Money & budgets
tariff
A tax on imported goods, paid to the government by the importer. It raises revenue and shields domestic producers, and it raises prices for buyers.
In full
The Constitution gives Congress the power to lay duties, and for most of the nineteenth century tariffs were the federal government's main revenue source. Congress has delegated substantial tariff authority to the President by statute, which is how modern tariffs are usually imposed. Economists generally find that most of the cost is passed through to domestic purchasers.
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A plain-language explanation for civic education, not legal advice. When in doubt, the official source named above controls.