Washington, D.C., (March 20, 2013) – ACLI President & CEO Dirk Kempthorne announced today the appointment of Kathleen F. “Kate” Kiernan as ACLI Vice President, Chief Counsel and Deputy, State Relations. Reporting to J. Bruce Ferguson, ACLI Senior Vice President, State Relations, Ms. Kiernan will help oversee a team that represents life insurers in state legislatures throughout the United States.

Ms. Kiernan has been with ACLI since November 2009, when she was named Senior Counsel of State Relations. She was promoted to Regional Vice President in November 2011. In these positions, Ms. Kiernan represented ACLI member companies before state legislatures and insurance departments in such states as New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut.

Prior to joining ACLI, Ms. Kiernan served as Assistant Vice President and Counsel with MassMutual Financial Group and Legislative Council with the Connecticut Department of Insurance. She has a B.A. from Mount Holyoke College and a J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law.

“Since joining ACLI, Kate has been an outstanding representative of our industry and the consumers who rely on us for their financial and retirement security. Her dedication and personal commitment to ACLI and the values we stand for is inspirational. ACLI is a better, more effective association thanks to Kate’s talents and personal qualities. I congratulate her on her appointment,” said Dirk Kempthorne, ACLI President and CEO.

“Kate brings great energy, intellect and integrity to her activities. She has earned the respect of policymakers around the country and her colleagues here at ACLI,” said Bruce Ferguson, Senior Vice President, State Relations.

The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association with more than 300 member companies operating in the United States and abroad. ACLI advocates in federal, state, and international forums for public policy that supports the industry marketplace and the 75 million American families that rely on life insurers’ products for financial and retirement security. ACLI members offer life insurance, annuities, retirement plans, long-term care and disability income insurance, and reinsurance, representing more than 90 percent of industry assets and premiums. Learn more at www.acli.com.