Biden's Tax Returns Show Modest Wealth

(This post was written by CBS News' Ryan Corsaro and Brian Montopoli.)

The Obama campaign released 10 years of Sen. Joe Biden's tax returns today. You can see them here. As the returns show, Biden makes a relatively modest income compared to his Senate colleagues.

There are a few reasons for this: Neither Biden nor his wife, Jill, with whom he filed jointly, have enormous personal wealth. Jill is a teacher – not a high-paying job. And Biden has been in the Senate for almost his entire working career, unlike many of his colleagues who have worked in the private sector for a larger paycheck.

Joint income between Biden and his wife Jill rose from $215,000 to $249,000 between 1998 and 2006. These numbers reflect the total of Joe Biden's Senate salary, his Widener University School of Law teaching salary, and Jill Biden's teaching salary.

The Bidens give little to charity. 2007, in which they donated $995, was their most generous year, though in other years Biden donated honoraria from talk shows which were valued at higher amounts.

The Bidens make almost no money each year from dividends or interest. They deduct only state/local taxes, mortgage interest and what he donates to charity. 2003 was the last year they claimed a dependent child -- their daughter, Ashley.

Under the Obama tax plan, Biden's taxes would go up because of his tax bracket. To see how, check out the CBS Evening News video on how the Obama and McCain tax plans differ here.

As Politico notes, the release of Biden's tax returns is at least in part a move to pressure GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin to do the same; Palin has faced some questions about her personal income after reports that she billed the state for nights she spent at home. Republicans, meanwhile, are agitating for Biden to release past earmark requests.

Here's a breakdown on the numbers from CBS News Political Director Steve Chaggaris:

1998
Joseph R. and Jill T. Biden joint tax return