Mitt Says He Pays 15% Tax Rate (TPM)

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9. More on this from the NYT...

January 17, 2012

Romney Says His Effective Tax Rate Is ‘Probably’ 15%
By MICHAEL D. SHEAR and ASHLEY PARKER

FLORENCE, S.C. — Under new pressure to release his tax returns, Mitt Romney on Tuesday acknowledged that he pays an effective tax rate of about 15 percent because so much of his fortune comes from past investments.

“It’s probably closer to the 15 percent rate than anything,” Mr. Romney said. “Because my last 10 years, I’ve — my income comes overwhelmingly from some investments made in the past, whether ordinary income or earned annually.”

The vast majority of the income Mr. Romney reported over 12 months in 2010 and ’11 was dividends from investments, capital gains on mutual funds and his post-retirement share of profits and investment returns from Bain Capital, the firm he once led. And Mr. Romney also noted that he made hundreds of thousands of dollars from speaking engagements.

“I got a little bit of income from my book, but I gave that all away,” Mr. Romney told reporters after an event here. “And then I get speakers’ fees from time to time, but not very much.”

Financial disclosure forms that candidates are required to file annually shows that Mr. Romney earned $374,327.62 in speakers’ fees from February of 2010 to February of 2011, at an average of $41,592 per speech. That acknowledgement came as Mr. Romney sought to keep the upper hand in his bid to swiftly wrap up the Republican presidential nomination, urging voters here on Tuesday morning to take the long view and begin focusing on defeating President Obama in the fall.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/us/politics/facing-pointed-attacks-romney-urges-focus-on-obama.html?hp