(Reuters) - U.S. auto safety advocacy group Center for Auto Safety has appointed an official with a track record in federal government consumer protection agencies as its new executive director, the industry body said on Tuesday.

Jason Levine, who spent about six years at the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission during the administration of former president Barack Obama, succeeds Clarence Ditlow, who died in November last year.

Levine has also served in the Federal Election Commission and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Center for Auto Safety was founded in 1970 by consumer rights advocate Ralph Nader and Consumers Union.