Obama pays $112K in 2012 taxes on $609K of income

President, First Lady release 2012 tax returns

4/12/2013
ASSOCIATED PRESS

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama made less in 2012 than in any other year since taking office, with about 40 percent of the $609,000 in income that he and first lady Michelle Obama reported coming from book sales.

Obama, who renewed his call for higher taxes on the wealthy in the budget he released Wednesday, paid $112,214 in taxes last year, putting his effective federal tax rate at 18.4 percent. The Obamas donated almost one-quarter of their income to charity, according to tax returns released by the White House.

Most of the $608,611 that the Obamas reported in adjusted gross income came from the president’s salary, as he reported $394,840 in wages. An additional $258,772 came from royalties from his books. That’s less than he took in from his books in previous years, lowering his overall income.

The first family’s income has decreased each year since he took office in 2009. The Obamas had $5.5 million in income that year and $1.73 million the next. In 2011, the Obamas reported about $790,000 in income.

The Obamas reported donating $150,034 to 33 charities, including $103,871 to Fisher House Foundation, which provides services to military members, veterans and their families.

The president and the first lady also paid $29,450 in state income taxes to Illinois.

The White House also released tax returns for Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill Biden.

The deadline for people in the United States to file their 2012 tax returns is Monday.