Summary
The Applicant, a 47-year-old married Senior Systems Engineer with five children, sought a Secret-level DoD security clearance. The case involved financial considerations and personal conduct, specifically allegations of past due debts and falsification of a Personnel Security Questionnaire. The Applicant successfully resolved his debts and demonstrated a stable financial situation, leading to the granting of his clearance.
Under Guideline E (Personal Conduct) and Guideline F (Financial Considerations), the Statement of Reasons alleged the following: The Government alleges in this paragraph that the Applicant is ineligible for clearance because he intentionally falsified material aspects of his personal background during the clearance screening process (2.a). This allegation concerns a secured bank credit card that the Applicant's wife opened. The Applicant eventually became a signer on the account. The amount past due was $4,618.00 in 1997. The Applicant made a payment arrangement with the bank to resolve the debt. He paid a total of $850 to the creditor between June and September 2003. The creditor and Applicant agreed to a final payment of $2,469.00. This payment was made and the creditor declared the account paid by settlement on October 31, 2003 (1.a). This allegation also concerns a secured bank credit card that the Applicant opened. The amount past due was approximately $1,716.36 in 1997. The Applicant made a payment arrangement with the bank to resolve the debt. He made four payments of $286.06 between June and September 2003, totaling $1144.24. He made a final payment of $574.00 also in September 2003. This payment was accepted and the creditor declared the account paid in full on September 23, 2003 (1.b). This was a debt allegedly incurred to an electric company in 1997. The Applicant admitted this allegation but also said in his Answer, "My response to this is it should have been paid. I, in all honesty, thought it was taken care of before I left [that State]." The Government obtained three credit reports in April 2003. This debt does not show up in Government Exhibit 3, shows up under two different account numbers in Government Exhibit 4 and shows up once in Government Exhibit 5. This debt does not appear in a 2001 credit report obtained by the Government. The Applicant disputed this debt to the credit bureau shown in Government Exhibit 4. That bureau deleted the item in August 2003, based on that dispute. The Applicant testified that he also disputed this account to the other credit bureaus. The disputes were submitted on-line, so the Applicant had no documentary proof of their existence. However, he submits that his most current credit reports, retrieved in August 2003, do not show the continued existence of this debt (1.c). This is a debt to an apartment complex. The Applicant testified that he left this apartment in the middle of the month in 1997 and thought that he might still have owed half a month's rent, about $266. Only one of the Government's four credit bureau reports showed this debt. After receipt of the SOR, the Applicant contacted the apartment complex to determine if he did owe any money. The management records showed that the Applicant lived there, but not that he still owed any money. The Applicant testified that he was frankly unsure whether he owed them any money or not. He disputed the debt with the credit bureau and it was deleted (1.d).
The judge granted the clearance. The government raised disqualifying conditions F1. The judge applied mitigating conditions F3, F6, E2. The decision turned on the following: The Applicant resolved all past due debts listed in the SOR before the hearing; His current financial situation is stable, with timely payments to creditors; The judge found no intent to deceive in the Applicant's responses on the security questionnaire.
Why the Applicant Prevailed
- The Applicant resolved all past due debts listed in the SOR before the hearing.
- His current financial situation is stable, with timely payments to creditors.
- The judge found no intent to deceive in the Applicant's responses on the security questionnaire.
Conditions Referenced
- F1raisedFinancial ConsiderationsThe Applicant was previously financially overextended.
- F3appliedFinancial ConsiderationsThe conditions that resulted in the behavior were largely beyond the person's control.
- F6appliedFinancial ConsiderationsThe individual initiated a good-faith effort to repay overdue creditors or otherwise resolve debts.
- E2appliedPersonal ConductThe Applicant's answers on the questionnaire were not false.
Key Rule Quoted
“The Government has met its initial burden of proving by substantial evidence that the Applicant has had large past due, unpaid debts for several years.”
Procedural Posture
- SOR issuedMay 16, 2003
- Answer filedJun 16, 2003
- Hearing heldSep 22, 2003
- Decision dateFeb 18, 2004
Cite For
- Mitigation of Financial Issues Under Guideline F
- Credibility of Testimony Regarding Personal Conduct Under Guideline E
- Resolution of Debts as a Factor in Security Clearance Decisions