September 21, 2012
The Candidates’ Tax Returns
| Candidate | Barack Obama |
Mitt Romney |
Typical taxpayer* |
Top 0.1 percent |
| Adjusted Gross Income | $789,674 | $13,696,951 | $44,619 | $7,014,467 |
| Federal Income Taxes Excluding Payroll Taxes |
$150,253
19.0%
|
$1,912,529
14.0%
|
$1,785
4.0%
|
$1,508,110
21.5%
|
| Federal Income Taxes Including Payroll Taxes** |
$162,074
20.5%
|
$1,935,708
14.1%
|
$3,525
7.9%
|
$1,550,197
22.1%
|
| Description |
Most of President Obama’s income came from book royalties, which were much lower than they were in 2010. |
Mr. Romney's income came almost entirely from investments, which are taxed at a much lower rate than wages. He has said that he has paid at least 13 percent in federal income taxes in each of the past ten years. In order for that claim to be true in 2011, he had to voluntarily claim as a deduction just $2.25 million of the $4 million in charitable contributions he and his wife made that year. |
Most income for the typical taxpayer was from wages, and the largest portion of the federal tax bill was for entitlements. |
Because their income came from wages as well as investments, the 120,000 top earners paid higher rates on average than Mr. Romney. |
| Document | View Full Return » | View Full Return » | ||
| Wages | $394,821 | $0 | $31,516 | $1,381,067 |
| Investment Income | $7,697 | $13,472,518 | $1,304 | $3,543,942 |
| Business, S-Corporation and Trust Income |
$442,067 | $86,543 | $706 | $1,670,775 |
| Charitable Donations | $172,130 | $2,250,772 | $653 | $385,950 |