PSH-24-0135 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On November 21, 2024, an Administrative Judge determined that the Individual's access authorization under 10 C.F.R. Part 710 should be restored. The Individual submitted a Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP) in May 2023, disclosing that he was attending treatment with a psychologist for issues including alcohol abuse. He also disclosed that in 2017, his physician recommended that he decrease his alcohol consumption due to health concerns. The Individual was subsequently evaluated by a DOE-contracted psychiatrist (DOE Psychiatrist) who determined that the lndividual met sufficient diagnostic criteria for Alcohol Use Disorder, Mild under the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fifth Edition and binge consumed alcohol to the point of impaired judgment. At the hearing, the Individual testified that he had been abstinent for six months and submitted several negative PEth tests to support his assertions. He also submitted proof that he was attending weekly recovery meetings. The Individual testified that he was also participating in weekly psychotherapy sessions to address issues that include his previous alcohol use and he was supplementing his weekly therapy sessions with monthly meetings with his Counselor, whom he had been seeing since 2022. The Individual's Counselor opined that the Individual had a good to excellent prognosis and the Individual's wife and his Counselor also provided credible testimony regarding the Individual's changes in behavior and perspective as compared to his previous attempts at sobriety . The DOE Psychiatrist opined that although the Individual had not completed all of his recommendations, he had shown adequate evidence of rehabilitation and reformation through his combined efforts of weekly treatment and therapy, proof of abstinence, and positive behavioral changes which were corroborated by his witnesses' testimony. He also opined that the Individual had a good prognosis. The Administrative Judge concluded that the Individual had mitigated the concerns under Guideline G, and therefore his clearance should be restored. (OHA Case No. PSH-24-0135, Balzon)