[Economic Report of the President (2011)]
[Administration of Barack H. Obama]
[Online through the Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]

 
Appendix A

Report to the President on the Activities
of the
Council of Economic Advisers During 2010



LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL


COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS
Washington, D.C., December 31, 2010
Mr. President:
The Council of economic Advisers submits this report on its
activities during calendar year 2010 in accordance with the
requirements of the Congress, as set forth in section 10(d) of the
employment Act of 1946 as amended by the Full employment and Balanced
Growth Act of 1978.

Sincerely,

Austan Goolsbee, Chairman
Cecilia Elena Rouse, Member






COUNCIL MEMBERS AND THEIR DATES OF SERVICE
Name 	             Position       Oath of office date   Separation date

Edwin G. Nourse	     Chairman        August 9, 1946       November 1, 1949
Leon H. Keyserling   Vice Chairman   August 9, 1946
Acting Chairman November 2, 1949
Chairman        May 10, 1950         January 20, 1953
John D. Clark        Member          August 9, 1946
Vice Chairman   May 10, 1950         February 11, 1953
Roy Blough           Member          June 29, 1950        August 20, 1952
Robert C. Turner     Member          September 8, 1952    January 20, 1953
Arthur F. Burns      Chairman        March 19, 1953       December 1, 1956
Neil H. Jacoby       Member          September 15, 1953   February 9, 1955
Walter W. Stewart    Member          December 2, 1953     April 29, 1955
Raymond J. Saulnier  Member          April 4, 1955
Chairman        December 3, 1956     January 20, 1961
Joseph S. Davis      Member          May 2, 1955          October 31, 1958
Paul W. McCracken    Member          December 3, 1956     January 31, 1959
Karl Brandt          Member          November 1, 1958     January 20, 1961
Henry C. Wallich     Member          May 7, 1959          January 20, 1961
Walter W. Heller     Chairman        January 29, 1961     November 15, 1964
James Tobin          Member          January 29, 1961     July 31, 1962
Kermit Gordon        Member          January 29, 1961     December 27, 1962
Gardner Ackley       Member          August 3, 1962
Chairman        November 16, 1964    February 15, 1968
John P. Lewis        Member          May 17, 1963         August 31, 1964
Otto Eckstein        Member          September 2, 1964    February 1, 1966
Arthur M. Okun       Member          November 16, 1964
Chairman        February 15, 1968    January 20, 1969
James S. Duesenberry Member          February 2, 1966     June 30, 1968
Merton J. Peck       Member          February 15, 1968    January 20, 1969
Warren L. Smith      Member          July 1, 1968         January 20, 1969
Paul W. McCracken    Chairman        February 4, 1969     December 31, 1971
Hendrik S. Houthakker Member         February 4, 1969     July 15, 1971
Herbert Stein        Member          February 4, 1969
Chairman        January 1, 1972      August 31, 1974
Ezra Solomon         Member          September 9, 1971    March 26, 1973
Marina v.N. Whitman  Member          March 13, 1972       August 15, 1973
Gary L. Seevers      Member          July 23, 1973        April 15, 1975
William J. Fellner   Member          October 31, 1973     February 25, 1975
Alan Greenspan       Chairman        September 4, 1974    January 20, 1977
Paul W. MacAvoy      Member          June 13, 1975        November 15, 1976
Burton G. Malkiel    Member          July 22, 1975        January 20, 1977
Charles L. Schultze  Chairman        January 22, 1977     January 20, 1981
William D. Nordhaus  Member          March 18, 1977       February 4, 1979
Lyle E. Gramley      Member          March 18, 1977       May 27, 1980
George C. Eads       Member          June 6, 1979         January 20, 1981
Stephen M. Goldfeld  Member          August 20, 1980      January 20, 1981
Murray L. Weidenbaum Chairman        February 27, 1981    August 25, 1982
William A. Niskanen  Member          June 12, 1981        March 30, 1985
Jerry L. Jordan      Member          July 14, 1981        July 31, 1982
Martin Feldstein     Chairman        October 14, 1982     July 10, 1984
William Poole        Member          December 10, 1982    January 20, 1985
Beryl W. Sprinkel    Chairman        April 18, 1985       January 20, 1989
Thomas Gale Moore    Member          July 1, 1985         May 1, 1989
Michael L. Mussa     Member          August 18, 1986      September 19, 1988
Michael J. Boskin    Chairman        February 2, 1989     January 12, 1993
John B. Taylor       Member          June 9, 1989         August 2, 1991
Richard L. Schmalensee Member        October 3, 1989      June 21, 1991
David F. Bradford    Member          November 13, 1991    January 20, 1993
Paul Wonnacott       Member          November 13, 1991    January 20, 1993
Laura D'Andrea Tyson Chair           February 5, 1993     April 22, 1995
Alan S. Blinder      Member          July 27, 1993        June 26, 1994
Joseph E. Stiglitz   Member          July 27, 1993
Chairman        June 28, 1995        February 10, 1997
Martin N. Baily      Member          June 30, 1995        August 30, 1996
Alicia H. Munnell    Member          January 29, 1996     August 1, 1997
Janet L. Yellen      Chair           February 18, 1997    August 3, 1999
Jeffrey A. Frankel   Member          April 23, 1997       March 2, 1999
Rebecca M. Blank     Member          October 22, 1998     July 9, 1999
Martin N. Baily      Chairman        August 12, 1999      January 19, 2001
Robert Z. Lawrence   Member          August 12, 1999      January 12, 2001
Kathryn L. Shaw      Member          May 31, 2000         January 19, 2001
R. Glenn Hubbard     Chairman        May 11, 2001         February 28, 2003
Mark B. McClellan    Member          July 25, 2001        November 13, 2002
Randall S. Kroszner  Member          November 30, 2001    July 1, 2003
N. Gregory Mankiw    Chairman        May 29, 2003         February 18, 2005
Kristin J. Forbes    Member          November 21, 2003    June 3, 2005
Harvey S. Rosen      Member          November 21, 2003
Chairman        February 23, 2005    June 10, 2005
Ben S. Bernanke      Chairman        June 21, 2005        January 31, 2006
Katherine Baicker    Member          November 18, 2005    July 11, 2007
Matthew J. Slaughter Member          November 18, 2005    March 1, 2007
edward P. Lazear     Chairman        February 27, 2006    January 20, 2009
Donald B. Marron     Member          July 17, 2008        January 20, 2009
Christina D. Romer   Chair           January 29, 2009     September 3, 2010
Austan D. Goolsbee   Member          March 11, 2009
Chairman        September 10, 2010
Cecilia Elena Rouse  Member          March 11, 2009





