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ISCR Case 22-00990 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 22-00990

A decided public DOHA case, shown for research — not advice or a prediction.

Case Profile
Decision Date8/31/2023
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Robert E. Coacher
Government Counsel: Andrew H. Henderson
Case Summary
the presence or absence of rehabilitation and other pertinent behavioral changes; (7) the motivation for the conduct; (8) the potential for pressure, coercion, or duress; and (9) the likelihood of continuation or recurrence.
The applicant, a 45-year-old employee of a defense contractor, faced security concerns under Guideline F regarding financial considerations. The Statement of Reasons (SOR) indicated that he owed approximately $8,742 in federal taxes for 2017 and $1,082 for 2018, along with about $39,000 in various delinquent accounts. The applicant admitted to these debts, attributing some to an erroneous tax return filed by his preparer. He documented efforts to resolve his tax issues and had begun making payments to the IRS, but he had not made any payments toward his other debts and admitted to living beyond his means.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he had not mitigated the financial concerns. The judge found that the applicant's financial problems were recent and unresolved, and he had not demonstrated responsible behavior in addressing his debts. Although the applicant had taken steps to manage his tax obligations, the overall lack of action regarding his other debts led to the denial of his eligibility for access to classified information.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 22-00990

deniedAug 31, 2023· Hon. Robert E. Coacher· hearing

Summary

A 45-year-old defense contractor employee was denied a security clearance under Guideline F, Financial Considerations, due to unresolved financial issues. The Statement of Reasons detailed two primary allegations: the applicant owed approximately $8,742 from his 2017 federal tax return and about $1,082 from his 2018 federal tax return. Additionally, the applicant had 10 delinquent accounts totaling approximately $39,000.

Disqualifying conditions under Guideline F were raised, specifically AG ¶ 19(a), AG ¶ 19(c), and AG ¶ 19(f). While mitigating conditions AG ¶ 20(b) and AG ¶ 20(e) were considered, they were not sufficient to overcome the concerns.

The denial was based on the applicant's admission to owing approximately $39,000 in delinquent debts, including the federal tax obligations. Crucially, the applicant had not made payments toward any of these delinquent debts as of the hearing date and failed to provide evidence of good-faith efforts to resolve them or seek financial counseling. Consequently, eligibility for access to classified information was denied.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant admitted to owing approximately $39,000 in delinquent debts, including federal tax debts for 2017 and 2018.
The applicant failed to make payments toward any of the delinquent debts as of the hearing date.
The applicant did not provide evidence of good-faith efforts to resolve his debts or financial counseling.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability to Satisfy Debts
AG ¶ 19(c)raisedA History of Not Meeting Financial Obligations
AG ¶ 19(f)raisedFailure to File or Fraudulently Filing Annual Federal, State, or Local Income Tax Returns or Failure to Pay Annual Federal, State, or Local Income Tax as Required

Mitigating

AG ¶ 20(b)rejectedConditions Largely Beyond the Person's ControlWhile the applicant's wife's unemployment due to the pandemic was beyond his control, he failed to address his debts responsibly.
AG ¶ 20(e)appliedIndividual Has Made Arrangements with the Appropriate Tax Authority

Key Rule Quoted

“The protection of the national security is the paramount consideration.”

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedJul 7, 2022
Answer filedAug 26, 2022
Hearing heldMay 23, 2023
Decision dateAug 31, 2023

Cite For

Denial of Security Clearance Due to Unresolved Financial Issues Under Guideline F
Failure to Demonstrate Effective Financial Management
Lack of Good-faith Efforts to Resolve Debts

Editorial summary generated for research. Not legal advice; not a prediction. Verify against the full decision before relying on any quoted language.

Standardized Decision Profile

SEAD-4 Guideline F · descriptive summary of a decided case

Posture: HearingDecided: denied

The judge found that the applicant had significant financial issues, including unpaid federal taxes and multiple delinquent accounts totaling approximately $39,000. Although the applicant had made some efforts to address his tax debts, the overall financial situation was deemed unresolved and not consistent with the national interest, leading to a denial of the security clearance.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant owed approximately $8,742 from his 2017 federal tax return and approximately $1,082 from his 2018 federal tax return. $8,742	Against Applicant	Tax Unpaid	Admitted	—	(e) reasonable, documented basis to dispute the debt	Documented Payment Plan with IRS Claimed Other
1.b	Applicant owed 10 delinquent accounts totaling approximately $39,000. $39,000	Against Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	—	—	—

Descriptive standardized rendering of a decided public case (Guideline F). The verbatim source decision is shown in full below.

Full decision

The complete, official text — footnotes and signatures included — is in the original PDF.