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Key Takeaways
- President Donald Trump said in a press conference this week that $2,000 tariff “dividend” rebate checks are still in the works.
- Trump also questioned whether Congress would need to approve the checks, which could cost the government between $300 billion and $600 billion.
- Experts said that it’s unlikely that the White House would be able to go around Congress, where some legislators say the tariff money should be spent on paying down debt.
Tariff rebate checks are still in the works for many Americans, and it may not be that difficult to get them approved, according to President Donald Trump.
Trump said Tuesday he may not need congressional approval for the proposed tariff “dividend” checks. For months, Trump has promised a $2,000 check to families that meet an unspecified income threshold, funded by tariffs. Experts argue that only Congress has the power to spend the revenue.
“We will be able to make a very substantial dividend to the people of our country,” Trump said in a press conference. “I believe we can do that without Congress.”
Why This is Important for You
Tariff rebate checks could temporarily boost consumer spending and cushion households from higher prices resulting from import taxes. It’s more likely that they’ll be distributed if Trump can authorize them without Congress. However, some economists fear that such payouts will cost more than the tariff revenue that’s being collected.
However, experts have doubted whether Trump is correct in his assessments of the tariff rebate check process.
“The president is wrong about who has the authority to spend tariff revenue (it is Congress, not him) and about how spending tariff revenue on rebate checks would affect the national debt (it would increase it),” Erica York, vice president at the Tax Foundation, wrote on X after Trump’s press conference.
White House Officials Point to Congressional Authorization
Others in the Trump administration have pointed to the need for Congress to act on the rebate checks, including National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett and Deputy White House Chief of Staff James Blair. Article I, Section 8, Clause 1 of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the authority to levy taxes and decide how the money collected is spent.
“The president cannot unilaterally cut checks to taxpayers,” wrote Cato Institution researchers Colin Grabow and Clark Packard in November. “Under the Constitution’s appropriations clause, only Congress can authorize such spending. That is why even the deputy White House chief of staff has conceded that congressional approval is likely necessary.”
The White House may be trying to circumvent Congress because some members are skeptical of the president’s proposal, arguing that the revenue from tariffs should be applied to the nation’s $38 trillion debt. Trump has acknowledged that tariff revenues should be used to reduce America’s debt, though he’s said that there will be enough money for a tariff “dividend” as well.
“We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT,” Trump wrote on Truth Social in November. “A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.”
And while Trump has said that tariffs are bringing in “trillions” to the U.S., some have said he is counting private investments as tariff revenue. U.S. Customs and Border Protection said tariffs brought in $216 billion in revenue in the 2025 fiscal year, which ended in September.
So far, tariffs have brought in just over $90 billion in the first three months of the 2026 fiscal year. Economists have forecasted that a tariff rebate check program could cost between $300 billion and $600 billion, depending on how the checks are distributed.