REPORT TO THE PRESIDENT
ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE
COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS
DURING 2010



The Council of economic Advisers was established by the employment Act
of 1946 to provide the President with objective economic analysis
and advice on the development and implementation of a wide range of
domestic and international economic policy issues. the Council
consists of a Chairman and two members appointed by the President
and confirmed by the United States Senate.


THE CHAIR OF THE COUNCIL

Austan d. Goolsbee, who had been a Member of the Council since 2009,
was appointed Chairman of the Council on September 10, 2010.
Chairman Goolsbee is on a leave of absence from the University of
Chicago, where he is the Robert P. Gwinn Professor of economics at
the Booth School of Business. He also served as the Chief economist
and Staff Director of the President's economic Recovery Advisory Board
for the duration of its existence from 2009 to 2011.

The Chairman is a member of the President's Cabinet and is responsible
for communicating the Council's views on economic matters directly
to the President through personal discussions and written reports.
Chairman Goolsbee represents the Council at the Presidential economic
briefings, daily White House senior staff meetings, budget meetings,
Cabinet meetings, a variety of inter-agency meetings, and meetings
with the President, the Vice President, and other senior government
officials. He also meets frequently with members of Congress as well
as with business, academic and labor leaders to discuss ideas about
the economy.

Christina D. Romer resigned as Chair in September 2010 to return to
the University of California, Berkeley, where she is the Class of
1957 -Garff B. Wilson Professor of economics.



THE MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL

Cecilia Elena Rouse was nominated by the President on January 20,
2009, confirmed by the Senate on March 10, and took her oath of
office on March 11. Dr. Rouse is on a leave of absence from
Princeton University, where she is the Theodore A. Wells '29 Professor
of economics and Public Affairs. Dr. Rouse represents the Council
at a wide variety of meetings and frequently attends meetings with
the President and the Vice President. Dr. Rouse works closely with
the Chairman on all issues before the Council, and especially on
those related to labor, education, housing, and international trade.



AREAS OF ACTIVITY

Macroeconomic Policies

A central function of the Council is to advise the President on all
major macroeconomic issues and developments. the Council is actively
involved in all aspects of macroeconomic policy. In 2010, the
central macroeconomic issues included formulating targeted measures
to spur job creation; evaluating the effects of the policies and
the economy's response; reforming financial regulation; monitoring
the financial and economic recovery; providing analysis on the economic
effects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009;
innovation and infrastructure; and setting priorities for the
budget. the Council works closely with various government agencies,
the Office of Management and Budget, the National economic Council,
White House senior staff, and other officials.

The Council prepares for the President, the Vice President, and the
White House senior staff a daily economic briefing memo analyzing
current economic developments, and almost-daily memos on key
economic data releases. It also issues reports periodically on
economic issues.

