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Our only agenda is to publish the truth so you can be an informed participant in democracy. We need your help. More Info ### I would like to contribute One Time Monthly Yearly Join Now ![](\\" ![](\\" Donald Trump stated on July 12, 2019 in an interview: U.S. farmers are receiving $16 billion \"out of the tariffs that we’ve gotten from China.\" ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") * China * Trade * Wisconsin * Donald Trump ![\\"China\\'s](\\" China\'s President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands on Nov. 9, 2017, during a meeting in Beijing. The two are now at the center of a trade war with tariffs imposed on both sides. (Artyom Ivanov/Tass/Abaca Press/TNS) ![\\"Eric](\\" mug_small/f8ec7291d825b9e6d54a4e23eef2704c.jpg\\"/) By Eric Litke August 2, 2019 # No, China is not paying U.S. farmers $16B through tariffs With farmers across the nation whipsawed by falling commodity prices and rising tariffs, the industry needed some good news. President Donald Trump’s administration announced in May that help was on the way for some in the form of a $16 billion farm aid package. Farmers in particular have suffered from retaliatory tariffs amid an ongoing trade war with China. Trump imposed additional import taxes on Chinese goods in 2018, then raised many tariffs again — from 10% to 25% — in May 2019 after trade talks broke down. He unexpectedly announced another round of tariffs Aug. 1, 2019. Along the way, China has responded by raising tariffs as well. But it was the President’s repeated description of funding for that bailout that caught our eye. \"We are doing great with farmers now in a lot of ways. One way is we’re giving $16 billion out of all the tariffs we’re collecting,\" Trump told WTMJ- TV’s Charles Benson in a July 12, 2019, interview in Wisconsin. \"Sixteen billion dollars all comes out of the tariffs that we’ve gotten from China.\" Trump also referenced tariff payments \"from China\" when he announced the farm aid plan in May and many times since, including a July 30, 2019, news conference where he referred to \"taking in billions and billions of dollars from China in the form of tariffs.\" Is that really how tariffs work? Tariffs 101 The short answer is no. Here’s a description from the Urban Institute-Brookings Institution Tax Policy Center, an independent group that models the effects of tax legislation. A tariff is a tax on imported goods. Despite what the President says, it is almost always paid directly by the importer (usually a domestic firm), and never by the exporting country. Thus, if the US imposes a tariff on Chinese televisions, the duty is paid to the US Customs and Border Protection Service at the border by a US broker representing a US importer, say, Costco. The Chinese government pays nothing, just as the US government pays no tax to Canada for that nation’s tariffs on imported dairy products. Rather, an importer or supplier for a Canadian supermarket pays the duty on Wisconsin cheese that lands in the grocer’s dairy counter. That explanation, written in September 2018, noted that Trump has a \"troubling lack of understanding about how the levies work.\" The International Monetary Fund reported in May that this is indeed what happened, saying tariffs imposed on China have \"been borne almost entirely by U.S. importers.\" #### Featured Fact-check ![](\\" ![](\\" Dave McCormick stated on August 25, 2024 in a TV ad Sen. Bob Casey “voted to sell American oil to China.” ![\\"true\\"](\\" false/33efdb6633e5e2fdc2d4e2f63383a1e0.jpg.\\") ![\\"false\\"](\\" false.jpg\\") By Caleb McCullough • August 28, 2024 Those businesses, of course, often pass costs on to consumers. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York estimated in May that the round of tariffs imposed then on U.S. imports from China would cost the typical household $831 per year. So China is not paying the tariffs. Then who’s paying for the farm aid? Farm aid payments on the way The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced details of the bailout July 25, 2019, saying the first of three payments will likely be made by August. The money is doled out for each county at a per-acre rate based on \"the impact of unjustified trade retaliation in that county,\" ranging from $15 to $150 per acre. Aid is available to farmers who planted any of 27 non-specialty crops (including soybeans, corn, alfalfa hay, barley and wheat), as well as dairy and hog farmers and producers of certain fruit- and nut-bearing plants. Aid per farmer is capped at $500,000. In addition to China, farmers can receive funding if they were harmed by U.S. trade conflicts with the European Union and Turkey. This program is modeled after one implemented last year that distributed about $12 billion in aid to farmers. The Associated Press reported the latest aid package includes $14.5 billion in direct aid in the aforementioned categories, and $1.4 billion to purchase surplus food from farmers and distribute them to schools and food banks. That $16 billion is paid out through the Commodity Credit Corporation, a government institution supervised by USDA that can borrow up to $30 billion annually from the U.S. Treasury and distribute it to farmers without specific Congressional approval. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue told the AP that China is \"indirectly\" paying for the aid, but he acknowledged tariffs are sent to the Treasury Department without being earmarked for any specific purpose. Our ruling Trump said $16 billion in farm aid is being funded \"out of the tariffs that we’ve gotten from China.\" Tariffs are paid into the U.S. Treasury, and the Treasury funds the farm aid. But there is no specific earmark or conduit connecting the two. More significantly, Trump’s claim simply does not reflect how tariffs work. The tariffs imposed by Trump have been paid almost entirely by U.S. importers, who pass much of that on to consumers through price increases. We rate Trump’s claim False. #### Read About Our Process The Principles of the Truth-O-Meter ### Our Sources YouTube.com, Today’s TMJ4, Exclusive: Charles Benson chats one-on-one with President Trump, July 12, 2019 U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA Announces Details of Support Package for Farmers, July 25, 2019 Associated Press, Trade impasse: Trump pledges $16B to farmers; markets slump, May 23, 2019 Email exchange with Dirk Fillpot, spokesman for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, July 31-Aug. 1, 2019 Tax Policy Center, Howard Gleckman, What Is A Tariff And Who Pays It?, Sept. 25, 2018 International Monetary Fund, The Impact of US-China Trade Tensions, May 23, 2019 Federal Reserve Bank of New York, New China Tariffs Increase Costs to U.S. Households, May 23, 2019 ## Browse the Truth-O-Meter ### More by Eric Litke ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Born stated on March 21, 2021 in a TV appearance: “Private insurance gives … better coverage” than people would get under a Medicaid expansion. