Hawley Joins Trump in Proposing Tariff Rebates for Families

‘Americans deserve a tax rebate after four years of Biden policies,’ the Republican senator said.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) speaks during a confirmation hearing for nominee for Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Feb. 13, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) introduced legislation to send tariff rebate checks to U.S. families.

Last week, before departing for Scotland, President Donald Trump proposed issuing rebates to U.S. taxpayers from tariff income collected this year.

“We have so much money coming in, we’re thinking about a little rebate,” the president said on July 25.

Hawley is seeking to follow through on this idea.

The 14-page American Worker Rebate Act, introduced on July 28, would send tariff rebate checks of at least $600 per adult and dependent child. A family of four could receive up to $2,400.

The bill would allow for the tariff-funded benefits to be larger per person if tariff revenues exceed current projections.

In addition, the legislation would reduce the final amount by 5 percent for single filers with an adjusted gross income exceeding $75,000 or joint filers with an adjusted gross income of more than $150,000.

“Americans deserve a tax rebate after four years of Biden policies that have devastated families’ savings and livelihoods,” the senator said in a statement.

“Like President Trump proposed, my legislation would allow hard-working Americans to benefit from the wealth that Trump’s tariffs are returning to this country.”

Tariff Income and Inflation

Since the president implemented his global tariff plans, the United States has been collecting record tariff revenues.

According to the Daily Treasury Statement, the federal government has generated more than $150 billion in tariff revenue as of July 26 in the current fiscal year.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent projects tariff revenues will reach $300 billion by Dec. 31.

Tariffs are a tax imposed by foreign governments and paid by domestic businesses that import goods and services from abroad.

Economists warn that the president’s tariffs, which can have a lag effect, will ultimately be passed on to U.S. consumers.

So far, price pressures have been minimal, as importers stocked up before the levies took effect, and domestic and foreign businesses have absorbed at least some of the tariff-related costs.

But economic observers argue that someone will have to pay the bill eventually.

The Yale Budget Lab, which estimates the current tariff rate at about 18 percent, projects that higher import duties will cost the average household $2,400 this year.

A new analysis by Tax Foundation economists suggests that Trump’s blanket tariffs could lead to higher prices on a diverse array of food items.

Harvard Business School economists, writing in a July 28 paper, say that “the cumulative increase in imported goods prices since early March is approximately 3 percent.”

They write, however, that the jump “is still small” compared to the size of various tariff rate announcements, “particularly for Chinese goods.”

Earlier this month, White House economists published a report determining that prices of imported goods have declined so far this year.

Rebates could help offset potential price increases. Whether such increases would be one-time adjustments or persistent hikes remains the chief debate among market watchers.

Deborah Locker, an employee at Christian Family Thrift Store in Phoenix, Ariz., goes over prices on May 1, 2025. Allan Stein/The Epoch Times

For policymakers, it could be a balancing act, as tariff checks could rekindle inflationary forces, since direct transfer payments boost disposable income, leading to higher consumption levels and broader-based price increases.

“Tariffs increase prices and reduce output, but have an ambiguous effect on underlying inflation,” Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said on X.

“Tariffs with full rebates are unambiguously inflationary, but have an ambiguous effect on near-term output.”

In June, the annual inflation rate rose to 2.7 percent from 2.4 percent in the previous month. Wholesale inflation remained flat last month, while import prices edged up by 0.1 percent.

This week, inflation in the Federal Reserve’s preferred personal consumption expenditure (PCE) price index is expected to rise to 2.5 percent, according to the Cleveland Fed Inflation Nowcasting Model.