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How Can We Fix This Together? (Tariffs, Manufacturing, and a Solution)
For those not aware, the board game industry has been hit especially hard by Trump's tariffs. Some companies have already had to shut down, while others have products stuck in China that they can no longer afford to import.
Stonemaier Games is a small company that is suing the administration over the tariffs. Their latest blog post does a great job of explaining the effects of the tariffs and their lawsuit, presents a more reasonable strategy to produce the desired effects, and answers frequent questions/comments.
Many publishers began production before the tariffs were implemented, and most of them can’t afford to pay 145% tariffs to bring those products into the US from China (a $14.50 tax on every $10 spent to make the products). The 75 companies that responded to my survey are collectively facing over $13 million in tariff taxes for products they invested in before the tariffs even existed.
I agree that more US manufacturing and less reliance on companies in other countries to make the things Americans use, sell, and consume are admirable goals, but I don’t believe the tariffs (and how they were implemented) will accomplish those goals. So how do we fix this together?
A truly viable first step would be to handle box printing and final game assembly in the US (following component production in China). It would require 2-piece box prices here greatly reduce (perhaps subsidized by the government), but this first step could lead to all printed components being made in the US while factories in China could focus on specialty components like screen-printed meeples, custom dice for a game, and miniatures. That is the global economy at its best–we’re working with each other, not against each other.
For nearly 50 years since its enactment, no president until now has relied on IEEPA to impose tariffs. The Constitution gives Congress—not the president—the power to impose tariffs because policies affecting an entire nation should come from the body most representative of the entire nation. And Congress cannot delegate that core legislative power to the president.
https://stonemaiergames.com/how-can-we-fix-this-together-tariffs-manufacturing-and-a-solution
By the way, if you are not familiar with them, this company makes excellent games. Anyone that is even a casual birder would probably enjoy Wingspan, which was designed by Elizabeth Hargrave. Their are also offshoots with similar mechanics involving fish and dragons. Check them out!