Summary
A 45-year-old physicist was denied a security clearance due to concerns under Guideline E (Personal Conduct) and Guideline F (Financial Considerations). The denial stemmed from significant outstanding tax debt and other financial delinquencies, despite the applicant not falsifying his security clearance application.
Specific financial issues included a $1,472 delinquent mortgage payment from 2010-2012, which was satisfied in August 2016. An $8,472 student loan account became delinquent in June 2014; the applicant began consolidating his student loans in January 2016 and made monthly payments between $1,500 and $1,793 from August 2016 until placing them in deferment upon enrolling in graduate school. The most substantial issue was an approximately $32,000 income tax debt to the IRS for 2013, incurred after withdrawing $93,000 from an IRA without setting aside funds for taxes. The applicant negotiated an installment agreement in January 2015, making payments between $498 and $550 monthly until November 2015, then re-negotiated in November 2016 to make $650 monthly payments.
The security clearance was denied because the applicant's significant outstanding tax debt remained largely unaddressed, and his overall financial delinquencies raised concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness. While some positive steps were taken to manage his finances, the overall financial situation was deemed unresolved.
Why the applicant was denied
- The applicant has significant outstanding tax debt totaling approximately $32,000, which he has not fully addressed.
- The applicant's financial delinquencies raise concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness.
- Despite some positive steps taken to manage his finances, the overall financial situation remains unresolved.
Conditions referenced
- AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability to Satisfy Debts
- AG ¶ 19(b)raisedUnwillingness to Satisfy Debts Regardless of the Ability to Do So
- 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 or Failure to Pay Annual Federal, State, or Local Income Tax, as Required
- AG ¶ 20(d)appliedThe Individual Initiated and Is Adhering to a Good-faith Effort to Repay Overdue Creditors or Otherwise Resolve Debts
- AG ¶ 20(g)appliedThe 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
“The protection of the national security is the paramount consideration.”
Procedural posture
- SOR issuedJul 30, 2016
- Answer filedSep 6, 2016
- Hearing heldJun 29, 2017
- Decision dateJan 8, 2018
Cite for
- Denial Based on Unresolved Financial Obligations Under Guideline F
- No Falsification of Security Clearance Application Under Guideline E
- Consideration of the Whole-person Concept in Security Clearance Decisions