1 
 
                                                              
                        DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 
         DEFENSE OFFICE OF HEARINGS AND APPEALS 
           
             
 
 
In the matter of: ) 
 ) 
  )  ISCR Case No. 16-03384 
 ) 
Applicant for Security Clearance ) 
 
 
Appearances 
 
For Government: Bryan J. Olmos Esq., Department Counsel 
For Applicant: Pro se 
 
 
 
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Decision 
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LOUGHRAN, Edward W., Administrative Judge: 
 
On December 8, 2016, the Department of Defense (DOD) issued a Statement of 
Reasons (SOR) to Applicant detailing security concerns under Guideline F, financial 
considerations.1 Applicant responded to the SOR on January 17, 2017, and requested a 
hearing before an administrative judge. The case was assigned to me on May 12, 2017. 
The hearing was held as scheduled on June 30, 2017. On July 13, 2017, I proposed to 
the parties that this case was appropriate for a summary disposition in Applicant’s favor. 
Department Counsel did not object.  
 
Applicant had periods of unemployment and underemployment. He decided that 
his best option for correcting his financial issues was to return to school and learn the 
skills that enabled him to be hired by a defense contractor in March 2014.  
 
                                                          
1 This case is adjudicated under Executive Order (EO) 10865, Safeguarding Classified Information within 
Industry (February 20, 1960), as amended; DOD Directive 5220.6, Defense Industrial Personnel Security 
Clearance Review Program (January 2, 1992), as amended (Directive); and the adjudicative guidelines, 
which became effective on June 8, 2017. 
 
2 
 
The Statement of Reasons (SOR) alleges a $6,080 defaulted student loan; 
$4,711 owed for the deficiency on an auto loan after the car was repossessed; $5,226 
owed to apartment complexes after broken leases; ten medical debts totaling $2,083; 
and two telecommunications debts totaling $948. Since he obtained his current job, he 
has paid, settled, or otherwise resolved about two thirds of the debts alleged in the 
SOR. He credibly testified that he will continue his efforts to resolve his financial 
problems. He still has work to do, but I am satisfied that he has a plan to resolve his 
financial problems, and that he has taken significant action to implement that plan. 
Based on the record evidence as a whole, I conclude that the security concerns are 
mitigated under the following mitigating conditions: AG ¶¶ 20(a), 20(b), 20(c), and 20(d).  
 
The concerns over Applicant’s history of financial problems do not create doubt 
about his current reliability, trustworthiness, good judgment, and ability to protect 
classified information. In reaching this conclusion, I weighed the evidence as a whole 
and considered if the favorable evidence outweighed the unfavorable evidence. I also 
gave due consideration to the whole-person concept. Accordingly, I conclude that he 
met his ultimate burden of persuasion to show that it is clearly consistent with the 
national interest to grant him eligibility for access to classified information. This case is 
decided for Applicant.  
 
 
 
________________________ 
Edward W. Loughran 
Administrative Judge