The Speakers
Our lineup of speakers include industry and economic experts focused on the U.S. and the state of Montana.
Jeff Michael
Jeff Michael is the director of the Bureau of Business and Economic Research. Prior to joining BBER, Dr. Michael was director of Public Policy Programs and professor of Public Policy at the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law, executive director of the Center for Business and Policy Research in the University of the Pacific Eberhardt School of Business, and associate dean and director of the Center for Applied Business and Economic Research at Towson University (MD).
Bob Story
Bob Story has served as the executive director of the Montana Taxpayers Association since November of 2013. He is responsible for the Association’s governmental affairs activities and overseeing the daily operations of the Association. Story has extensive experience in the tax policy arena. He served sixteen years in the Montana Legislature from 1994 through 2010. He sat on the taxation committees in both the House and the Senate all of his tenure in the Legislature. He was chairman of the House Taxation Committee in 2001, and served as vice-chairman in 1997 and 1999. He was vice-chairman of the Senate Taxation Committee in 2003. He was elected President of the Montana Senate for the 2009-2010 Session.
Joel Schumacher
Joel Schumacher is an associate extension specialist and extension family and consumer science program leader at Montana State University. He holds a master’s degree in applied economics from Montana State University. His research and outreach programs focus on consumer economics, agricultural finance and rural economics. He has authored or co-authored more than two dozen educational guides and presented more than 300 educational outreach programs.
Samuel Scott
Samuel Scott is a Forest Economist with the Bureau’s Forest Industry Research Program. He holds a B.S. (University of Montana) in Forestry and an M.S. (Virginia Tech) in Forest Economics. Prior to the Bureau, Sam served as an Economist at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and worked in timber and silviculture with both the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. His primary research interests are statistical timber appraisal methods, employment and income impacts of the forest products industry across the West, and bioeconomic modeling.
Derek Sheehan
Derek Sheehan is an Economist with the Bureau of Business and Economic Research (BBER). Derek Sheehan joined the Bureau as an Economist in 2021. He holds a MA in economics from the University of Montana and holds a BA in economics from Virginia Tech. Before attending UM, Derek served as an Agroforestry Specialist in Peace Corps Senegal. Derek’s research interests include applied econometrics, natural resource economics, health economics, real estate, and spatial statistics.
Melissa Weddell
Melissa Weddell is the director of the Institute for Tourism & Recreation Research at the University of Montana. She holds a Ph.D. in Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Management from Clemson University, an MBA from Southern Illinois University, and an undergraduate degree in Small Business Management & Entrepreneurship from Ball State University. She formerly served as the department chair and professor of Recreation Management at Appalachian State University.
Keynote Speaker
Bob Story
Bob Story has served as the executive director of the Montana Taxpayers Association since November of 2013. He is responsible for the Association’s governmental affairs activities and overseeing the daily operations of the Association. Story has extensive experience in the tax policy arena. He served sixteen years in the Montana Legislature from 1994 through 2010. He sat on the taxation committees in both the House and the Senate all of his tenure in the Legislature. He was chairman of the House Taxation Committee in 2001, and served as vice-chairman in 1997 and 1999. He was vice-chairman of the Senate Taxation Committee in 2003. He was elected President of the Montana Senate for the 2009-2010 Session.