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ISCR Case 22-01126 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 22-01126

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

Case Profile
Decision Date11/15/2023
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Robert E. Coacher
Government Counsel: Jeff A. Nagel
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 32-year-old technology specialist employed by a defense contractor since December 2019. The Department of Defense issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) citing security concerns under Guideline F, specifically related to financial considerations. The SOR alleged that the applicant had nine delinquent student loans totaling approximately $40,000 and failed to file his federal and state income tax returns from 2017 to 2021.
The applicant admitted to the allegations regarding his student loans and acknowledged that he had not made any payments, attributing this to a misunderstanding about the status of the loans and a lack of follow-up. He also admitted to failing to file his tax returns, claiming he lacked the means to do so and only sought assistance after receiving the SOR. Despite his claims of having filed the returns, he did not provide sufficient documentation to support this assertion, and his tax issues remained unresolved.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he had not mitigated the financial concerns raised. The judge found that the applicant's financial difficulties were not largely beyond his control and noted that his actions to address the issues were only prompted by the SOR. The judge emphasized that the applicant's lack of a track record of financial responsibility and the unresolved nature of his debts raised significant questions about his reliability and trustworthiness, leading 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. 22-01126

deniedNov 15, 2023· Hon. Robert E. Coacher· hearing

Summary

A 32-year-old technology specialist was denied a security clearance under Guideline F, Financial Considerations, due to unresolved financial issues. The Statement of Reasons cited nine delinquent student loans, totaling approximately $40,000, which were in collection status. Additionally, the applicant failed to file required federal and state income tax returns from 2017 to 2021.

Disqualifying conditions under Guideline F were raised, specifically concerning a history of not meeting financial obligations and an unwillingness to resolve debts. While mitigating conditions were considered, the administrative judge determined that the applicant did not provide sufficient evidence to overcome the financial concerns.

The judge found that the applicant's delinquent student loans remained unpaid and that the failure to file tax returns for multiple years demonstrated a lack of financial responsibility. Consequently, the applicant was denied eligibility for access to classified information.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant had nine delinquent student loans totaling approximately $40,000 that remained unpaid.
The applicant failed to file federal and state tax returns from 2017 to 2021, raising concerns about financial responsibility.

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

Mitigating

AG ¶ 20(b)rejectedConditions Beyond the Person's ControlThe applicant did not demonstrate that the financial issues were beyond his control.
AG ¶ 20(g)rejectedArrangements with Tax AuthorityThe applicant failed to provide documentation of arrangements with tax authorities.

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedNov 2, 2022
Answer filed—
Hearing heldSep 12, 2023
Decision dateNov 15, 2023

Cite For

Failure to Demonstrate Financial Responsibility Under Guideline F
Impact of Unresolved Financial Issues on Security Clearance Eligibility
Rejection of Mitigating Conditions Due to Lack of Evidence

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 against the applicant on financial considerations due to nine delinquent student loans totaling approximately $40,000 and failure to file federal and state income tax returns from 2017 to 2021. The applicant admitted to the debts but did not provide sufficient evidence of mitigation, leading to a denial of security clearance.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant has nine delinquent student loans, in collection status, totaling approximately $40,000. $40,000	Against Applicant	Student Loan Debt	Admitted	—	—	—
1.j	Applicant failed to file his 2017 to 2021 federal and state income tax returns, as required.	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other

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.