Photo: Courtesy of Jill Stein 2016 Campaign
Jill Stein, the Green Party candidate has done what Republican Party nominee Donald Trump has not done. She just released her rather modest income tax return for 2015. At least it is modest by the standard of the millionaires and billionaires seeking the office this year.
For instance, Hillary Clinton, Democratic Party nominee released her 2015 returns which she filed jointly with her husband, former President Bill Clinton. It reveals that the Clintons earned $10.6 million last year. For the year 2015, Stein filed a joint return with her husband, Richard J. Rohrer. The couple married in 1981 and have two children.
The return lists Rohrer’s occupation as physician. While the Green Party nominee is listed as an environmentalist. Jointly, the couple earned $302,258.00, roughly $10.3 million less than the Clintons.
There is no way to compare Stein’s income with Trump’s because he claims that an Internal Revenue audit prevents him from disclosing his return. However, Trump says that he is extremely rich.
According to Stein’s 1040 tax form, the couple owes the government $8,921.00 on the income earned in 2015. Stein did not release the Tax Schedules. This makes it difficult to determine how much, if any, of the wages reported on line 7 was her contribution to the total. The assumption is that the breadwinner in this family is Dr. Rohrer.
The return does not disclose any charitable contributions made by Stein or her husband. However, Dr. Rohrer is known for his charitable work in providing medical treatment to the underprivileged in third world countries. The Clintons disclosed a number of charitable contributions. Among them, one million dollars which went to a Clinton run charity. In essence receiving a tax deduction with this donation.
Stein, who has struggled to raise money in her bid for the presidency, did check yes authorizing $3.00 to go toward the Presidential Election Campaign. Also, her spouse checked this box. Ironically, because the Green Party did not garner 5 percent of the national vote in the 2012 Presidential race, she will not be eligible to receive campaign funding from this fund. However, it does point out her commitment to getting corporate money out of politics.
The other thing noteworthy about Stein’s income tax return is that it appears they prepare their own return. In 2012, Stein told Peter Reilly, a contributor with Forbes, that the couple uses TurboTax software to prepare their taxes.
Harold Michael Harvey is an American novelist and essayist, the author of Paper puzzle and Justice in the Round. He can be contacted at haroldmichaelharvey.com.