment in 1977, U.S. presidents have used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) dozens of times to impose economic sanctions on foreign actors.
January 01, 1977
high
legal
Historical usage pattern of IEEPA for imposing sanctions.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (1977) authorizes the U.S. president to declare national emergencies that can enable the imposition of certain economic measures.
January 01, 1977
high
temporal
Statutory basis for presidential authority to take economic actions during declared national emergencies.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act is a U.S. federal law that presidents can cite when declaring national emergencies to authorize economic measures such as sanctions or tariffs.
high
procedural
Describes the legal basis presidents may invoke to take economic actions during declared national emergencies.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act can be invoked by the U.S. president to exercise emergency economic authorities that have been used to impose tariffs on foreign goods.
high
temporal
Describes a statutory mechanism by which a U.S. president can assert emergency economic powers to regulate international commerce.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) provides a statutory mechanism that can be used by members of Congress to force votes challenging certain presidential emergency-related actions.
high
legal
IEEPA is a federal statute that governs presidential authority over economic measures in emergencies and can be the basis for congressional challenges to those actions.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) is a U.S. federal law that authorizes the President to regulate economic transactions and to impose economic measures, such as trade restrictions, during a declared national emergency.
high
legal
Statutory authority used by presidents to enact economic measures in national emergencies.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act is commonly abbreviated as IEEPA.
high
legal
Abbreviation for a U.S. federal statute often referenced in legal discussions about executive authority over economic measures.
The International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) contains language permitting the president to "regulate … nullify [and] void … importation" but does not expressly use the word "tariff".
high
statutory
Description of the IEEPA's operative language regarding importation regulation.
No president has historically used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose tariffs.
high
historical
Historical usage of IEEPA in relation to tariff imposition.