His liberal critics may label him as “Mayor One Percent.”

But Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, in fact, more likely ranked in the top two or three percent of American income earners in 2012, according to his federal tax return.

Chicago’s first family had an adjusted gross income of $373,478 last year, and paid $77,740 in federal taxes, according to a copy of the return released first to WBEZ. That’s an effective federal tax rate of nearly 21 percent. The mayor also paid $17,583 in state taxes.

The Emanuels took in nearly eight times more money last year than the median household income for Chicagoans, which was $47,371 in 2011.

Emanuel’s $204,726 City Hall salary was the primary source of income for his wife, Amy Rule, and the couple’s three children. That makes the mayor the second-highest paid city employee, following Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, who makes about $260,000 a year.

But the investment banker-turned-mayor also raked in $158,823 in stock dividends from investments with JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Golub Capital Partners VII, LP, an investment firm with offices in Chicago and New York City.

Emanuel made an additional $9,546 off of his stake in Golub, and also invests in two of its offshore accounts in the Cayman Islands, the records show. Golub’s CEO, Lawrence E. Golub, was an early supporter of Emanuel’s 2011 mayoral bid, donating $50,000, according to state campaign finance filings.

The Emanuel clan also donated $16,240 to charity, including $6,660 worth of contributions from a family trust.

The release of the mayor’s returns, following WBEZ’s request in late April, mark Emanuel’s first disclosure of tax records since he took office in May 2011.

The documents also offer a small glimpse into the life of Chicago’s famously private first family.

The Emanuels reported paying $10,080 in cash last year to “a family friend who helps on an as-needed basis with things like redecorating, design, [and] landscaping,” Emanuel spokeswoman Sarah Hamilton said in an email.

They also paid $9,696 in property taxes for their family’s 2,700-square foot ranch vacation home in Union Pier, Mich., near the Lake.

Alex Keefe is a political reporter for WBEZ. Follow him @akeefe.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s tax returns

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s 2012 tax returns by Chicago Public Media