Do you work for a federal agency or federal contractor? Does your job require a security clearance? Do you have concerns about your renewal?
While there are multiple reasons for the denial or revocation of a security clearance, a common reason is found in Guideline F: Financial Considerations:
Failure 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 or sensitive information. . . . An individual who is financially overextended is at greater risk of having to engage in illegal or otherwise questionable acts to generate funds. . .
Broken down, a security investigator may be seeking to develop information that a security clearance applicant or holder has:
Most of these factors can easily be developed with a credit report, a judgment/lien search, and federal income tax returns.
The time to address financial concerns is before you are asked to fill out a renewal questionnaire or sit down with an investigator. You should be able to give a complete and full explanation of all adverse financial information at the time of application or renewal. It would be helpful to be able to demonstrate that a correction has been underway rather than a belated effort motivated by the renewal process.
If financial (or other) problems exist, the burden is upon the applicant to demonstrate other factors justifying the conclusion that a security clearance should be issued. Frequently, those additional and other factors are not developed prior to and during the initial investigative process.
Legal counsel can be valuable in reviewing your situation, outlining and improving the measures you are taking to remedy matters, and representing you through the formal adjudicative process should your matter reach that stage.
