ISCR Case 11-13999.h1

Case Headnote

ISCR Case No. 11-13999.h1

grantedAug 28, 2013· Hon. Wilford H. Ross· hearing

Summary

A 62-year-old single male defense contractor employee was granted a security clearance despite initial concerns under Guideline F (Financial Considerations). The applicant faced ten delinquent debts totaling approximately $79,593, including unpaid federal and state taxes, multiple credit card debts, and a cell phone bill.

Specifically, as of August 2013, he owed the IRS $10,012.77 for taxes from 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, on which he was making $175 monthly payments. He had successfully paid off all state back taxes for 2007, 2008, and 2009. The applicant also had several credit card debts ranging from $1,374 to $21,880, two of which were reduced through payment arrangements. Additionally, he had an $82 cell phone bill for a closed account that he was attempting to resolve.

The applicant demonstrated a proactive approach to resolving his financial issues. He entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013, making regular monthly payments, and ensured all relevant debts were included in the plan. His financial difficulties were attributed to a significant personal relationship breakdown and unexpected medical expenses. Given his good-faith efforts, stable current financial situation, and reasonable debt resolution plan, the financial concerns were mitigated, and the security clearance was granted.

Why the Applicant Prevailed

The applicant demonstrated a good-faith effort to repay overdue creditors through a debt resolution program.
The applicant's financial issues were largely due to circumstances beyond his control, including a significant personal relationship breakdown and unexpected medical expenses.
The applicant's current financial situation is stable, with evidence of regular payments and a reasonable plan to resolve debts.

Conditions Referenced

Disqualifying

AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability or Unwillingness to Satisfy Debts
AG ¶ 19(c)raisedA History of Not Meeting Financial Obligations

Mitigating

AG ¶ 20(a)appliedBehavior Happened so Long Ago, Was Infrequent, or Unlikely to Recur
AG ¶ 20(b)appliedConditions That Resulted in Financial Problems Were Largely Beyond the Person's Control
AG ¶ 20(c)appliedClear Indications That the Problem Is Being Resolved or Is Under Control
AG ¶ 20(d)appliedInitiated a Good-faith Effort to Repay Overdue Creditors or Otherwise Resolve Debts
AG ¶ 20(e)appliedReasonable Basis to Dispute the Legitimacy of the Past-due Debt

Key Rule Quoted

“An applicant is not required to show that [he] has completely paid off [his] indebtedness, only that [he] has established a reasonable plan to resolve [his] debts and has taken significant actions to implement that plan.”
— DOHA Appeal Board

Procedural Posture

SOR issuedMar 22, 2013
Answer filedApr 18, 2013
Hearing heldJul 22, 2013
Decision dateAug 28, 2013

Cite For

Mitigation of Financial Issues Under Guideline F
Good-faith Efforts in Debt Resolution
Impact of Personal Circumstances on Financial Reliability

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

¶	Allegation	Finding	Type	Response	Disqualifying (¶19)	Mitigating applied (¶20)	Mitigation
1.a	Applicant admits that he is indebted to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for unpaid taxes. He has had a payment arrangement with the IRS for approximately two years. The original agreement was for his 2007, 2008 and 2009 taxes. The 2007 taxes have been paid. However, the agreement has been amended to include taxes owed for 2010 and 2011. Accordingly, as of August 2013 Applicant owed the IRS $10,012.77. He currently pays $175 a month on this arrangement, which is an increase of $25 over his prior payments and is acceptable to the IRS. $10,012	For Applicant	Tax Unpaid	Admitted	—	(d) good-faith effort to repay or otherwise resolve debts (c) received/receiving counseling; problem being resolved	Documented Debt Paid in Full Documented Payment Plan with IRS
1.b	Applicant admits that he was indebted to his state taxing authority for unpaid taxes. He had a payment arrangement with his state to pay off his back taxes for 2007, 2008 and 2009. He provided evidence showing that he has successfully paid all of his state back taxes.	For Applicant	Tax Filing Failure	Admitted	—	—	Documented Debt Paid in Full
1.c	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $1,374. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. He has been making regular monthly payments to this company since that time. Through an oversight this debt was not included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that this debt has now been included in the program. $1,374	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.d	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $21,880. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. $21,880	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.e	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $9,905. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that a payment arrangement has been made reducing this debt to $4,398. $9,905	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.f	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $15,382. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that a payment arrangement has been made reducing this debt to $6,125. $15,382	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.g	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $8,187. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. $8,187	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.h	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $14,070. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. Through an oversight this debt was not included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that this debt has now been included in the program. $14,070	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.i	Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $2,946. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. $2,946	For Applicant	Credit Card Debt	Admitted	—	—	Documented Payment Plan with Creditor
1.j	Applicant admits that he was indebted for a cell phone bill in the amount of $82. Applicant is still a customer of this phone company. He submitted his most recent bill showing that he is making regular payments. Applicant has attempted to resolve this debt with the creditor, which appears to concern a closed account, without success. $82	For Applicant	Utility or Phone Debt	Admitted	—	—	Claimed Other

