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ISCR Case 22-01916 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 22-01916

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

Case Profile
Decision Date6/11/2024
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeADP POSITION
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Pamela C. Benson
Government Counsel: Cassie L. Ford
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 47-year-old individual seeking a public trust position with a federal contractor. The Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) reviewed her eligibility based on allegations related to financial considerations, specifically her failure to file federal and state income tax returns for 2020 and 2021, and her accumulation of approximately $19,554 in delinquent debts. The Statement of Reasons (SOR) outlined these concerns under the Department of Defense Directive 5220.6 and Security Executive Agent Directive 4.
During the hearing, the applicant admitted to not filing her tax returns and acknowledged her delinquent debts, primarily related to unpaid medical services. She attributed her financial difficulties to a back injury that led to job loss in 2018 and subsequent sporadic employment. Although she expressed intentions to resolve her tax issues and debts, she had not established any payment plans or taken significant steps to address her financial obligations. The administrative judge noted that the applicant's financial issues were ongoing and not sufficiently mitigated by her explanations.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that she had not demonstrated responsible behavior regarding her financial situation. The judge emphasized that the applicant's failure to file tax returns and her significant debts raised serious trustworthiness concerns, which were not alleviated by her claims of hardship. Consequently, the applicant's eligibility for access to sensitive information was denied.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 22-01916

deniedJun 11, 2024· Hon. Pamela C. Benson· hearing

Summary

A 47-year-old woman was denied eligibility for a public trust position under Guideline F (Financial Considerations) due to significant financial issues. The Statement of Reasons alleged that she failed to file federal and State X income tax returns for 2020 and 2021. Additionally, she admitted to 39 delinquent debts, totaling approximately $19,554.

The denial was based on several disqualifying conditions, including a failure to file tax returns since 2020 and numerous delinquent debts. The applicant provided no evidence of payment or communication with creditors regarding these outstanding obligations.

Ultimately, the judge determined that the applicant did not demonstrate responsible financial behavior or make sufficient efforts to resolve her financial issues, leading to the denial of her application.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant failed to file any income tax returns since 2020.
She has numerous delinquent debts totaling approximately $19,554, with no evidence of payment or communication with creditors.
The applicant did not demonstrate responsible financial behavior or efforts to resolve her financial issues.

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

Key Rule Quoted

“Failure to live within one’s means, satisfy debts, and meet financial obligations may indicate poor self-control, lack of judgment, or unwillingness to abide by rules and regulations, all of which can raise questions about an individual’s reliability, trustworthiness, and ability to protect classified or sensitive information.”
— AG ¶ 18

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedSep 29, 2022
Answer filed—Applicant responded undated.
Hearing heldApr 3, 2024Hearing was continued due to technical issues.
Decision dateJun 11, 2024

Cite For

Insufficient Evidence of Responsible Financial Behavior Under Guideline F
Failure to Mitigate Financial Considerations Trustworthiness Concerns
Impact of Unfiled Tax Returns on Eligibility for Public Trust Positions

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 failed to file her federal and state income tax returns for 2020 and 2021, and admitted to having 39 delinquent debts totaling approximately $19,554. The judge ruled against the applicant on all allegations under Guideline F, citing insufficient evidence of responsible action to resolve her financial issues.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant failed to file her 2020 and 2021 federal income tax returns.	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	(f) failure to file / fraudulent filing of tax returns or unpaid tax	—	—
1.b	Applicant failed to file her State X income tax returns for the same years.	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	(f) failure to file / fraudulent filing of tax returns or unpaid tax	—	—
1.c	Applicant admitted 39 delinquent debts totaling approximately $19,554. $19,554	Against Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	(a) inability to satisfy debts (c) a history of not meeting financial obligations	—	—

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.