WASHINGTON, June 20 (UPI) -- U.S. Justice Department official J. Robert Flores is being investigated for alleged ties to groups to whom he awarded funds, federal officials said.
Flores is head of the department's office that awards juvenile justice and crime prevention grants.
A House panel quizzed Flores about authorizing grants to the World Golf Foundation's First Tee initiative, which has former president George H.W. Bush as its honorary chairman, and to a sexual abstinence program promoted by Best Buddies, led by the wife of former Reagan official Bill Bennett, The Washington Post reported.
Non-profit groups focusing on child protection raised complaints that they weren't awarded funding, even though they achieved higher staff rankings than other grant-seekers.
Flores also is being investigated for his hiring practices and travel expense claims.
"The question before this committee is whether the grant solicitation was a rigged game, and whether it has best served children around the country," House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said during hearings Thursday.
Flores said he has authority to override staff recommendations and made grant decisions based on the merits of the applications, not because of personal ties or religious beliefs.
