The Salt Lake Chamber, Utah’s largest and longest-standing business association, has enhanced its role as Utah’s business leader by creating the Utah Economic Council – a handpicked group of economists and analysts who have expertise about the Utah economy. The Council has been created to improve the quality of economic information and interpretation available to business and community leaders as they steer the Utah economy to a more prosperous future.

“The recent economic downturn has reminded us of the importance of credible, thoughtful and robust economic analysis and counsel,” said Lane Beattie, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber. “The Utah Economic Council gives us a dream team to provide an economic perspective that is so critical to the business community.”

Salt Lake Chamber Chief Economist Natalie Gochnour will lead the Utah Economic Council. Gochnour has a long history of studying and interpreting the Utah economy having once served as Gov. Leavitt’s top economist and chair of the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors. She is joined by seven other council members that include representatives from both urban and rural areas, reflecting the statewide mission of a capital city chamber. The Council includes the dean of the College of Business at the University of Utah and a macroeconomist from Brigham Young University, as well as representatives from two major financial institutions, the state’s top public policy think tank and Gov. Herbert’s top economist.

“Utah’s economy is in transition, moving from contraction to expansion, from regional to global and from less known to well known,” said Gochnour. “The Utah Economic Council will explain economic trends and issues and help improve economic literacy and decision making. The hope is that it will become an economic resource to the entire community.”

Council membership includes the following prominent local economists, public policy analysts and business leaders:

Natalie Gochnour, chief economist, Salt Lake Chamber, and Chair, Utah Economic Council
Gochnour oversees the public policies and communications of Utah’s largest and longest-serving business association and provides economic counsel to the Chamber’s more than 6,000 member businesses In previous roles, she has served as chief operating officer of the Salt Lake Chamber, counselor to Secretary Mike Leavitt at the U.S. Department Health and Human Services and associate administrator of public affairs at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Prior to working in Washington, D.C., Natalie served as Gov. Mike Leavitt’s deputy for policy and communications (where she served as his spokesperson); deputy director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget; State Planning Coordinator; and the Director of the Demographic and Economic Analysis section for the Governor’s Office.

Wes Curtis, director, Center for Rural Life, Southern Utah University
Curtis works with state and federal policy and lawmakers to advance the interests of Southern Utah University. He also works to actively engage the university with businesses, communities and governments throughout the region and state in such things as economic development, community planning, partnering and collaboration – with particular focus on rural communities and issues. He served for six years as senior staff, and as Utah State planning coordinator for both Gov. Mike Leavitt and Gov. Olene Walker, directing programs such as the 21st Century Communities and the Utah Smart Site initiatives. He has degrees from Snow College and Utah State University.

Richard Evans, assistant professor of economics, Brigham Young University
Evans specializes in international macroeconomics and monetary economics. His current research includes the relationship of international trade and inflation, optimal monetary policy rules, the effect of Chapter 11 bankruptcy on industry size, and financial regulation and bailouts. Dr. Evans received a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Texas at Austin and both an M.A. in Public Policy and a B.A. in Economics from Brigham Young University.

Steve Kroes, president, Utah Foundation
Kroes is president of Utah Foundation, a nonprofit research organization promoting a thriving economy, a well-prepared workforce, and a high quality of life for Utahns. He also serves as a member of the Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors, the Utah Health Data Committee, and president of the Governmental Research Association, a national organization of individuals and groups researching governmental issues. Steve received a Bachelors of Science degree in Economics, from Brigham Young University in 1989.  He received a Master of Public Administration degree with an emphasis in public policy from the University of Southern California in 1990.

Kelly Matthews, emeritus economist, Wells Fargo Bank
Dr. Matthews retired from Wells Fargo Bank in November 2009 where he was responsible for local, regional and national economic analysis and forecasting. He was also the Wells Fargo government affairs officer in Utah. Matthews joined Wells Fargo as an economist in 2000 when First Security Corporation merged with Wells Fargo. He served as First Security’s chief economist for 27 years.

Juliette Tennert, chief economist, Utah Governor’s Office
Tennert is the Chief Economist in the Utah Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget.  She oversees a staff of economists and analysts, who prepare the state’s population estimates and projections, analyze the fiscal impacts of state issues, prepare revenue estimates for the monitoring of the state budget, and disseminate economic and demographic information. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in economics from the University of Chicago and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, respectively.

Taylor Randall, dean, David Eccles School of Business, University of Utah
Randall was named dean of the David Eccles School of Business at the University of Utah where he has been a faculty member for over a decade. Randall’s research focuses on the economic impact of operational strategies, strategic performance measurement and product variety management. Randall has served as a director for the University Venture Fund since 2003, during which time the Venture Fund has become the largest independent student-run venture in the country at over $18.3 million. Randall holds a bachelor’s with honors in accounting from the University of Utah and an MBA, master’s and doctorate in operations and information management from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

Alan Westenskow, vice president, Zions Public Finance
Westenskow is a vice president at Zions Bank Public Finance where he has spent the last 11 years assisting municipalities and non-profits in Utah, Idaho and Montana issue bonds to finance capital projects. Alan received his undergraduate education at Brigham Young University and received his MBA from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. Alan has an interest in international development issues and renewable energy and currently serves on the board of directors of Utah Clean Energy.

Initial topics the UEC will probe include the education imperative facing the Utah economy, economic development policy, tax policy, international trade, immigration policy, the urban-rural economic connection and federal/state economic relationships.