Personnel Security Decision  (10 CFR Part 710)

On December 23, 2014, an OHA Administrative Judge issued a decision in which he concluded that an individual’s security clearance should be restored.  A local security office suspended the individual’s access authorization for falsification on a QNSP (Criterion F) and for financial irresponsibility (e.g., delinquent debt, collection debt, charge-off debt, lien on residence for non-payment of homeowner association fees and non-payment of federal income taxes for 2011 and 2012) (Criterion L). With respect to the omission of 11 financial accounts from the individual’s QNSP, (1) seven had been disclosed on an earlier version of the individual’s QNSP that had been submitted to her employer and inadvertently deleted by the individual when she made corrections to the QNSP at her employer’s request, and (2) two were accounts that the individual had forgotten after having paid them in full.  The final QNSP contained additional adverse financial disclosure and retained a comment that referred to the deleted accounts.  The Administrative Judge found the omissions neither deliberate nor significant.  With respect to the individual’s financial and tax delinquencies, the individual testified that a relative who she consider to be her son become suddenly ill with a life-limiting illness in 2009.  She made the decision to provide him financial support for medication, hospitalization and other life necessities until he died four years later and neglected her own financial obligations while providing this support.  Her tax liability resulted from withdrawing funds from a retirement account to assist her relative and having insufficient remaining funds to pay the resultant tax liability.  The month following the relative’s death, the individual commenced repayment of her delinquent accounts and within 18 months had restructured her finances so that all of her delinquent accounts (including charge-off accounts) and taxes had been paid in full.  She credibly testified that there was no other situation or person for whom she would compromise her financial integrity in the future.  On this basis, the Administrative Judge found that she had resolved the security concerns arising under Criterion L  OHA Case No. PSH-14-0092 (Wade M. Boswell)

On December 23 2014, an OHA Administrative Judge (AJ) issued a decision in which she concluded that the DOE should not restore an individual’s access authorization.  A DOE Operations Office referred the individual to administrative review citing as security concerns under 10 CFR Part 710 the individual’s falsifications, omissions, or misrepresentations on a security questionnaire, information pertaining to the individual’s alcohol consumption, and the individual’s history of two alcohol-related arrests.  After conducting a hearing, convened at the individual’s request, and evaluating all relevant evidence, the AJ concluded that the individual had not presented sufficient information to adequately mitigate the cited security concerns. Therefore, the AJ found that the DOE should not restore the individual’s access authorization.  OHA Case No. PSH-14-0090 (Kimberly Jenkins-Chapman)

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Appeal

On December 22, 2014, OHA issued a decision denying a FOIA Appeal filed by KIRO 7 (Appellant) of a determination issued by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).  In the Appeal, the Appellant challenged NNSA’s withholdings of information under FOIA Exemptions 6 and 7(C).  OHA found that NNSA properly withheld the information under Exemption 6, as the information consisted of both federal and non-federal employee names and identifying information, the release of which could lead to harassment of the individuals.  OHA did not address the application of Exemption 7(C), having found that the redacted information was properly withheld under Exemption 6.  OHA therefore denied the Appeal.  OHA Case No. FIA-14-0083