, Today, as President Bush speaks
to a crowd in State College on the future of Social Security, AARP members in
Pennsylvania are sending a clear message: "Don't let a solution become worse
than the problem.
"We recognize that the debate over Social Security is only beginning and
we plan to participate vigorously in this discussion .

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In fact, according
to our recent Principal Financial Well-Being Index (a regular study of
American workers' views on financial security) workers are
increasingly concerned about their long-term financial futures.
And concerning Social Security, the survey found that nearly 7 in
10 (68 percent) of today's workers are skeptical that Social Security
will be able to provide them benefits of at least equal value to those
current retirees receive.

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They would cut guaranteed benefits, create a mountain of debt, and
pass a huge bill on to future generations," said Desiree Petrus, Associate
State Director for Advocacy, AARP Pennsylvania."

AARP has over 1.

Contact: Pennsylvania State Office
Angela Foreshaw
215-519-4648
aforeshaw@aarp .org

About the Principal Financial Group

The Principal Financial Group(R) (The Principal (R))(1) 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. For more
information , visit www.principal.

Social Security reform is a hotly debated topic.

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"

This proportion has remained relatively
constant in recent years and did not change in the 2005 RCS, even as
policymakers began discussing major changes in the federal pension
system.com

(1)"The Principal Financial Group" and "The Principal" are
registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc.

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"While we appreciate the fact that the
President has pushed Social Security to the top of the nation's domestic issue
agenda, we disagree strongly with his support for private accounts. "We are committed to working with both political parties to help
ensure that Social Security remains strong," adds Petrus.S."
Currently, more than 3 in 4 eligible workers (78 percent) are
offered retirement plans where employers match all or part of their
workers' contributions, the survey found. Eighty-two percent of
eligible workers said they signed up for their employer's retirement
savings plan. is traded on the
New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG.

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AARP is a nonprofit,
nonpartisan membership organization dedicated to making life better for people
50 and over.

Business Editors

WASHINGTON ----What does it take to
get workers to save more in their retirement plan? Based on the 401(k)
experience , the message from workers is clear: Show me the money--the
matching money--according to the 2005 Retirement Confidence Survey
(RCS) released today.

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(2)As of December 31, 2004

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They want
more "do-it-for-me" tools and services to meet their long-term
security needs, such as target date funds, professionally managed
accounts and automatic deferral step-up programs.

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Latinos Have a Real Stake in Outcome of Debate

WASHINGTON, Recognizing that Hispanics are the most
vulnerable demographic group with regard to Social Security, the National
Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and
advocacy organization in the U., today welcomed the President's call for a
public debate on how to ensure the long-term solvency of a program that has
contributed so much to the financial well-being of Americans over the last
several decades.2% of the nation's senior population. About two-thirds (66 percent) of noncontributing workers
said automatic enrollment in a retirement plan upon being hired would
make them very likely or somewhat likely to participate.7 billion in
assets under management(2) and serves some 14.

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AARP believes the so-called "progressive price indexing" of benefits would
break the Social Security promise by cutting benefits much too deeply for
middle-income Americans, and by undermining the fundamental strength of the
system. Forty-one
percent of Hispanics receiving Social Security rely on it as their sole source
of income, the highest of any ethnic group. It is clear that Hispanics have a profound stake in this debate,"
stated Janet Murguia, NCLR President and CEO.

These sites cover the political spectrum on what should, or shouldn't, be done to fix this New Deal-era program.

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Workers are finally getting the message that their employer-sponsored
benefits are extremely important to their future security., a
member of the Principal Financial Group.

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"With these values as a guide," said Petrus, "AARP is calling on members
of Congress to work in a bipartisan fashion toward future retirement security
for the American people. Nearly three-fourths (72
percent) said an employer matching contribution of up to 5 percent of
their salary would make them much more likely or somewhat more likely
to participate in a retirement savings plan at work.
The RCS, first released in 1991 , is a comprehensive study of the
attitudes and behaviors of American workers and retirees toward
saving, retirement planning, and long-term financial security.

