Billions of dollars are flowing back to corporations from the dismantled "reciprocal" tariff scheme, yet the Americans who actually absorbed those costs are seeing none of it. That disconnect is now fueling a political fight over who rightfully owns the money — the importers who paid it or the shoppers who financed it through higher prices. Main Developments Customs and Border Protection has now returned roughly $100 billion to importers, according to a Tuesday filing in the United States Court of International Trade. That figure represents about 60 percent of the $166 billion the agency is expected to refund from global duties levied under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Brandon Lord, executive director of the Trade Programs Directorate at CBP, filed the update showing the agency's CAPE system has processed 252,496 refund declarations covering more than 25 million import entries as of July 31. Of the $128.68 billion in potential and certified refunds accepted for processing, $100 billion has been completed and sent to the Treasury for disbursement. Read also: 3 Key Moves Behind Wells Fargo's New Beauty & Wellness Hire Large corporations have been the primary beneficiaries. Nike has reportedly received about $300 million and expects $1 billion by year's end, while Amazon collected $600 million in paybacks. Consumers, however, have seen no direct compensation for the price increases they absorbed when those duties were passed along. Background The refunds trace back to the Supreme Court's late February ruling that declared the IEEPA-based tariffs illegal. The court's decision invalidated the expansive global duties that took effect in April 2025, prompting CBP to launch its Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries system in May to handle refund requests. Estimates of what American households paid vary widely. The Tax Foundation calculates the average household shelled out around $1,000, while the Yale Budget Lab and the Joint Economic Committee place the figure between $1,745 and $2,000. Together, U.S. shoppers and businesses absorbed 90 percent of the tariff cost burden. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has been pressing the issue since February, when he sent the federal government an invoice for $8,679,261,600 following the Supreme Court decision. In a Thursday open letter to President Donald Trump, Pritzker noted the invoice remains unpaid 165 days later and demanded the Treasury establish a mechanism for direct household payments. Why It Matters The core dispute centers on whether refunds belong to the importers of record or the consumers who ultimately financed the tariffs through elevated retail prices. While companies cash out billions, shoppers who paid more for everyday goods receive nothing, creating a perceived windfall for corporations at public expense. Pritzker's letter also urges support for the Tariff Relief for Consumers Act, introduced in March by Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.). That legislation would compel companies receiving more than $5 million in refunds to pass along equal financial relief to shoppers on essential items through rebates and discounts. What's Next The administration's latest attempt to reimpose duties under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 faces immediate legal opposition. Several small businesses and 25 states have already sued the federal government over those duties, arguing they were unlawfully applied. Pritzker's third demand to the president was blunt: stop seeking new legal justifications to reimpose the same taxes. Whether Congress takes up the consumer rebate legislation or the courts block the Section 301 effort, the fight over who keeps the tariff money is far from settled.