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ISCR Case 23-02036 — CASE

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ISCR Case 23-02036

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

Case Profile
Decision Date1/30/2025
Statusdenied
LevelHEARING
TypeSTANDARD ISCR
Related decisionsSee the hearing decision (Case 23-02036) →See the appeal decision (Case ISCR Case No. 23-02036) →
Participants
Applicant Representation: Pro Se
Judge: Roger C. Wesley
Government Counsel: John C. Lynch
Case Summary
The applicant in this case was a 56-year-old employee of a defense contractor seeking a security clearance. The adjudicative guidelines at issue were related to financial considerations, specifically the applicant's failure to file federal and state income tax returns for multiple years and his significant tax debts exceeding $74,000 to the federal government and over $22,000 to the state. The Statement of Reasons outlined these financial issues as the basis for the denial of the applicant's security clearance.
In his response to the allegations, the applicant admitted to the failure to file tax returns but claimed he had filed all necessary returns and was working on a payment plan to address his tax debts. He attributed his financial difficulties to personal issues, including anxiety and a prior disciplinary incident at work. Despite providing some evidence of payments made to the IRS, the applicant did not demonstrate a clear plan for resolving his remaining tax obligations or provide sufficient documentation of his financial situation.
The administrative judge ruled against the applicant, concluding that he did not adequately mitigate the financial concerns raised. The judge noted that the applicant's financial issues indicated a lack of judgment and reliability, which are critical factors in determining eligibility for access to classified information. The decision emphasized that the applicant's financial distress could pose a risk to national security, leading to the denial of his security clearance.
Guidelines Evaluated
- Guideline FFinancial Considerations · Against Applicant
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Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 23-02036

deniedJan 30, 2025· Hon. Roger C. Wesley· hearing

Summary

A 56-year-old defense contractor employee was denied a security clearance under Guideline F, Financial Considerations, due to significant and unresolved financial issues. The Statement of Reasons detailed the applicant's failure to file federal income tax returns for tax years 2014, 2017-2018, and 2020-2022.

Furthermore, the applicant was indebted to the Federal Government for over $74,000 in delinquent taxes and owed more than $22,000 to his state taxing agency for the same tax years. These conditions raised disqualifying concerns regarding the applicant's financial responsibility.

The judge determined that the applicant's claims of working on a payment plan were unsubstantiated and did not provide sufficient evidence of timely resolution for these financial issues. Consequently, the applicant's security clearance was denied.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

The applicant failed to file federal income tax returns for tax years 2014, 2017-2018, and 2020-2022.
The applicant owed over $74,000 in delinquent federal taxes and over $22,000 in state taxes.
The applicant did not provide sufficient evidence of timely resolution of his financial issues.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

19(a)raisedInability to Satisfy Debts
19(c)raisedA History of Not Meeting Financial Obligations
19(f)raisedFailure 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

Key Rule Quoted

“Eligibility for access to classified information may only be granted "upon a finding that it is clearly consistent with the national interest to do so."”
— Exec. Or. 10865, Safeguarding Classified Information within Industry § 2 (Feb. 20, 1960)

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedFeb 29, 2024
Answer filedJul 8, 2024Requested resolution on the written record.
Hearing held—Decision made based on written record.
Decision dateJan 30, 2025

Cite For

Failure to File Tax Returns as a Disqualifying Condition Under Guideline F
Insufficient Evidence of Financial Resolution Impacting Security Clearance Eligibility
Importance of Timely Addressing Financial Obligations in Security Clearance Determinations

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 against the applicant on financial considerations due to significant tax delinquencies and failures to file tax returns for multiple years. Despite the applicant's claims of having filed some returns and working on a payment plan, the judge concluded that the financial concerns were not mitigated, resulting in a denial of eligibility for access to classified information.

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	failed to file his federal income tax returns for tax years 2014, 2017-2018, and 2020-2022, as required	Against Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other
1.b	is indebted to the Federal Government for delinquent taxes in excess of $74,000 $74,000	Against Applicant	Tax Unpaid	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Payment Plan with IRS
1.c	is indebted to his state taxing agency for delinquent taxes in excess of $22,000 for the tax years in issue $22,000	Against Applicant	Tax Unpaid	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Payment Plan with IRS

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.