Donald R. Leavens, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association’s Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, holds a Ph.D. in economics from George Mason University.  He also received a master’s degree in economics from Virginia Tech and a bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Virginia.

At NEMA, he heads an in-house consulting operation known as NEMA Business Information Services, which provides econometric and scenario modeling, macroeconomic forecasting, market research, economic analysis, and industry data collection services to a wide range of businesses including many of the world’s largest companies.  The Wall Street Journal has acknowledged NEMA/BIS as consistently among the most accurate forecasters on its panel of nationally recognized economist forecasters. He is a frequent speaker at industry and company events where he focuses on the economic outlook and business trends.

Prior to joining NEMA, he served as Director Tax Policy Research for the National Association of Realtors and Director Federal Budget Policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and has held academic appointments at George Mason University and Virginia Tech. He has also written articles on public choice and public finance economics that have appeared in academic journals and has contributed articles to several books.  In addition, he has served as a member of the Governor of Virginia’s Advisory Board of Economists.