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ISCR Case 23-02631 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 23-02631

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

Case Profile
Decision Date9/9/2024
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Pamela C. Benson
Government Counsel: Brian L. Farrell
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 53-year-old individual who sought a security clearance for employment with a Department of Defense contractor. The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency issued a Statement of Reasons (SOR) citing security concerns under Guideline F (financial considerations), primarily due to the applicant's failure to file federal and state income tax returns for multiple years and his unresolved tax delinquencies. The SOR detailed six delinquent debts totaling approximately $119,500, including significant child support arrears.
During the proceedings, the applicant admitted to all allegations in the SOR, acknowledging his financial difficulties, which he attributed to his wife's inability to work during the pandemic and his own unemployment in 2018. He indicated plans to file his overdue tax returns and to arrange payment plans with creditors by October 2023. However, he failed to provide sufficient evidence of any actions taken to resolve his debts or file his tax returns as promised.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he did not mitigate the financial considerations security concern. The judge noted the applicant's ongoing financial issues, lack of timely action to address his debts, and failure to demonstrate a responsible approach to his financial obligations. Consequently, the applicant's request for national security eligibility to access classified information was denied.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 23-02631

deniedSep 9, 2024· Hon. Pamela C. Benson· hearing

Summary

A 53-year-old warehouse worker was denied a security clearance under Guideline F (Financial Considerations) due to unresolved financial issues. The applicant had significant delinquent debts totaling approximately $119,500 and failed to file multiple federal and state income tax returns.

During a July 2023 background interview, the applicant promised to provide evidence of payments or settlements for several delinquent accounts, as well as proof of filing outstanding tax returns. However, the applicant did not submit sufficient evidence to demonstrate that these debts were paid, being paid, or settled, nor did he provide proof of filing the promised tax returns. Additionally, the applicant failed to provide supporting evidence for a debt allegedly being paid through wage garnishment or for a federal tax debt.

The judge found that the applicant's financial irresponsibility, including the failure to timely file tax returns and the unresolved tax delinquencies and significant delinquent debts, raised questions about his reliability and trustworthiness. The applicant did not provide sufficient evidence to mitigate these financial concerns, leading to the denial of his security clearance.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant failed to timely file federal and state income tax returns for multiple years.
The applicant has unresolved tax delinquencies and significant delinquent debts.
The applicant did not provide sufficient evidence to demonstrate responsible actions regarding his 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

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

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedDec 19, 2023
Answer filedJan 5, 2024
Hearing held—Decision rendered after review of the administrative record.
Decision dateSep 9, 2024

Cite For

Failure to Mitigate Financial Issues Under Guideline F
Impact of Unresolved Debts on Security Clearance Eligibility
Importance of Timely Filing Tax Returns for Security Clearance Considerations

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: Decision on RecordDecided: denied

The judge found multiple financial concerns under Guideline F, including several delinquent debts and failures to file state and federal income tax returns. The applicant admitted to all allegations but failed to provide sufficient evidence of resolution or mitigation, leading to a decision against him.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he paid, is currently paying, or that he has settled this delinquent account, as promised in his July 2023 background interview. $3,751	Against Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	—
1.b	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he paid, is currently paying, or that he has settled this delinquent account, as promised in his July 2023 background interview. $624	Against Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	—	—	—
1.c	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he paid, is currently paying, or that he has settled this delinquent account, as promised in his July 2023 background interview. $168	Against Applicant	Unspecified Financial	Admitted	—	—	—
1.d	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he paid, is currently paying, or that he has settled this delinquent account, as promised in his July 2023 background interview. $112,806	Against Applicant	Child Support Debt	Admitted	—	—	—
1.e	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he filed these state income tax returns, as promised in his July 2023 background interview.	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other
1.f	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he filed these federal income tax returns, as promised in his July 2023 background interview.	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other
1.g	Applicant failed to provide supporting evidence to show that he paid or is currently paying through wage garnishment. $1,000	Against Applicant	Tax Unpaid	Admitted	—	—	—
1.h	Applicant failed to provide sufficient evidence to show that he paid or is currently paying this federal tax debt, as promised in his July 2023 background interview. $1,200	Against Applicant	Tax Unpaid	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.