Bidens paid 24.6 percent tax on $610K income, return shows
President and first lady reported earning nearly $62,000 from book royalties
President Joe Biden and his wife paid $150,439 in federal income taxes for 2021, according to their joint tax return released Friday.
The taxes paid amount to an effective tax rate of 24.6 percent on $610,702 of adjusted gross income.
Most of the Bidens’ income comes from the president’s $400,000 annual salary. But the couple also reported earning nearly $62,000 from book royalties, which were funneled into two closely held businesses known as subchapter S corporations: Giacoppa Corp. and Celticcapri Corp.
They also reported nearly $53,000 in pension benefits stemming from the president’s previous Senate service, and more than $46,000 in Social Security benefits.
The Bidens made $17,394 in contributions to 10 charities, the largest of which was a $5,000 donation to the Beau Biden Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to protect children from abuse. The foundation is named in honor of the president’s son who died of brain cancer in 2015.
The release of the tax return, which came three days before Monday’s filing deadline, continues a practice of most presidents since Richard M. Nixon of making their returns public. The lone exception was Donald Trump, who repeatedly refused to release his returns, saying he would do so only when he was no longer being audited.
The White House, in a statement, said Biden’s tax return disclosure was “once again demonstrating his commitment to being transparent with the American people about the finances of the commander in chief.”
The Bidens also paid $30,765 in Delaware income taxes. And first lady Jill Biden, who teaches at Northern Virginia Community College, paid $2,721 in Virginia income taxes.
Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband, Douglas Emhoff, reported paying $523,371 in federal incomes taxes. That amounts to an effective tax rate of 31.6 percent on more than $1.6 million in adjusted gross income.
The couple also paid $120,517 in California income taxes and $2,044 in New York income taxes. Emhoff, who is an entertainment lawyer, also paid $54,441 in District of Columbia income taxes. The couple donated $22,100 to charity.
