American Council of Life Insurers President & CEO Dirk Kempthorne issued the following statement on Department of Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta’s announcement that the applicability date of significant provisions of the fiduciary regulation will not be delayed beyond June 9:

Washington, D.C. (May 23, 2017) – “The American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) is disappointed that on June 9 a regulation will go into effect that significantly harms consumers’ ability to plan and save for financially secure retirements. Even Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta acknowledges that the fiduciary regulation needs further review.

“As currently written, the regulation limits retirement savers’ access to education and information about annuities, the only financial products in the marketplace that guarantee lifetime income.

 “ACLI supports reasonable and appropriately tailored rules that require all sales professionals to act in the best interest of their customers. The fiduciary regulation unfortunately does not meet this standard. We are committed to working with the administration, Congress and the states on public policies that help Americans achieve their financial and retirement security goals.”