Arthur B. Laffer is the founder and chairman of Laffer Associates, an economic research and consulting firm that provides global investment-research services to institutional asset managers, pension funds, financial institutions, and corporations. Dr. Laffer is also a founding member of the Congressional Policy Advisory Board, a select group of advisors who assist in shaping legislative policies for the 105th, 106th and 107th United States Congress. He was a member of President Reagan's Economic Policy Advisory Board for both of his two terms, a member of the executive committee of the Reagan/Bush Finance Committee, and a founding member of the Reagan executive advisory committee for the presidential race of 1980. From 1972 to 1977, Dr. Laffer was a consultant to Secretary of the Treasury William Simon, Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld and Secretary of the Treasury George Shultz. He was the first to hold the title of Chief Economist at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under Mr. Shultz from October 1970 to July 1972. Dr. Laffer has received two Graham and Dodd Awards from the Financial Analyst Federation for outstanding feature articles published in the Financial Analysts Journal; the Distinguished Service Award by the National Association of Investment Clubs; the Adam Smith Award for his insights and contributions to the Wealth of Nations; and the Daniel Webster Award for public speaking by the International Platform Association. Dr. Laffer received a B.A. in Economics from Yale University in 1963. He received a MBA and a Ph.D. in Economics from Stanford University in 1965 and 1971 respectively.