PSH-20-0021 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On February 28, 2020, an Administrative Judge determined that an individual’s access authorization under 10 C.F.R. Part 710 should not be restored.  The  Individual  is  employed  by a DOE contractor in a position  that  requires  him  to  hold  a  DOE  security clearance.  As part of a reinvestigation for his security clearance, the Individual completed a Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP) in March 2017. In response to one of the financial questions, the Individual indicated that he had failed to file his taxes for a number of years. Subsequently, the Local Security Office (LSO) asked him to complete a Letter of Interrogatory (LOI). The LSO also referred him for a psychological evaluation.  A psychologist (Psychologist) determined that the Individual has an emotional, mental, or personality condition that can impair his judgment reliability, stability, or trustworthiness. The Individual testified that at the time of the hearing, all of his tax returns have been filed, and he has no outstanding issues with the IRS. However, the Psychologist concluded that it is “likely” that the Individual's procrastination “will happen again in bills or in taxes." The Individual had a decade-long history of failing to file his taxes in a timely manner and had not yet demonstrated that he could reliably file them within the established timeframes. Further, the Individual demonstrated procrastination throughout the hearing process. As such, the Administrative Judge determined that the Individual had not resolved the security concerns associated with Guideline F or Guideline I. Accordingly, she concluded that the Individual’s access authorization should not be restored. OHA Case No. PSH-20-0021(Katie Quintana).