Kimberly-Clark VP Taxes is new President of TEI

David L. Bernard, Vice President-Taxes and Real Estate for Kimberly-Clark Corporation in Neenah, Wisconsin, has been elected the 58th President of Tax Executives Institute (TEI), effective August 15, 2006. TEI is the preeminent professional association of in-house tax practitioners, and its 6,000 members work for 2,800 of the leading companies in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia. TEI and its members are dedicated to the development and effective implementation of sound tax policy, to promoting the uniform and equitable enforcement of the tax laws, and to reducing the cost and burden of administration and compliance to the benefit of taxpayers and the government alike. The organization has 53 local chapters and comments on proposed tax legislation and regulations, sponsors educational programs, and provides its members with a forum through which they can meet with government officials, share ideas, and educate themselves about the latest developments in federal, international, and state and local taxation.

Mr. Bernard most recently served the Institute as Senior Vice President and chair of the Continuing Education Committee. A TEI member since 1985, Mr. Bernard has served as TEI’s Regional Vice President, President of the Wisconsin Chapter, and Wisconsin Chapter Representative on TEI’s Board of Directors. He was instrumental in the formation of the Northeast Wisconsin Chapter and represented that chapter on the Board until he was elected TEI’s 2003-2004 Treasurer. He has also served on TEI’s Executive Committee and as chair of TEI’s IRS Administrative Affairs Committee.

At the Board of Directors meeting immediately following his election, Mr. Bernard presented TEI’s goals for the year under the theme of TEI 2007: Building on Six Decades of Success: Member- Driven Solutions for Today, Enhanced Effectiveness for Tomorrow. The Institute’s objectives include (i) establishing a process by which the President and Senior Vice President regularly consult with the chairs of TEI’s technical committees and senior staff to develop an overall advocacy agenda; (ii) explore the creation of new chapters or “subchapters”; (iii) explore expansion of the Institute’s distance-learning offerings to include online programs; and (iv) refine and expand TEI’s effectiveness in the state and local tax arena in respect of education, advocacy, and networking.
Mr. Bernard has spent his entire career at Kimberly-Clark. He joined the company in 1974 after receiving his B.S. degree in business administration from Michigan Technological University, and subsequently earned an M.B.A. degree from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh. He was named Kimberly-Clark’s Vice President- Taxes in 1997, and recently became Vice President-Taxes and Real Estate. Mr. Bernard is a C.P.A.