Government takes back WTC grants

NEW YORK -- A government program designed to aid lower Manhattan businesses after the attack on the World Trade Center took back $1.2 million in grants it had given to 66 businesses after realizing they were overpaid.

The World Trade Center Business Recovery Grant Program mistakenly doled out too much money to the businesses, said the Empire State Development Corporation, which administers the program.

The agency told The New York Times that the grant applications were not necessarily fraudulent, but that information in some cases raised questions during audits conducted by state and federal officials.

"Some cases involved figures they gave us that on auditing didn't match up," said Kevin Corbett, the agency's chief operating officer.