Does Oregon discriminate against tax haven countries?

Does having Oregon keep a list of tax haven nations curb foreign investment in the state?

Yes, and it's akin to discrimination, according to one industry group that promotes "foreign direct investment," a business practice where foreign companies own U.S. subsidiaries.

Only Oregon and Montana have such tax haven blacklist laws. Under Oregon's law, companies headquartered within countries on the list have their income rerouted so it can be appropriately taxed. Legislators see the law as one way to protect valuable tax revenue — and it collects about $25 million a year for the state.

More than 6.1 million Americans are employed domestically by companies with foreign headquarters. There are about 50,000 such jobs in Oregon, mostly in manufacturing, according to Evan Hoffman of the Organization for International Investment.

Hoffman testified to state lawmakers Thursday that Oregon should consider nixing its tax haven law. He said the list, which doesn't differentiate between legitimate business activities and bad actors, is a "significant barrier to foreign investment" in Oregon.

The law passed in 2013 and supported by business at the time — in exchange for lawmakers ending their pursuit of a tax increase.

Tax havens are countries or jurisdictions where there are little or no taxes, making them attractive areas for businesses to place their headquarters. Criticism has been levied by Congress and the public alike at big companies headquartered in tax havens like Walmart, Apple and Pfizer, which keep billions of dollars of otherwise taxable profits away from state and federal coffers.

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But why would Oregon want to attract offshore companies anyways?

“Foreign direct investment is an extremely powerful economic narrative for the United States," Hoffman explained. In other words, jobs.

Yet legislators appeared untroubled by Hoffman's testimony on Thursday.

"It’s not a secret that many countries are tax havens and are causing us to lose a lot of tax revenue," said Sen. Chuck Riley, D-Hillsboro. "This policy exists to make sure we’re protecting our tax base."

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Tax haven nations, according to Oregon

• Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, the Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, the Cook Islands, Cyprus, Dominica, Gibraltar, Grenada, Guernsey-Sark-Alderney, the Isle of Man, Jersey, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, the Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Monaco, Montserrat, Nauru, the Netherlands Antilles, Niue, Samoa, San Marino, Seychelles, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Vanuatu.