Senator Ron Wyden is once again drawing a line in the sand over presidential tariff powers. The Oregon Democrat, who serves as Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, has introduced legislation aimed at reining in President Trump’s ability to impose sweeping tariffs without meaningful congressional oversight.
The legislative pushback
Back in October 2025, he supported a bipartisan Senate resolution aimed at repealing Trump’s global tariffs entirely.
Then came February 2026. After the Supreme Court invalidated certain Trump tariffs in a 6-3 decision, Wyden introduced the Tariff Refund Act of 2026 (S. 3905). The bill would require refunds of tariffs deemed illegal by the court, with a 180-day window for compliance.
The most recent flashpoint arrived on July 14, 2026, when Wyden teamed up with House Ways and Means Ranking Member Richard Neal to publicly condemn provisions within the Sanctioning Russia Act. Their concern was not the sanctions themselves but rather what Wyden called a “Trojan horse,” provisions that would grant the president enhanced unilateral authority to impose tariffs as high as 100% on major trading partners, including US allies.
