PSH-22-0009 - In the Matter of Personnel Security Hearing

On April 5, 2022, an Administrative Judge determined that an individual's access authorization under 10 C.F.R. Part 710 should not be granted. The Individual is employed by a DOE contractor in a position that requires him to hold a DOE security clearance. As part of the investigation for his security clearance, the Individual completed a Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP) in April 2019. In response to the financial questions, the Individual indicated that he had failed to file his Federal and state taxes for the 2011 tax year. Subsequently, the Local Security Office (LSO) asked him to complete a Letter of Interrogatory (LOI), in which he explained that he had also not filed his Federal or state tax returns for the   2012-2016 tax years. During the hearing, the Individual testified that he has retained a tax preparer who has successfully filed his 2012-2020 tax returns, and the Individual has consistently been filing his taxes each year since 2017. The Individual's tax returns indicated that he currently owed approximately $ 15,000 to the state tax authority and approximately $21,000 to the Federal tax authority. The Individual testified that he had not yet made payments toward that debt. After considering the evidence in the record and testimony presented at the hearing, the Administrative Judge determined that the Individual had not resolved the security concerns associated with Guideline F. Accordingly, she concluded that the Individual's access authorization should not be granted. OHA Case No. PSH-22-0009 (Katie Quintana)