# Lawmakers Seek GAO Audit of Tariff Refunds

On October 21, 2026, three members of Congress asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to review U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) administration of refunds for $166 billion in IEEPA tariffs. The requested audit would assess whether refunds were accurate and complete, identify recipients, and determine whether savings reached consumers; approximately $100 billion had been refunded as of August 2026. No contract or solicitation is identified in the signal, but any resulting audit or data-analysis requirements could create federal support opportunities.

- **Why this matters:** The proposed review centers on refund reconciliation, recipient identification, and tracing economic impacts—areas relevant to firms with federal audit, financial analysis, and customs-data expertise.
- Companies should distinguish this congressional request from an active procurement: the signal does not announce GAO or CBP funding, a solicitation, or an award.
- Contractors can watch for subsequent GAO or CBP audit-related procurement activity tied to the requested review.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Published:** October 23, 2026

### Government Entities
- Government Accountability Office (GAO)
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
- U.S. House of Representatives
- U.S. Senate

### Key Quotes
> The American people deserve a timely, accurate, and transparent refund process that lays bare the total economic devastation of the administration’s erroneous tariff agenda on hardworking consumers.
> — Raphael Warnock, U.S. Senator

> Families paid these illegal tariffs through higher prices, and they deserve to know whether the refunds will reach them.
> — Brad Sherman, U.S. Representative

### Sources
- [Tokuda, Warnock, and Sherman Call for Federal Audit of Refunds of $166 Billion in Illegal Trump Tariffs | U.S. House Representative Jill Tokuda](https://tokuda.house.gov/media/press-releases/tokuda-warnock-and-sherman-call-for-federal-audit-of-refunds-of-166-billion-in-illegal-trump-tariffs) - Tokuda