PSH-24-0030 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On March 18, 2024, an Administrative Judge determined that the Individual's access authorization should not be granted under 10 C.F.R. Part 710. In completing her Questionnaire for Security Positions (QNSP), the Individual admitted that she had outstanding, delinquent debt and had not filed her 2022 federal or state tax returns. In a Letter of Interrogatory (LOI) from July 2023, the Individual stated that she was waiting to file her tax returns because she was waiting on husband to obtain information from the closing of his business. The Individual and her husband testified that the delinquent debts resulted from the closing of her husband's business due to the COVID pandemic. In the LOI, the Individual indicated that she would pay off all of her debts after her car loan was paid off "in a couple of months." At the hearing, the Individual reiterated that she intended to pay the remaining debts after her car loan was paid off, but she could not say when the loan would be paid off. She did admit that she had filed her federal and state income tax returns and gotten a refund from both entities. The Individual did not mitigate the concerns under any of the conditions listed in the Guidelines. Although she filed her income tax returns, mitigating the concerns raised by her failure to do so, she has made a very limited attempt to satisfy her outstanding debts. She did contact an auto loan lender regarding the outstanding amount for a repossessed company van but did not make any attempt to satisfy the debt .  She did not contact any of the other debtors. Accordingly, the Individual was not able to demonstrate that she had resolved the security concerns arising under Guideline F. ( OHA Case No. PSH-24-0030, Fishman)