Elections

Tax records: Romney donated 29 percent of income to charity in 2011

Neil Munro White House Correspondent
Font Size:

Mitt Romney has donated nearly 13.5 percent of his income to charity over the last 20 years, according to a statement from his accountants at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Those charitable gifts reached 29 percent of his income in 2011 when he donated $4 million out of his $13.7 million income, according to a Sept. 21 statement describing the Romney’s 2011 tax returns.

The combination of Romney’s charitable donations and tax payments to federal and state authorities — which averaged 20 percent, and never fell below 13.66 percent — amounted to 38.5 percent of his income over 20 years.

The campaign did not release cumulative numbers for his income, taxes paid or charitable donations.

Today’s announcement refutes claims by Senate Democratic leader Sen. Harry Reid, who claimed Romney paid no taxes in some years.

Romney’s generosity contrasts with President Barack Obama’s donations.

Obama gave 1 percent of his income, or $10,772, to charity between 2000 and 2004, according to tax data provided in January 2012. In 2005 and 2006, Obama increased his charitable giving to 5 percent of of his income, or $137,622 on $2.6 million in income. That figure grew to 5.7 percent in 2007.

In 2011, however, Obama’s charitable donations jumped to 22 percent of his income — $172,000 of the $792,000 he earned.

Obama’s donations were far higher than his running mate Joe Biden’s.

In the 10 years leading up to the 2008 election, he donated an average of $369 per year, or roughly 0.3 percent of his income.

Since his election to vice-President, however, Joe Biden upped his charitable giving $5,350, or 1.46 percent of his income, in 2010.

Paul Ryan, the Republican vice presidential nominee, donated nearly $13,000 to charity in 2011, or about 4 percent of his income.

Follow Neil on Twitter