Sherry Cooper, chief economist, BMO Financial Group, has joined the American Bankers Association’s Economic Advisory Committee, a group of bank economists that meets twice a year to provide perspectives on the U.S. and local economies to top policymakers and to produce an economic forecast.

Cooper just completed two days of meetings in Washington, D.C. with the members of the committee and key officials including the Federal Reserve Governors and chief economists of Fannie Mae and the Senate Banking Committee.

As part of the meetings, Cooper and BMO Capital Markets Economics provided their own forecast for the U.S. economy.

“We see continued modest growth of 2.2% this year and next, with the unemployment rate falling only slightly,” she said. “Healthy business investment, improved household finances and a firmer housing market will provide support, but higher taxes and reduced government spending, alongside eurozone jitters, will weigh.

“Our 2013 outlook assumes that lawmakers agree to allow just one-third of the scheduled tax increases to take effect. The outlook also assumes that Europe will manage to control its debt crisis, preventing further challenges to global financial markets,” noted Cooper.

Cooper also predicted that consumer spending would stay at a modest 2.2% rate this year and next, and that the housing market is now showing good affordability and pent-up demand that are supporting the market.