CAMPAIGN ’88 : PUSH to Settle Claims

The Justice Department said Friday that the PUSH-Excel program founded by the Rev. Jesse Jackson will pay the government $550,000 to settle more than $1 million in claims arising from federal grants and contracts awarded by the departments of Labor and Education.

Government audits indicated that some expenditures of Chicago-based Push for Excellence Inc. either did not comply with terms of the contracts and grants or were not properly documented, the Justice Department said in a statement.

The program will pay $100,000 initially, with the remainder to be paid in quarterly installments over a five-year period.

The contracts and grants were awarded to the organization in the late 1970s and early 1980s to finance programs designed to assist minority children.

The Labor Department had made a claim against Push for Excellence Inc. for $434,600, plus $54,100 in interest, as of 1985.

The Education Department had asserted a claim of $671,300, plus $61,800 in interest, as of June, 1987.

Jackson, asked about the settlement Friday as he campaigned on behalf of Democratic presidential nominee Michael S. Dukakis, said: “I’m sure the organization will comply.” He said he had not been aware of the settlement and pointed out that he is no longer on PUSH-Excel’s board.