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• Major U.S. companies are seeking billions in refunds for tariffs that the Supreme Court struck down.
• It remains uncertain if customers will receive reimbursements, though some companies like UPS, FedEx, and Walmart have announced plans to pass on savings.
• A USA TODAY analysis found at least 90 publicly traded companies plan to seek refunds, with some having a significant presence in Tennessee.

Some of the United States’ largest companies are seeking billions in tariff refunds from the government, but whether customers will see any reimbursements remains unknown.

A USA TODAY analysis of over 630 Securities and Exchange Commission filings found that at least 90 publicly traded companies plan to seek refunds, highlighting their efforts to reclaim billions of dollars following the U.S. Supreme Court striking down the tariffs imposed by the administration of President Donald Trump under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA. Other tariffs remain in place.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection has begun processing refund claims for the $166 billion that may be at stake. Among the largest, Ford is seeing a $1.3 billion refund; General Motors, $500 million; and UPS, $500 million, according to their filings.

Of the three, only UPS announced plans to refund customers. “UPS will disburse refunds 60-90 days after we receive the funds from CBP,” the company said on its website. 

Here is how much Tennessee companies are seeking in reimbursements.

How much could TN companies get back from Trump tariffs?

USA TODAY compiled the government filings from 92 firms that mention tariffs collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Of those 92 companies, over two dozen have a noteworthy business presence in Tennessee.

In total, Tennessee companies requested $3.014 billion from the government.

Here is how much the companies with headquarters or significant manufacturing facilities in Tennessee are requesting in refunds from the government:

• Canadian Solar Inc.: $93 million
• Capri Holdings LTD: $65 million
• Cardinal Health: $200 million
• Columbia Sportswear: $80 million
• Deere & Co.: $272 million
• Eastman Chemical Co.: $22 million
• FedEx: amount sought not specified
• Flowserve Corp.: $35.4 million
• Fluence Energy Inc.: $57 million
• General Motors Co.: $500 million
• Integra LifeSciences Holdings: $18.7 million
• Magna International Inc.: $160 million
• Mantiwoc Company: $25 million
• Newell Brands Inc.: $120 million
• Osh Kosh Corp.: $19.7 million
• Procter & Gamble: $200 million
• TJX Companies Inc.: $490 million
• Tootsie Roll Industries Inc.: $1.3 million
• UFP Industries Inc.: $20 million
• Under Armour Inc.: $70 million
• Walmart: amount sought not specified
• West Fraser Timber: $3 million
• Whirlpool: $50 million
• Williams Sonoma Inc.: $197.8 million
• Yeti Holdings Inc.: $66.5 million
• Zebra Technologies Inc.: $75 million
• Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc.: $77 million

Are some companies passing on tariff refunds to customers?

Of the $166 billion on the table, U.S. consumers are unlikely to see much of it end up in their pockets. Earlier, Trump had even floated the idea that the revenue from these tariffs could be used to send $2,000 checks to Americans, but those plans never materialized. 

Cardinal Health, a major medical supply distributor, incurred roughly $200 million in tariffs and passed some of those costs on to its customers. The company plans to refund customers for any portion of tariffs incurred as a result of price increases during that period.

However, given that its customers include businesses, hospitals, and pharmacies, it’s uncertain whether these savings will reach end consumers.

FedEx is also expecting to recover, but did not specify by how much in its filings. Like UPS, the company does plan to pass money on to customers. 

SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. — Dennis and LaNelle Fawver don’t wave a fabric flag. They build them by hand out of wood.

Six years ago, the couple made their very first wooden American flag — not to sell, but to give to Dennis’s younger brother, who had just been diagnosed with stage four cancer.

“So, we were in the middle of making our very first one when we got a call that my younger brother had stage four cancer and he was about to pass,” Dennis Fawver said.

They finished that flag, put his name on it and a cancer awareness ribbon and took it back to him for a surprise.

“As soon as we gave it to him, you know, he just smiled and got bright and seemed happy,” Dennis Fawver said.

His brother, Randy Behrends, later passed away. But that moment of joy sparked a business, and Dennis says it still drives every flag he makes.

“It just shows patriotic. I mean, just red, white, and blue,” Dennis Fawver said.

The Fawvers make flags for every branch of the military, law enforcement, medical workers, corrections officers and even fully custom flags with names and sayings.

For LaNelle, a former nurse, the reward is different — it’s the moment someone unwraps one.

“I just like seeing people’s faces when they get them. We make a lot of birthday presents, a lot of anniversaries, Father’s Day presents. That’s a biggie for us. And to see the dads and the reactions on their faces when they see it, that’s the best part. I enjoy making them happy when they see. They get something that means something to them,” LaNelle Fawver said.

That joy — the same joy his brother showed — is what keeps Dennis going.

“So that kind of inspired us like, well, if he liked it that much, you know, and other people commented. So we just started making them and would give them away to friends and family,” Dennis Fawver said.

The Fawvers sell their wooden flags at the Great Smoky Mountains Flea Market and online.