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • April 21, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Janet Bewley stated on March 28, 2021 in TV interview: Says Republican lawmakers delayed COVID-19 testing ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Tony Evers stated on March 30, 2021 in Twitter: “It took the Legislature nearly 300 days to act on a (COVID-19) bill during this pandemic.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • April 2, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Shelley Grogan stated on March 29, 2021 in a radio ad: Judge Jeff Davis \"spent years defending a convicted cop killer\" and \"tried to get him off the hook.\" ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 30, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" James Edming stated on March 23, 2021 in a speech: “You can’t tell me they can (develop a safe vaccine) in eight to 10 months. 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It takes more time than that.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 26, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on March 20, 2021 in a speech: “There was no violence on the Senate side, in terms of the chamber.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 23, 2021 ![](\\" sen-stroebel/626cbc5b71c026c4147c955b46d1e90a.jpg\\") ![](\\" sen-stroebel/43141e5e308588b580466ad546acd45c.jpg\\") Duey Stroebel stated on March 7, 2021 in a TV interview: \"We’ve had more voter turnout since voter ID was passed than ever before.\" ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 19, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on March 10, 2021 in a Facebook post: Diesel prices jumped from $1.69 to $3.19 since Biden took office, and the president is to blame. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 17, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on March 4, 2021 in in various forums: On passing high-dollar legislation with no time to read it. ![\\"full-flop\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"full-flop\\"](\\" flop.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 11, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Gordon Hintz stated on February 23, 2021 in a speech: Republicans are “trying to create a fake unemployment insurance crisis.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • March 4, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Scott Fitzgerald stated on February 27, 2021 in a press release: “More than 91% of the spending in this $1.9 trillion package is not used for pandemic relief.” ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"barely-true\\"](\\" barely-true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • March 1, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Sarah Godlewski stated on February 6, 2021 in a tweet: “On average, 17% of a family’s income goes towards child care in Wisconsin.” ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"half-true\\"](\\" true.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 23, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Mark Pocan stated on February 12, 2021 in a tweet: Ron Johnson didn’t “show up” for a day of impeachment hearings. ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 16, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Ron Johnson stated on February 15, 2021 in a radio interview: Says Jan. 6 Capitol riot “didn’t seem like an armed insurrection.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Eric Litke • February 15, 2021 ![](\\" ![](\\" Dan O\'Donnell stated on February 3, 2021 in in a commentary: November election data shows a “stunning anomaly in the rejection rate of absentee ballots.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Eric Litke • February 12, 2021 ### No, China is not paying U.S. farmers $16B through tariffs * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 13, 2024 in a post: Vice President Kamala Harris’ college professors disparaged her as their “worst student.” ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" th.jpg\\") ![\\"pants-fire\\"](\\" pants-fire.jpg\\") By Kwasi Gyamfi Asiedu • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 17, 2024 in a post: Photo shows Kamala Harris posing beside Sean “Diddy” Combs. ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sara Swann • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Instagram posts stated on September 18, 2024 in Instagram posts: “BREAKING: Police found ‘explosives’ in car near former President Donald Trump’s rally site on Long Island.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Sofia Ahmed • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Dave McCormick stated on September 13, 2024 in an X post: Charleroi, Pennsylvania, “has grown by 2,000% due to an influx in migrants.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Caleb McCullough • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Facebook posts stated on September 13, 2024 in una publicación en Facebook: \"El gran respaldo de Taylor Swift\" a Kamala Harris \"le cuesta $125 millones en acuerdos de marca\". ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Maria Briceño • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Threads posts stated on September 16, 2024 in an Instagram post: Taylor Swift “lost 17 million followers by endorsing Kamala.” ![\\"false\\"](\\" ![\\"false\\"](\\" By Ciara O\'Rourke • September 19, 2024 * ![](\\" ![](\\" Kari Lake stated on September 13, 2024 in a post on X: Rep. 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US farmers are receiving 16 billion out of the tariffs that we’ve gotten from China