Fordney-McCumber Tariff

United States [1922]

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June 26, 2026

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The Fordney-McCumber Tariff Act, enacted in 1922, was a U.S. law that significantly raised import duties. It was one of the most protectionist tariffs in American history, increasing the average import tax to approximately 40 percent. This act was a response to lobbying from U.S. agricultural interests seeking protection from foreign competition.1

While the Fordney-McCumber tariff did not immediately dampen U.S. prosperity, it did provoke retaliatory tariffs from European governments. This protectionist measure was followed by the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, which further raised import duties and is considered to have worsened the Great Depression by reducing international trade. The Fordney-McCumber Tariff Act gave the president the authority to adjust tariffs by up to 50 percent.123

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20th-century international relations
U.S. leverage in world markets
The Fordney–McCumber Tariff (September 1922) was the highest in U.S. history and angered the Europeans, whose efforts to acquire dollars through exports were hampered even as the United States demanded payment of war debts. In raw materials policy, however, the United States upheld the Open Door.…
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The Fordney–McCumber Tariff (September 1922) was the highest in U.S. history and angered the Europeans, whose efforts to acquire dollars through exports were hampered even as the United States demanded payment of war debts. In raw materials policy, however, the United States upheld the Open Door.…
Read More

United States
Peace and prosperity
…but in 1922 passed the Fordney–McCumber Tariff, which raised duties so high that foreigners had great difficulty earning the necessary dollars. When immigration reached prewar levels (some 800,000 people entered the country between June 1920 and June 1921), Congress gave in to the protests of organized labor, which believed immigrants…
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…but in 1922 passed the Fordney–McCumber Tariff, which raised duties so high that foreigners had great difficulty earning the necessary dollars. When immigration reached prewar levels (some 800,000 people entered the country between June 1920 and June 1921), Congress gave in to the protests of organized labor, which believed immigrants…
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Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act
…1922 Congress had enacted the Fordney-McCumber Act, which was among the most punitive protectionist tariffs passed in the country’s history, raising the average import tax to some 40 percent. The Fordney-McCumber tariff prompted retaliation from European governments but did little to dampen U.S. prosperity. Throughout the 1920s, however, as European…
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…1922 Congress had enacted the Fordney-McCumber Act, which was among the most punitive protectionist tariffs passed in the country’s history, raising the average import tax to some 40 percent. The Fordney-McCumber tariff prompted retaliation from European governments but did little to dampen U.S. prosperity. Throughout the 1920s, however, as European…
Read More