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ISCR Case 22-02335 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 22-02335

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

Case Profile
Decision Date8/29/2024
Statusgranted
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Judge: Nichole L. Noel
Government Counsel: John G. Hannick
Applicant's Counsel: Samir Nakhleh
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 41-year-old cybersecurity professional who had worked for a federal contracting company since 2009. The Department of Defense (DOD) issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) citing financial considerations as the basis for denying his security clearance. The SOR alleged that the applicant had two delinquent consumer accounts totaling $8,101 and 19 federal student loans amounting to $127,098, with the last payment made in December 2016. The applicant's financial difficulties were attributed to his grief following the death of his mother in December 2015, which led him to neglect his financial obligations.
During the hearing, the applicant admitted to the delinquent debts but explained that he had taken steps to address them after receiving the SOR. He resolved the two consumer accounts in January 2023 and enrolled in a loan rehabilitation program for his student loans. The administrative judge found that while the applicant's initial neglect of his finances was concerning, his subsequent actions demonstrated a good faith effort to rectify the situation. The judge ruled in favor of the applicant, concluding that he had mitigated the financial concerns and was otherwise financially healthy, thus granting him eligibility for access to classified information.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · For Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 22-02335

grantedAug 29, 2024· Hon. Nichole L. Noel· hearing

Summary

This case concerns a 41-year-old cybersecurity professional and military veteran whose security clearance was initially challenged under Guideline F (Financial Considerations). The Statement of Reasons (SOR), dated December 7, 2022, cited two primary financial concerns: delinquent federal student loans and two delinquent consumer accounts totaling $8,101. These issues were linked to the applicant's grief following his mother's death.

After receiving the SOR, the applicant took significant steps to address his financial obligations. He successfully resolved the two consumer debts and enrolled in a loan rehabilitation program for his federal student loans. These actions demonstrated his commitment to financial responsibility and good faith efforts to repay his creditors.

Ultimately, the administrative judge granted the security clearance. The judge found that the applicant's proactive measures to resolve his debts mitigated the initial financial concerns, concluding there were no remaining security risks related to his financial history.

Why the Applicant Prevailed

The applicant took significant steps to address his delinquent accounts after receiving the SOR.
He resolved two consumer debts and enrolled in a loan rehabilitation program for his student loans.
The applicant demonstrated financial responsibility and good faith efforts to repay his creditors.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability to Satisfy Debts
AG ¶ 19(c)raisedHistory of Not Meeting Financial Obligations

Mitigating

AG ¶ 20(b)appliedThe Conditions That Led to the Financial Difficulties Were Beyond the Individual's ControlThe applicant's grief after his mother's death contributed to his financial neglect.
AG ¶ 20(d)appliedThe Individual Initiated and Is Adhering to a Good Faith Effort to Repay His Creditors or Otherwise Resolve DebtsThe applicant made a good faith payment and enrolled in a loan rehabilitation program.

Key Rule Quoted

“Security clearance adjudications are not debt collection proceedings. Rather the purpose of the adjudication is to make an examination of a sufficient period of a person’s life to make an affirmative determination that the person is an acceptable security risk.”

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedDec 7, 2022
Answer filed—
Hearing heldDec 12, 2023
Decision dateAug 29, 2024

Cite For

Good Faith Efforts to Resolve Financial Obligations Under Guideline F
Impact of Personal Grief on Financial Responsibility
Consideration of Whole-person Factors in Security Clearance Decisions

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: granted

The judge found that the applicant had delinquent federal student loans totaling $127,098 and two consumer accounts totaling $8,101. However, the applicant demonstrated a good faith effort to resolve these debts, leading to a decision in favor of the applicant under Guideline F.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant's federal student loans were delinquent as of the date of the SOR, December 7, 2022. $127,098	For Applicant	Student Loan Debt	Admitted	(a) inability to satisfy debts (c) a history of not meeting financial obligations	(d) good-faith effort to repay or otherwise resolve debts	Documented Debt Paid in Full
1.b	Applicant had two delinquent consumer accounts totaling $8,101. $8,101	For Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	(a) inability to satisfy debts (c) a history of not meeting financial obligations	(d) good-faith effort to repay or otherwise resolve debts	Documented Debt Paid in Full

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.