Summary
A 27-year-old defense contractor employee was denied a security clearance under Guideline F (Financial Considerations) due to substantial delinquent debts totaling over $290,000. The Statement of Reasons detailed several specific financial concerns, including two medical collection accounts totaling $108, delinquent student loan debts of $74,155, and four student loan accounts totaling $89,022 that were 90 days or more past due. Additionally, the applicant had a mortgage debt of $217,058, with payments delinquent since 2011.
The administrative judge found that the applicant incurred significant indebtedness and, despite being employed full-time with some surplus income, failed to demonstrate sufficient efforts to resolve the majority of these debts. Disqualifying conditions under AG ¶ 19(a) and AG ¶ 19(c) were raised.
Although mitigating conditions under AG ¶ 20(a), AG ¶ 20(b), AG ¶ 20(c), AG ¶ 20(d), and AG ¶ 20(e) were considered, the applicant provided no evidence of financial counseling or good-faith efforts to repay overdue creditors. Consequently, the application for a security clearance was denied due to insufficient evidence to mitigate the financial concerns.
Why the Applicant Was Denied
- Applicant incurred substantial delinquent indebtedness exceeding $290,000.
- Despite full-time employment, he demonstrated neither means nor efforts to resolve the majority of his debts.
- He provided no evidence of financial counseling or good-faith efforts to repay overdue creditors.
Conditions Referenced
- AG ¶ 19(a)raisedInability or Unwillingness to Satisfy Debts
- AG ¶ 19(c)raisedA History of Not Meeting Financial Obligations
- AG ¶ 20(a)rejectedBehavior Happened so Long Ago, Was so Infrequent, or Occurred Under Such Circumstances That It Is Unlikely to RecurApplicant's delinquent debts are recent and ongoing.
- AG ¶ 20(b)rejectedConditions That Resulted in the Financial Problem Were Largely Beyond the Person’s ControlApplicant voluntarily incurred all of the debt and was fully employed during the delinquency.
- AG ¶ 20(c)rejectedReceived or Is Receiving Counseling for the ProblemApplicant provided no evidence of financial counseling.
- AG ¶ 20(d)rejectedInitiated a Good-faith Effort to Repay Overdue CreditorsApplicant did not document any effort to repay substantial remaining debts.
- AG ¶ 20(e)rejectedHas a Reasonable Basis to Dispute the Legitimacy of the Past-due DebtApplicant did not assert a legitimate basis to dispute the validity of the debts.
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 issuedJun 26, 2014
- Answer filedJul 22, 2014
- Hearing heldJan 12, 2015Applicant attended in person; Department Counsel participated via video teleconference.
- Decision dateMar 31, 2015
Cite For
- Insufficient Mitigation of Financial Concerns Under Guideline F
- Impact of Substantial Delinquent Debts on Security Clearance Eligibility
- Importance of Demonstrating Efforts to Resolve Financial Obligations