Kenneth D. Simonson

Ken Simonson has been the chief economist of the Associated General Contractors of America, a leading trade association for the construction industry, since 2001. He provides insight into the economy and what it implies for construction and related industries through frequent media interviews, presentations, and the Data DIGest, his weekly one-page e-newsletter that goes to 20,000 subscribers.

Previously, he was senior policy advisor to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy, U.S. Small Business Administration (1998-2001); vice president and chief economist, American Trucking Associations (1985-1998); policy advisor to the President’s Commission on Industrial Competitiveness (1983-1985); senior tax economist and director of federal budget policy, U.S. Chamber of Commerce (1978-1983); research economist, Federal Home Loan Bank Board (1977-1978); and economist, Norman B. Ture, Inc. (1972-1977).

He is a Fellow and past president (2012-2013) of the National Association for Business Economics (NABE), a professional organization for individuals who use economics in their work. He served on NABE’s board (2005-2008 and 2011-2015) and has been an analyst and spokesperson since 2005 for NABE’s Outlook, Business Conditions, and Policy surveys.

Ken is the co-founder and co-director since 1982 of the Tax Economists Forum, a 600-member meeting group for economists engaged in tax research and policy.

He was an appointed member of the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Data Users Advisory Committee (2012-2018) and the U.S. Census Bureau’s Census Scientific Advisory Committee (2014-2020).

He was a board member of the National Tax Association (2007-2010) and served the National Economists Club as vice president for programs (1999), president (2000) and chair (2001). He was vice president of Community Tax Aid in Washington, DC (2000-2008). He was a board member and frequently an officer of the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington (1993-2021).

Ken has a BA in economics from the University of Chicago, an MA in economics from Northwestern University, and has done graduate work at the Université de Paris, Johns Hopkins University, and Georgetown University.