Get an insider’s look into what’s happening in and around the halls of power with expert reporting, analysis and insight from the editors and reporters of Montana Free Press. Sign up to get the free Capitolized newsletter delivered to your inbox every Thursday. Sign up February 26, 2026 The first year of President Donald Trump’s second term is giving Helena coffee roaster Steven Ladefoged the wrong kind of jitters. Trump rolled out tariffs of 10% to 15% on green (i.e., unroasted) coffee bean imports in April 2025, which then escalated to 50%. The fever didn’t break until mid-November, when the White House exempted green coffee from import tariffs entirely. But because roasters often buy months’ worth of green beans at a time, some still have tariff beans in the roaster.  “When Trump was originally kind of negotiating those deals, it was kind of weekly, depending on deals that were made with different countries … There was a lot of, like, imported food goods, coffee being included, excluded, from those tariffs as well. And so that kind of dramatically changed prices…” Ladefoged said. The U.S Supreme Court ruled Feb. 20 that the president did not have authority to levy the tariffs that affected U.S. trade from April 2025 until the court’s ruling. By that time, green coffee was three months into its exemption, but instant coffee from Brazil was still being charged a 50% tariff on the customs value.  After the High Court’s decision, Trump rolled out a new batch of tariffs that, because of the court’s ruling, will have to be reviewed by Congress after 150 days. The new tariffs kicked in at midnight Tuesday.  Asked how Congress might use its court-recognized tariff authority 150 days from now, Montana’s all-Republican federal delegation didn’t speak to the issue directly.  “The President’s tariffs have broadened market access for American producers, brought in billions in revenue, and precipitated historic trade deals,” Rep. Troy Downing said in a text message. “My focus has been and will remain centered on the needs of the central and eastern Montanans greatest affected by tariffs like our producers and job creators as Congress evaluates its role in trade policy.” “Everyone drinks coffee, and it can’t be grown in the U.S.,” said Katie Bennett, of Café Imports, a Minneapolis-based green bean wholesaler used by coffee roasters across the country, including Ladefoged. Trump’s bean tariffs depended on the country where they were grown. Brazil hit 50% for a while. Vietnam was briefly at 46%. Coffee from India had a 26% tariff, while Indonesia had 32%. The fluctuating and various rates caused uncertainty in the business, Bennett said. The tariffs also hit while poor growing conditions were already affecting the availability of beans. The tariff cost was passed directly to roasters. “We were reaching sort of unprecedented highs last February. Adjusted for inflation, I don’t think it’s the highest they’ve ever been, but without adjusting for inflation, it was the highest that we’ve seen since maybe the ’80s,” Bennett said.  Shortages in Brazil, a major coffee grower that experienced extreme drought conditions before 2025, were a root cause of rising prices before tariffs, Ladefoged said.  Green coffee beans typically sell for about $1.50 a pound, Bennett said. Any price higher than that cuts into the profit margins of roasters. Green coffee prices spiked, then, weeks later, retail coffee prices did too. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported this month that January 2026 set a record for ground roast coffee at $9.37 a pound, up 33% from January 2025.  Tariffs have also produced wins for Montana, said Montana’s Western U.S. House Rep. Ryan Zinke. Tariffs on palladium imports have helped the Sibanye-Stillwater mine near Columbus.  “President Trump is using targeted tariffs exactly as intended to protect American workers and strengthen American industry,” Zinke said in a text message. “Nowhere is that more clear than in Montana, where the President’s 132% tariff on Russian palladium is ending a hostile foreign power’s market manipulation.” In February, the New York Federal Reserve estimated that American businesses and consumers paid 94% of the costs of Trump’s tariffs.  Trump’s tariffs were improving the economy, said Gabby Wiggins, a spokesperson for U.S. Sen. Steve Daines. “Senator Daines commends President Trump for working to address trade imbalances for Montana farmers, ranchers, and manufacturers and will continue to work closely with President Trump and [U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer] to level the playing field.” Not all Montana farmers considered the tariffs beneficial. Montana Farmers Union President Walt Schweitzer praised the Supreme Court for ruling against Trump’s tariffs, which he said were harming the foreign trade relationships farmers depend on.  “This is a win for Montana family farms and ranches and American families, but we’ve got a long ways to go,” Schweitzer told MTFP after the Supreme Court ruled. —Tom Lutey Windy Boy joins eastern U.S. House race Jonathan Windy Boy, the longtime Democratic legislator from Box Elder, is running for Congress in Montana’s Eastern U.S. House District. The veteran lawmaker, currently serving in the state Senate, announced his candidacy on Tuesday. He will face fellow Democrats and declared candidates Sam Lux, of Great Falls, and Brian James Miller, of Helena, in the June 2 primary. Potential candidates have until March 4 to declare their candidacy.  The winner of the Democratic primary will advance to face incumbent Republican Rep. Troy Downing, who is seeking a second term. The district has delivered double-digit margins of victory for Republicans in recent years.The race is Windy Boy’s first attempt at federal office.  “If we stay on the same course, Montana families will continue to feel the consequences,” Windy Boy said in a campaign announcement issued Tuesday. “We need leadership that understands Montana values and delivers real results.” Windy Boy told Montana Free Press earlier this year that he is coming off one of his best performances in the Legislature, having passed 8 of 12 bills he introduced, including the Montana Indian Child Welfare Act. There are five tribal reservations in the Eastern U.S. House District. Windy Boy, a Chippewa Cree tribal member, has represented at least two of those reservations during his 12 terms as a state representative and state senator in the Montana Legislature.  The congressional race also currently includes an independent candidate who is gathering signatures to qualify for the general election ballot. Michael Eisenhauer made his signature drive official this week. —Tom Lutey Is a flat tax Gianforte’s last act?  Greg Gianforte says that in 2027, his last legislative session as Montana’s governor, he will focus on lowering the state income tax rate to a flat 4.7% across all income brackets. The second-term Republican introduced that agenda during a policy dinner hosted by the Coeur d-Alene-based Mountain States Policy Center in Helena on Tuesday.  “It is a decision maker for people choosing where they’re going to pursue the American dream. And it’s critically important that we get to it,” Gianforte said. “This is like the last step. Even with all the reductions we’ve done in income tax, Montana still has the highest income tax rate in the Rocky Mountain region.” Since his first legislative session as governor in 2021, Gianforte has pushed to reduce individual income taxes by lowering rates and redefining brackets. Four tax-reduction bills passed during his tenure are projected to decrease state tax revenue by $509 million annually by 2028, according to a Feb. 25 analysis by the state’s Legislative Fiscal Division. For example: 2025’s House Bill 337 reduced the state’s top income tax rate from 5.9% to 5.4%. The cut produced a projected $1,004 tax savings for an individual earning $200,000 per year. The top rate was 6.9% when Gianforte took office in 2021. At the policy dinner in Helena this week, Mountain States Policy Center CEO Chris Cargill suggested that Montana isn’t keeping up economically with neighboring states that have lower income tax rates. “We are in a competition right now, like it or not, with some of those other states. If we expand the map out, Utah is down to 4.5. Colorado is in the fours. Arizona is at 2.5,” Cargill said during Tuesday’s dinner. Wyoming, which has no income tax, and Idaho, with a flat 5.3% income tax  were also offered for comparison. All the states mentioned also have sales taxes, which Montana doesn’t. As previously reported in Capitolized, Mountain States Policy Center receives support from Yes Every Kid, Inc, part of the Stand Together Network affiliated with Charles Koch, a billionaire champion of libertarian ideals. Another think tank funder is NetChoice, which serves as a bridge of influence between tech companies and the American Legislative Exchange Council, the conservative bill mill known as ALEC. Four other contributors are the donor-advised funds National Christian Charitable Foundation, Fidelity Charitable, American Online Giving Foundation, and Donor Advised Charitable Giving. —Tom Lutey and Zeke Lloyd The post Coffee tariff jitters appeared first on Montana Free Press. ...read more read less