Amerada Hess Corporation v. Director, Division of Taxation, New Jersey Department of the Treasury/Concurrence Scalia

by Antonin Scalia

Justice SCALIA, concurring in the judgment.

I agree with the Court's determination that the New Jersey Corporation Business Tax does not facially discriminate against interstate commerce. See ante, at 76-77. Since I am of the view that this conclusion suffices to decide a claim that a state tax violates the Commerce Clause, see American Trucking Assns., Inc. v. Scheiner, 483 U.S. 266, 304, 107 S.Ct. 2829, 2851, 97 L.Ed.2d 226 (1987) (SCALIA, J., dissenting), I would refrain from applying, for Commerce Clause purposes, the remainder of the analysis articulated in Complete Auto Transit, Inc. v. Brady, 430 U.S. 274, 279, 97 S.Ct. 1076, 1079, 51 L.Ed.2d 326 (1977). To the extent, however, that the Complete Auto analysis pertains to the due process requirements that there be "a 'minimal connection' between the interstate activities and the taxing State, and a rational relationship between the income attributed to the State and the intrastate values of the enterprise," Mobil Oil Corp. v. Commissioner of Taxes of Vermont, 445 U.S. 425, 436-437, 100 S.Ct. 1223, 1231-1232, 63 L.Ed.2d 510 (1980) (citation omitted), I agree with the Court's conclusion that those requirements have been met. See ante, at 79-80. Finally, for the reasons set forth in Part III of the Court's opinion, I agree that the tax in this case does not violate the Equal Protection Clause.

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