President Biden and first lady Jill Biden reported an adjusted income of just over $600,000 in 2020 and paid $157,414 in federal income tax for an effective rate of 25.9%, according to returns the White House released Monday.
The Bidens donated $30,704, or about 5% of their total income, to charity. The donation included $10,000 to the Beau Biden Foundation, an anti-child abuse group named after Mr. Biden’s late son.
The president and first lady also paid $28,794 in Delaware income tax and Mrs. Biden paid $443 in Virginia income tax. The first lady teaches at Northern Virginia Community College.
The White House released the returns on May 17, the adjusted deadline for Americans to file their federal income taxes.
The Bidens’ income took a hit from 2019, when they reported a taxable income of $944,737, $346,204 in total payments, and a $46,858 refund for an effective rate of about 30%.
The couple reported earning $4.5 million in 2018 and $11 million in 2017. Much of that income was related to book deals.
The White House also released the 2020 returns for Vice President Kamala Harris and second gentleman Douglas Emhoff.
The couple had an adjusted gross income of $1,695,225 and paid $621,893 in federal income tax for an effective rate of 36.7%.
They also paid $125,004 in California income tax, and Mr. Emhoff paid about $57,000 in District of Columbia income tax.
Mr. Emhoff teaches entertainment law at Georgetown University. He took a leave from his job with the law firm DLA Piper during the 2020 campaign.
Mr. Biden has proposed increasing the top individual income tax rate from 37% to 39.6% as part of his economic agenda and has vowed not to increase taxes on individuals or households earning less than $400,000 per year.
The White House said Mr. Biden was continuing an “almost uninterrupted tradition” of releasing his returns.
That’s an indirect jab at former President Trump, who broke with longstanding precedent in refusing to release his own returns during his time in office.
Mr. Trump repeatedly cited an ongoing audit as the reason for withholding the information from public view.
House Democrats have been locked in a long-running legal battle to try to obtain Mr. Trump’s returns, saying they need the information to assess presidential conflicts of interest.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.