The Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority (DART) confirmed today that it has received a $6.5 million grant that will allow it to move forward with its proposed $20 million downtown transit hub, which will be located on land between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Street just south of Cherry Street. The grant was from the U.S. Department of Transportation on behalf of the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and will be coupled with the $4 million DART received as part of the I-JOBS bill in April. The Business Record reported in May that DART’s plans for the new transit hub, which would eliminate the need for the current transit mall on Walnut Street, hinged on receiving FTA funding. DART spokesman Gunnar Olson said the organization hopes to break ground by the end of the year. To read a full story about the proposed transit hub and the benefits DART feels it would provide, click here.

Principal Financial Group Inc. has scheduled the release of its second-quarter 2010 financial and operating results for 3 p.m. on Aug. 2. At 9 a.m. the following day, Larry Zimpleman, Principal’s president and CEO, and Terry Lillis, senior vice president and chief financial officer, will lead a discussion of results during a live conference call. A copy of the earnings release and financial supplement will be posted at www.principal.com/investor.

A program nicknamed “Perfect Citizen” is the government’s latest ploy to detect cyber assaults on private U.S. companies and government agencies, The Wall Street Journal reported. The National Security Agency will provide surveillance for the measure, aimed at protecting critical infrastructure such as the electricity grid and nuclear power plants. Citing anonymous sources, the Journal said the goal is to close the “big, glaring holes” in the United States’ understanding of the nature of the cyber threat against its infrastructure. It noted that Raytheon Corp., a defense contractor, recently won a classified contract for the initial phase of the surveillance effort, which is valued at up to $100 million.

The number of U.S. consumers late on their credit card payments dropped to an eight-year low in the first quarter, CNNMoney.com reported. The American Bankers Association said that high unemployment and falling home values during the recession may have led consumers to shore up their finances and banks to limit their lending. The industry group said the first quarter marked the first time since 2002 that the percentage of bank credit card accounts past due by 30 days or more dropped below 4 percent. The first-quarter rate was 3.88 percent.