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ISCR Case 20-03310 — CASE

Case record

ISCR Case 20-03310

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

Case Profile
Decision Date1/13/2025
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Gina L. Marine
Government Counsel: John C. Lynch
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 44-year-old unmarried woman with three adult children and three minor children, who had served in the U.S. Marine Corps and was employed as a systems support engineer for a defense contractor. The Department of Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals (DOHA) addressed security concerns under Guideline F (Financial Considerations) in the Statement of Reasons (SOR), which included allegations of failure to file and pay federal income taxes for tax year 2018, as well as various consumer debts totaling over $3,000 and a child support debt of $15,166.
The applicant admitted to some financial difficulties, including the unresolved tax debt and consumer debts, but attributed her financial issues to emotional and financial distress stemming from her past divorces and the challenges of raising children. She claimed to have hired tax professionals to rectify her tax filings and asserted that she had made efforts to resolve her consumer debts, although she did not provide sufficient documentation to corroborate her claims. The administrative judge noted that while the applicant had made some progress in addressing her debts, the lack of documentation and the ongoing child support obligation raised concerns about her financial stability.
Ultimately, the administrative judge ruled to deny the applicant's eligibility for a security clearance, citing the unresolved financial issues and the potential for these issues to create a risk to national security. The judge emphasized the importance of financial responsibility in the context of security clearance eligibility and found that the applicant had not sufficiently mitigated the concerns raised in the SOR.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · For Applicant
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 20-03310

deniedJan 13, 2025· Hon. Gina L. Marine· hearing

Summary

A 44-year-old unmarried mother of six was denied a security clearance primarily due to financial considerations under Guideline F. Disqualifying conditions included unresolved tax debts, consumer debts, and child support obligations.

While the applicant received some favorable findings regarding her child support payments and tax issues, the judge found significant unresolved debts. The applicant failed to provide sufficient corroborating evidence for her financial resolution efforts and did not demonstrate a meaningful track record of timely payments for her debts.

Ultimately, these factors raised doubts about her reliability and trustworthiness, leading to the denial of her security clearance.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant failed to provide sufficient corroborating evidence for her financial resolution efforts.
Significant unresolved debts raised doubts about her reliability and trustworthiness.
The applicant did not demonstrate a meaningful track record of timely payments for her debts.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 19(a)appliedInability to Satisfy Debts
AG ¶ 19(c)appliedHistory of Not Meeting Financial Obligations
AG ¶ 19(f)appliedFailure 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(a)rejectedThe Behavior Happened so Long Ago, Was so Infrequent, or Occurred Under Such Circumstances That It Is Unlikely to Recur and Does Not Cast Doubt on the Individual's Current Reliability, Trustworthiness, or Good Judgment
AG ¶ 20(b)rejectedConditions That Resulted in the Financial Problem Were Largely Beyond the Person's Control
AG ¶ 20(d)rejectedThe Individual Initiated and Is Adhering to a Good-faith Effort to Repay Overdue Creditors or Otherwise Resolve Debts
AG ¶ 20(g)rejectedThe Individual Has Made Arrangements with the Appropriate Tax Authority to File or Pay the Amount Owed and Is in Compliance with Those Arrangements

Key Rule Quoted

“Eligibility for a security clearance is predicated upon the applicant meeting the criteria contained in the AG.”
— EO 10865 § 2

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedApr 7, 2021
Answer filedOct 31, 2021
Hearing heldAug 11, 2023via video conference
Decision dateJan 13, 2025

Cite For

Denial of Security Clearance Due to Unresolved Financial Obligations Under Guideline F
Insufficient Corroboration of Financial Resolution Efforts
Impact of Financial Irresponsibility on Security Clearance Eligibility

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

Full decision

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