Washington D.C., Sep 29, 2011 / 04:12 am
The U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce has launched an investigation into the Planned Parenthood Federation of America and its affiliates to determine whether the organization is violating regulations on taxpayer funding or failing to report criminal activity.
“The Committee has questions about the policies in place and actions undertaken by PPFA and its affiliates relating to its use of federal funding and its compliance with federal restrictions on the funding of abortion,” said Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.), chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, in a Sept. 15 letter to Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards.
The committee gave Planned Parenthood two weeks to provide documents pertaining to its billing practices, use of federal funds, and procedures regarding detecting and reporting criminal conduct including sex abuse and sex trafficking.
Among the documents requested were all internal audits conducted by Planned Parenthood and its affiliates from 1998 to 2010, as well as any audits by state agencies since 1991 that are not publicly available.