Barclays Bank PLC v. Franchise Tax Bd. of Cal., 512 U.S. 298, 40 (1994)

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Cite as: 512 U. S. 298 (1994)

Opinion of O'Connor, J.

If California's tax results in intolerable double taxation of domestic corporations, those companies can seek redress through the normal channels. Cf. Minnesota v. Clover Leaf Creamery Co., 449 U. S. 456, 473, n. 17 (1981); Raymond Motor Transp., Inc. v. Rice, 434 U. S. 429, 444, n. 18 (1978). It is all too easy, however, for the state legislature to fill the State's coffers at the expense of outsiders.

Most of the United States' trading partners have objected to California's use of worldwide combined reporting. See Démarche from Danish Embassy, on behalf of Governments of European Community (Mar. 26, 1993) ("The views of the EC Member States on worldwide unitary taxation are well known to the United States Government. All Member States have expressed their strong opposition to [the California] tax in a number of diplomatic communiques to the United States Government from 1980 to the present date"); Démarche from Belgian Embassy, on behalf of Governments of Member States of European Community and of Australia, Austria, Canada, Finland, Japan, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland (Sept. 23, 1993). At least one country has already enacted retaliatory legislation. See Brief for Government of United Kingdom as Amicus Curiae 19-23. Moreover, the possibility of multiple taxation undoubtedly deters foreign investment in this country. See Brief for Member States of European Communities et al. as Amici Curiae 14-16. These adverse consequences, which affect the Nation as a whole, result solely from California's refusal to conform its taxing practices to the internationally accepted standard.

Unlike the Court, see ante, at 319, I would not dismiss these difficulties solely by relying on our observation in Container Corp. that "it would be perverse, simply for the sake of avoiding double taxation, to require California to give up one allocation method that sometimes results in double taxation in favor of another allocation method that also sometimes results in double taxation." 463 U. S., at 193. In addition to being factually incorrect, see id., at 199, n. 1 (Powell, J.,

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