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Summary

The applicant, a 53-year-old defense contractor employee, faced security concerns under Guideline E (Personal Conduct) and Guideline F (Financial Considerations) due to significant financial difficulties and false statements on his security clearance application. The judge found that the applicant failed to mitigate these concerns, leading to a denial of his security clearance.

Under Guideline E (Personal Conduct) and Guideline F (Financial Considerations), the Statement of Reasons alleged the following: On September 5, 2013, when Applicant completed his SF 86, he responded to certain questions pertaining to his financial record. The questions in Section 26 – Financial Record asked if, in the last seven years, he had: bills or debts turned over to a collection agency; any account or credit card suspended, charged off, or cancelled for failing to pay as agreed, and if he was currently over 120 days delinquent on any debt. Applicant answered “no” to all of those questions. He certified that the responses were “true, complete, and correct” to the best of his knowledge and belief, but the responses to those questions were, in fact, false (2.a). There is a credit card account (SOR ¶ 1.a.) with a past-due balance of $18,796 that was placed for collection (1.a). There is a credit card account (SOR ¶ 1.b.) with an unpaid balance of $16,658 that was placed for collection and charged off (1.b). There is a credit card account (SOR ¶ 1.c.) with an unpaid balance of $12,864 that was placed for collection and charged off (1.c). There is a credit card account (SOR ¶ 1.d.) with an unpaid balance of $3,604 that was placed for collection and charged off (1.d).

The judge denied the clearance. The government raised disqualifying conditions AG ¶ 19(a), AG ¶ 19(c). The judge applied mitigating conditions AG ¶ 20(b), AG ¶ 20(c), AG ¶ 20(d). The decision turned on the following: The applicant admitted to significant financial difficulties, including multiple delinquent debts and a history of not meeting financial obligations; The applicant provided false information on his security clearance application regarding his financial status, which raised concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness; The applicant did not demonstrate sufficient evidence of a good-faith effort to resolve his financial issues or to provide a personal financial statement when requested.

Why the Applicant Was Denied

• The applicant admitted to significant financial difficulties, including multiple delinquent debts and a history of not meeting financial obligations.
• The applicant provided false information on his security clearance application regarding his financial status, which raised concerns about his reliability and trustworthiness.
• The applicant did not demonstrate sufficient evidence of a good-faith effort to resolve his financial issues or to provide a personal financial statement when requested.

Conditions Referenced

Key Rule Quoted

“Failure or inability to live within one’s means, satisfy debts, and meet financial obligations may indicate poor self-control, lack of judgment, or unwillingness to abide by rules and regulations, all of which can raise questions about an individual’s reliability, trustworthiness and ability to protect classified information.”

Procedural Posture

• SOR issuedMar 18, 2014
• Answer filedApr 22, 2014
• Hearing heldAug 13, 2014
• Decision dateSep 10, 2014

Cite For

• Denial Based on Financial Difficulties Under Guideline F
• False Statements on Security Clearance Application Under Guideline E
• Failure to Demonstrate Good-faith Efforts to Resolve Debts