WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Education is launching an investigation into whether Penn State officials broke federal law by not reporting sexual abuse allegations to proper authorities.

Officials said Wednesday that they will look into whether the school violated the Clery Act, which requires colleges and universities to prepare, publish and distribute an annual security report disclosing all criminal offenses reported to campus security or local police.

The department is responsible for compliance with the act, which is named for Jeanne Clery, a 19-year-old Lehigh University student who was raped and murdered by another student in her dorm room in 1986.

“If these allegations of sexual abuse are true then this is a horrible tragedy for those young boys,” Education Secretary Arne Duncan said in a statement. “If it turns out that some people at the school knew of the abuse and did nothing or covered it up, that makes it even worse.