States All Over the Map on Taxing 2017 Tax Law’s Foreign Income

State government responses to the federal tax overhaul have created radically different camps over how to tax a new category of foreign income for multinational companies.

Two big states have just taken business-friendly approaches. New York—home to about 60 companies valued at over $10 billion, according to Bloomberg data—and Florida— home to NextEra Energy Inc., Carnival Corp., and Chewy Inc.—recently enacted laws that let companies exclude most or all of their global intangible low-taxed income, or GILTI, from their tax returns.

New Jersey, home to Johnson & Johnson and Merck & Co. Inc., is pushing a formula to tax a ...