Trump administration pays out milestone $100 billion in tariff refunds
The Trump administration paid out a milestone $100 billion in tariff refunds through the end of July, according to a new court filing.
That's more than half of the $166 billion owed to thousands of American businesses who paid the tariffs that were struck down by the Supreme Court.
Several companies from Amazon to small businesses are now reporting that the payments from the federal government have landed in their accounts. What businesses are doing with the money varies -- some are reinvesting it while others are pledging to lower prices in the future.
But most consumers -- who paid higher prices from the tariffs -- aren't seeing that money go back into their pockets.
The nonpartisan Tax Foundation estimated the tariffs that were struck down --known as IEEPA tariffs -- cost the typical American household $700 last year. The cost of all the tariffs combined, including those not ruled illegal, was $1,000 per household.
Amazon revealed last week it received a $600 million refund. The company said it absorbed most of the costs from the tariffs. But in the "limited" instances where customers paid higher prices, Amazon planned to "proactively contact" those shoppers and "automatically issue refunds to them."
Apple, meanwhile, reported it received a $2.2 billion refund. CEO Tim Cook had pledged to "reinvest" the money into U.S. innovation and manufacturing.
Pepsi's CEO said its tariff refunds are "very handy" in helping to offset higher oil and gas prices.
Walmart suggested in May it will cut prices for shoppers using the estimated $2.4 billion in refunds it's owed. Costco made a similar pledge.
"We've heard from a few retailers that have been using these refunds as a means to fund investments back into price and be a little bit more competitive," said UBS retail analyst Michael Lasser on a call with ABC News.
For some small businesses, the refunds are not enough to offset losses from the tariffs. Beth Benike, the founder and CEO of Busy Baby, told ABC News she finally received her $50,000 refund after months of glitches and delays. Benike said she was forced to cut staff and use her retirement savings to keep the business afloat.
"This money matters enormously for our cash flow right now, but it doesn't come close to recovering what the tariffs actually cost us," Benike said. "A refund isn't the same as being made whole."
