ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Governor Wes Moore on Friday sent a letter to President Donald Trump demanding the administration reimburse Marylanders an estimated $4 billion in direct and indirect costs related to tariffs that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled illegal last week.
Comptroller Brooke Lierman and State Treasurer Dereck Davis also signed the letter.
"[I]t is our duty to safeguard the fiscal interests of this state and to ensure that when unlawful government action causes economic harm to Marylanders, we pursue every available avenue of accountability and restitution," they write.
Maryland leaders demand Pres. Trump reimburse the state for illegal tariffs
During a news conference last week following the Supreme Court ruling, President Trump said that refunds for businesses would likely be in court for years.
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"[W]e formally request that your Administration take immediate steps to refund to the State of Maryland the tariff revenues unlawfully collected from Maryland businesses and consumers," the letter says. "If the federal government collected funds under an unconstitutional policy, it has a legal and moral obligation to return those funds to the people from whom they were taken."
You can read the full letter here:
2.27.26 Maryland Tariff Reimbursement Request Signed Final by Amanda Engel
For one Catonsville small business owner, the tariffs hit close to home. Lisa Swayhoover owns Better World Imaginarium, a learning-focused toy store on Frederick Road. She says not many toys are manufactured domestically, and when tariffs took effect, her costs climbed quickly.
"Some of the toys that I purchased for the holiday season, the price went up by 20% - anywhere from 10, 15, 20% - on top of what I was already paying as a wholesale price," Swayhoover said.
Around the end of last year, Swayhoover says the tariffs and a government shutdown felt like a one-two punch for Catonsville and Baltimore County, where many federal workers call home.
An In Focus look at the dollar amounts of President Trump's tariffs
"They were less likely to spend, so that meant that for placing reorders, I had less buying power, less cash flow, and ultimately that meant that my shelves were a little bit emptier going into the holiday season," Swayhoover said.
Learning Resources, one of the toy companies Swayhoover orders from, was a plaintiff in last week's Supreme Court case. When the ruling came down, Swayhoover was so thrilled she placed a new order, and boxes from the company arrived Thursday.
"I'm happy that it was a toy company that is saving the world from tariffs, but I also think it is an incredibly good thing for business to actually put some checks and balances in," Swayhoover said.