The Council, the Department of Treasury, and the Office of
Management and Budget--the Administration's economic
``troika''--are responsible for producing the economic forecasts
that underlie the Administration's budget proposals. the Council
initiates the forecasting process twice each year, consulting with
a wide variety of outside sources, including leading private sector
forecasters and other government agencies.

The Council continued its efforts to improve the public's under-
standing of economic developments and of the Administration's
economic policies through briefings with the economic and financial
press, discussions with outside economists, presentations to
outside organizations, and regular updates on major data releases on
the CEA blog. the Chairman and Members also regularly met to exchange
views on the macroeconomy with the Chairman and Members of the Board
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.



Microeconomic Policies

Throughout the year, the Council was an active participant in the
analysis and consideration of a broad range of microeconomic policy
issues. As with macroeconomic policy, the Council works closely with
other agencies and White House senior staff on these issues. Among
the specific microeconomic issues that received particular attention
in 2010 were unemployment insurance, health insurance reform,
financial regulatory reform, housing finance, education, access to
post-secondary education, small business lending, foreclosure
mitigation and prevention, the role of cost-benefit analysis in
regulatory policy, and the economic effects of the Gulf Coast oil
spill.


International Economic Policies

The Council was involved in a range of international trade and finance
issues, with a particular emphasis on the consequences of the
international financial crisis and the related global economic
slowdown. the Council was an active participant in discussions at
global and bilateral levels. Council Members and staff regularly met
with economists, policy officials, and government officials of
other countries to discuss issues relating to the global economy
and participated in the Strategic and economic Dialogue with China
in May 2010.

The Council was particularly active in examining policies that could
help the global economy recover from the crisis. It carefully tracked
world economic developments and considered the potential medium-run
impacts of the current crisis. the Council's role also included
policy development and planning for the G-20 Summits in Toronto
and Seoul.

The Council is a leading participant in the Organization for economic
Cooperation and Development (OeCD), an important forum for economic
cooperation among high-income industrial economies. the Council
coordinated and oversaw the OeCD's review of the U.S. economy. Dr. Goolsbee
is chairman of the OeCD's economic Policy Committee, and Council
staff participates actively in working-party meetings on macroeconomic
policy and coordination.

On the international trade front, the Council was an active
participant in the trade policy process, occupying a seat on the
trade Policy Staff Committee and the trade Policy Review Group. the
Council provided analysis and opinions on a range of trade-related
issues involving the enforcement of existing trade agreements, reviews
of current U.S. trade policies, and consideration of future policies.
The Council was also an active participant on the trade Promotion
Coordinating Committee, helping to examine the ways in which exports
may support economic growth in the years to come. In the area of
investment and security, the Council participated on the Committee
on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), examining
individual cases before the committee. the Council also provided
empirical analysis of the pending free trade agreement with Korea.



THE STAFF OF THE COUNCIL OF ECONOMIC ADVISERS

The staff of the Council consists of the senior staff, senior
economists, staff economists, research assistants, analysts, and
the administrative and support staff. the staff at the end of
2010 were:


Senior Staff

Senior staff play key managerial and analytical roles at the Council.
They direct operations, perform central Council functions, and
represent the Council in meetings with other agencies and White
House offices. the executive Director oversees the research staff,
as well as the development, drafting, and production of the
Economic Report of the President.


Executive Director
Nan M. Gibson


Chief of Staff
Adam Hitchcock


Chief Economist
Jay C. Shambaugh

Director of Macroeconomic Forecasting	Director of Statistical Office
Steven N. Braun                            Adrienne Pilot



Senior Economists

Senior economists are Ph.D. economists on leave from academic
institutions, government agencies, or private research institutions.
They participate actively in the policy process, represent the
Council in interagency meetings, and have primary responsibility
for the economic analysis and reports prepared by the Council,
including this Report.



Chad P. Bown ...................... International trade and Investment
Aaron Chatterji ................... Entrepreneurship, Innovation
Benjamin Jones .................... Macroeconomics, Innovation
Lisa B. Kahn ...................... Labor, Education
Arik Levinson ..................... Environment, Regulation
Helen G. Levy ..................... Health
Matthew Magura .................... Industrial Organization, Regulation
Paul A. Smith ..................... Housing, tax, Budget, Retirement



Staff Economists

Staff economists are typically graduate students on leave from
their Ph.D. training in economics. They conduct advanced statistical
analysis, contribute to reports, and generally support the
research and analysis mission of the Council.


