Individual income tax returns — including those of public figures — are private information, protected by law from unauthorized disclosure. Indeed, the Internal Revenue Service is barred from releasing any taxpayer information whatsoever, except to authorized agencies and individuals.

Like all other citizens, U.S. presidents enjoy this protection of their privacy. Since the early 1970s, however, most presidents have chosen to release their returns publicly. In the hope of making this information more widely available, the Tax History Project at Tax Analysts has compiled an archive of presidential tax returns.

Presidential Candidates
Should we care about the public release of candidates' tax returns? Joseph J. Thorndike, director of the Tax History Project, says we should. Read his new analysis: Private Returns, Public Rewards: The Politics of Tax Records.

Important Notes: Paper copies of the returns can be ordered from Tax Analysts using the associated document numbers. Copies are also available from the Bush, Carter, Nixon, Reagan, and Roosevelt presidential libraries.

Two caveats: (1) Some of the images are of mediocre quality, reflecting the poor photocopies released by the White House. We're searching for better copies and will make them available as soon as possible; (2) most of the missing years reflect a quirk of the calendar. Presidents release tax returns only for years they serve in office and only while they still hold that office. Consequently, Jimmy Carter did not release a return for 1980 nor did Ronald Reagan release one for 1988 — each left office before returns were due. Likewise incoming presidents do not release returns for the year before they assumed office, even though they hold office when returns for that year come due.

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