Allegation

Finding

Type

Response

Disqualifying (¶19)

Mitigating applied (¶20)

Mitigation

1.a

Applicant admits that he is indebted to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for unpaid taxes. He has had a payment arrangement with the IRS for approximately two years. The original agreement was for his 2007, 2008 and 2009 taxes. The 2007 taxes have been paid. However, the agreement has been amended to include taxes owed for 2010 and 2011. Accordingly, as of August 2013 Applicant owed the IRS $10,012.77. He currently pays $175 a month on this arrangement, which is an increase of $25 over his prior payments and is acceptable to the IRS.

$10,012

For Applicant

Tax Unpaid

Admitted

—

(d) good-faith effort to repay or otherwise resolve debts

(c) received/receiving counseling; problem being resolved

Documented

Debt Paid in Full

Documented

Payment Plan with IRS

1.b

Applicant admits that he was indebted to his state taxing authority for unpaid taxes. He had a payment arrangement with his state to pay off his back taxes for 2007, 2008 and 2009. He provided evidence showing that he has successfully paid all of his state back taxes.

For Applicant

Tax Filing Failure

Admitted

—

Documented

Debt Paid in Full

1.c

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $1,374. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. He has been making regular monthly payments to this company since that time. Through an oversight this debt was not included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that this debt has now been included in the program.

$1,374

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.d

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $21,880. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan.

$21,880

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.e

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $9,905. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that a payment arrangement has been made reducing this debt to $4,398.

$9,905

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.f

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $15,382. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that a payment arrangement has been made reducing this debt to $6,125.

$15,382

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.g

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $8,187. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan.

$8,187

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.h

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $14,070. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. Through an oversight this debt was not included in the original plan. Applicant submitted evidence showing that this debt has now been included in the program.

$14,070

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.i

Applicant admits that he is indebted to a creditor for a credit card debt in the amount of $2,946. Applicant entered into an agreement with a debt resolution company in January 2013 to resolve his delinquent debts. This debt was included in the original plan.

$2,946

For Applicant

Credit Card Debt

Admitted

—

Documented

Payment Plan with Creditor

1.j

Applicant admits that he was indebted for a cell phone bill in the amount of $82. Applicant is still a customer of this phone company. He submitted his most recent bill showing that he is making regular payments. Applicant has attempted to resolve this debt with the creditor, which appears to concern a closed account, without success.

$82

For Applicant

Utility or Phone Debt

Admitted

—

Claimed

Other

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Case Profile

Summary

Why the Applicant Prevailed

Conditions Referenced

Key Rule Quoted

Procedural Posture

Cite For

Full decision

DEFENSE OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS

HEARING

APPEARANCES

STATEMENT OF CASE

FINDINGS OF FACT

POLICIES

ANALYSIS

WHOLE PERSON CONCEPT

FORMAL FINDINGS

CONCLUSION

FOOTNOTES