SACRAMENTO (Associated Press) ? The California state Senate failed yesterday to win a two-thirds majority to force corporations that move offshore to pay millions of dollars in taxes to California.

The bill aimed to crack down on publicly traded US corporations that have moved their headquarters to offshore locations including Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.

State Treasurer Phil Angelides, who sponsored the bill, maintains corporations make such moves in name only to avoid taxes and weaken rights of their shareholders.

The state?s Franchise Tax Board estimates California could lose up to $132 million in corporate taxes over the next decade from such moves. ?This is a gross loophole used by a very small number of companies,? said Sen. Jackie Speier, D-Daly City, the bill?s author. ?If a small number of companies are doing it today, a larger number of companies will do it tomorrow.? The bill was defeated on a 24-12 vote, with Democrats in favour and Republicans opposed.