Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has filed a complaint with the United States Supreme Court, challenging California’s tax policies that affect businesses operating in multiple states. The complaint claims that California’s approach to taxing multi-state corporations is unconstitutional and negatively impacts Florida’s economy.
“California has created a tax system that punishes economic freedom,” said Attorney General James Uthmeier. “We will not tolerate California over-taxing revenue earned in Florida. The Newsom regime is obviously attempting to punish business owners who have fled California due to its disastrous policies. Given that multitudes of California businesses and residents are moving to freer states, Newsom’s tax authorities are trying to soften the economic loss by taxing even more aggressively—but they can’t violate the Constitution to do so.”
According to the filing, California uses a formula for calculating taxable income on corporations operating in more than one state that excludes certain large transactions, such as property sales. The complaint alleges this “special rule” is intended to discourage companies from relocating or expanding outside of California. Uthmeier argues that these practices violate several parts of the U.S. Constitution, including the Commerce Clause, Import-Export Clause, and Due Process Clause.
The complaint further asserts that these tax measures hinder interstate commerce and penalize companies for expanding operations beyond California’s borders. Uthmeier has asked the Supreme Court to declare this rule unconstitutional and prevent its enforcement.
For more details, interested parties can review the bill of complaint.