Sayeh S. Nikpay	........................ Health
James O'Brien .......................... Energy, Environment
Jamin D. Speer ......................... Labor, Education
Reid B. Stevens ........................ Macroeconomics
Owen Zidar ............................. Housing, Finance, Public Finance


Research Assistants

Research assistants are typically college graduates with significant
coursework in economics. They conduct statistical analysis and
data collection, and generally support the research and analysis
mission of the Council. Both staff economists and research assistants
contribute to this Report and play a crucial role in ensuring the
accuracy of all Council documents.


Ravi P. Deedwania .............. Health, Labor
Nicholas W. Hagerty ............ Environment, Education, Infrastructure
Kia J. McLeod .................. Macroeconomics, Housing, Innovation
Pedro Spivakovsky-Gonzalez ..... International Economics
Julia Hanna Yoo ................ Macroeconomics


Statistical Office

The Statistical Office gathers, administers, and produces
statistical information for the Council. Duties include preparing
the statistical appendix to the Economic Report of the President
and the monthly publication Economic Indicators. The staff also
creates background materials for economic analysis and verifies
statistical content in Presidential memoranda. the Office serves
as the Council's liaison to the statistical community.

Brian A. Amorosi ............... Program Analyst
Dagmara A. Mocala .............. Program Analyst


Administrative Office

The Administrative Office provides general support for the
Council's activities. this includes financial management, ethics
compliance, human resource management, travel, operations of
facilities, security, information technology, and telecommunications
management support.


Rosemary M. Rogers ............. Administrative Officer
Doris T. Searles ............... Information Management Specialist


Office of the Chairman

Meryl Holt ................. Special Assistant to the Chairman and
Director of Strategic Initiatives
Andres Bustamante .......... Special Assistant to the Member and
Research Economist
Eric Lesser ................ Director of Strategic Planning


Staff Support

Lisa D. Branch ............. Executive Assistant
Sharon K. Thomas ........... Administrative Support Assistant


Editorial Staff

Brenda Szittya and Martha Gottron were the editors, and
Andres Bustamante provided research and editorial assistance
in the preparation, of the 2011 Economic Report of the President.


Interns

Student interns provide invaluable help with research projects,
day-to-day operations, and fact-checking. Interns during the year
were: Matthew L. Aks; Ian R. Appel; Michael D. Arena; Laura I. Blum;
Kathleen A. Choi; Greg D. Dyer; Kenneth Friede; Benjamin J. Gettinger;
David S. Gobaud; Max R. Harris; Michael P. Hupp; Peter L. Kerkhof;
Michael C. Levinson; Devin K. Mattson; Joshua Porter; Ceron J. Rhee;
NaYoung Rim; and Cole L. Scandaglia.



DEPARTURES IN 2010

Andrew Metrick left his position as Chief economist of the Council
in July to return to Yale University, where he is the Deputy Dean
for Faculty Development and Theodore Nierenberg Professor of
Corporate Finance in the Yale School of Management.
Michael B. Greenstone, Chief economist of the Council until January,
returned to the Massachusetts Institute of technology, where he
is the 3M Professor of environmental economics.

The senior economists who resigned (with the institutions to which
they returned after leaving the Council in parentheses) were:
Elizabeth O. Ananat (Duke University); Christopher D. Carroll
(Johns Hopkins University); Mark G. Duggan (University of Maryland,
College Park); W. Adam Looney (Brookings Institution);
Jesse M. Rothstein (Department of Labor; University of
California, Berkeley); and Ann Wolverton (Environmental
Protection Agency).
The staff economists who departed were Sharon e. Boyd;
Gabriel Chodorow-Reich; Laura J. Feiveson; Joshua K. Goldman;
Sarena F. Goodman; Joshua K. Hausman; Zachary D. Liscow;
William G. Woolston; and Jacqueline T. Yen. those who served as
research assistants at the Council and departed were Peter N. Ganong,
Clare M. Hove, and Michael P. Shapiro. C. Bennett Blau and
Gabrielle A. Elul served as staff assistants.

Archana A. Snyder left her position as Financial Officer to join
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as Financial Management
Analyst. Julia B. Siegel was Special Assistant to the Chair and
resigned to join the Office of Management and Budget as
Confidential Assistant.



PUBLICATIONS OF THE COUNCIL

The Council's annual Economic Report of the President is an
important vehicle for presenting the Administration's domestic
and international economic policies. It is available for purchase
through the Government Printing Office and is viewable on the
Internet at www.gpoaccess.gov/eop.
The Council prepared numerous reports in 2010, and the Chairman and
Members gave numerous public speeches and testified to Congress. The
reports, texts of speeches, and written statements accompanying
testimony are available at the Council's website, www.whitehouse.gov/cea.
Finally, the Council publishes the monthly Economic Indicators, which
is available on-line at www.gpo.gov/economicindicators.