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AARP Calls on All Parties to Work to Keep Social Security Strong

HARRISBURG, Pa.

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org

Equally important, Hispanics will make up 17.1% of all workers in 2030, making
them an ever-growing proportion of those supporting the Social Security
system. The study
found that a majority of workers not contributing to their employer's
retirement plan cited three other factors that also could make them
more likely to participate in a workplace saving plan:

An investment option that automatically provides workers a
more conservative investment allocation as their retirement
date approaches , such as the "lifestyle" funds some providers
currently offer (cited by 66 percent of nonparticipating
workers).

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Making moderate changes to Social Security
now, will provide a strong financial foundation for future retirees. This means:

-- A predictable and stable foundation that provides a risk-free
retirement benefit that can't be outlived -- for all who contribute;
-- Disability and survivor benefits to protect workers and their
families;
-- Full participation -- so the solution is fair to everyone;
-- Adequate benefits for low-wage retirees -- to assure at least a
minimum standard in retirement;
-- Benefits based on contributions for all who pay into Social Security;
and
-- Annual adjustments that keep benefits up with the cost of living.
"We are acutely concerned about the future of Social Security.

Less than half of workers not contributing to their employer's
plan backed two other options: 49 percent said they would be more
likely to participate in a retirement savings plan that included a set
of mutual fund investment options with a pre-set mix of conservative,
moderate and aggressive investments; and 35 percent said they would be
more likely to join a plan in which a professional financial manager
made investment decisions based on the results of a questionnaire
workers completed.9 million customers
worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and
the United States.

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ebri. A member of the
Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $168.

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and
was underwritten by the Principal Financial Group,(R) the nation's
401(k) leader and total retirement solutions innovator.

A provision that automatically raises workers' contributions
by a fixed amount or percentage when they receive a pay raise
(cited by 55 percent of nonparticipating workers).

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"
AARP members in Pennsylvania realize the time has come to focus on finding
bipartisan and workable solutions to help ensure that Social Security remains
strong for future generations. Tough,
sensible decisions must be made to ensure that the changes we make to Social
Security will benefit all Americans.

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8 million members in Pennsylvania. But make no mistake , we
will not automatically accept or dismiss any reform plan based on ideological
or partisan considerations.
According to Dan Houston, senior vice president at the Principal
Financial Group , "The EBRI research validates what plan sponsors,
individual investors and their advisors tell us every day.

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Private
accounts that drain money out of Social Security clearly are not a solvency
option .
Future generations of Americans deserve a Social Security program that
ensures that benefits remain adequate and secure.
Complete RCS results are available on the EBRI Web site at
www. Principal Financial Group, Inc.

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2005 Retirement Confidence Survey: How to Increase Worker Savings? 401ks Provide Ideas

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NCLR Welcomes Debate on Future of Social Security

Instead, we will hold all proposals to a single,
fact-based standard -- is it fair to the nation's 40 million Americans of
Hispanic descent? The stakes are too high, and the opportunity is too great,
to do anything less.
The survey was conducted by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit
Research Institute (EBRI) and Mathew Greenwald + Associates , Inc.
The new Retirement Confidence Survey findings are of particular
relevance as Congress debates restructuring Social Security to provide
voluntary individual investment accounts: Even if such accounts were
created, the currently low national savings rates suggests there would
be challenges getting many people to use them.

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We provide information and resources; engage in legislative,
regulatory and legal advocacy; assist members in serving their communities;
and offer a wide range of unique benefits, special products and services for
our members. And by the year 2030, the number
of Hispanic elderly will triple to 11.

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New questions in the 15th annual RCS included a range of options
that could persuade workers not contributing to their employment-based
retirement savings plan to participate .

A matching contribution by the employer of up to 3 percent of
workers' salary (cited by 51 percent of nonparticipating
workers).

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