New Guides and Web Site for Financial Professionals and Plan Sponsors

DES MOINES, Iowa--(BUSINESS WIRE)--It represents some of the most sweeping changes to the retirement savings landscape since the passage of the landmark Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) in 1974. But at nearly 1000 pages long, financial professionals and plan sponsors are looking for help in understanding how the new Pension Protection Act impacts them.

The Principal Financial Group®, the nation’s 401(k) leader(1) and total retirement solutions innovator, is unveiling a comprehensive educational program with easy to use tools designed to help navigate the numerous changes called for by the new retirement savings legislation. One key component of the program is a new Pension Protection Act Guide, located at www.principal.com/ppa .

“The Pension Protection Act dramatically changes the retirement savings landscape. It has the potential to help millions of Americans achieve more secure retirements,” said Daniel J. Houston, executive vice president, Retirement and Investor Services at The Principal®. “We took seriously our role as a consultant to Congress as they drafted this key legislation and we take seriously our role in helping financial professionals and our plan sponsor clients prepare for and implement the changes mandated by this historic legislation.”

The easy-to-use Pension Protection Act Guide — which is also available at The Principal Research Center http://www.principal.com/about/news/research.htm#retirement for no cost — gives plan sponsors and financial professionals the edge in understanding the immediate impact of the new law as well as how they can prepare to incorporate future requirements and optional designs into their strategies. The guide outlines many of the features of the legislation and summarizes how they may affect plan sponsors. A color-coded timeline can be used as a cross-reference to easily find the changes that apply to the four major retirement plan designs:

• Defined benefit
• Defined contribution
• Employer securities (ESOPs & KSOPs)
• Nonqualified deferred compensation

“The Principal is one of only a few retirement plan service providers that offers integrated administrative and expertise for all of the critical retirement plan design categories affected by the legislation,” said Daniel J. Houston, Executive Vice President. “We are pleased to share essential information that gives our plan sponsor clients a head start and provides financial professionals with key tools that will help them deepen relationships and grow their businesses.”

In addition to the Pension Protection Act Guide, the comprehensive program from The Principal includes compliance summaries, one-page overviews of key provisions, newsletters and web casts. For example The Principal recently co-hosted with PLANSPONSOR Magazine a web cast on cash balance plans. More web casts on the full Pension Protection Act are scheduled for later this year.

About the Principal Financial Group

The Principal Financial Group® (The Principal ®)(2) is a leader in offering businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement and investment services, life and health insurance, and banking through its diverse family of financial services companies and national network of financial professionals. A member of the Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $215.0 billion in assets under management(3) and serves some 16.4 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.

• (1)The Principal ranks number one in plans administered – 2006 Spectrem Group analysis of fully-bundled 401(k) providers.
• (2)"The Principal Financial Group" and “The Principal” are registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.
• (3)As of September 30, 2006.

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The Principal, Des Moines
Terri Hale, 515-283-8858
hale.terri@principal.com
or
Susan Houser, 515-248-2268
houser.susan@principal.com

© Business Wire 2006