By STEPHEN BARR
The Washington Post
Bush administration officials before leaving office hope to resolve one of the government’s most vexing problems — the slow pace of obtaining security clearances for federal employees and contract workers. President Bush, in a recent memo to agency heads, directed key officials to submit a plan by the end of April for speeding up and improving the process. New government employees undergo background investigations to ensure they are suitable for federal employment and, depending on the nature of their job, an investigation to determine whether they can receive secret, top secret or other security clearance.
Federal job applicants and contract workers have complained for years that their employment prospects or job assignments fall into limbo because background investigations take too long — frequently more than a year. With the system seemingly broke, companies that do business with the Pentagon and the intelligence agencies have offered luxury cars and signing bonuses of up to $20,000 for people holding clearances.Posted on Mon, Mar. 24, 2008
Federal Diary: Security checks to be streamlined
By STEPHEN BARR
The Washington Post
Bush administration officials before leaving office hope to resolve one of the government’s most vexing problems — the slow pace of obtaining security clearances for federal employees and contract workers.
President Bush, in a recent memo to agency heads, directed key officials to submit a plan by the end of April for speeding up and improving the process.
New government employees undergo background checks to ensure they are suitable for federal employment and, depending on the nature of their job, an investigation to determine whether they can receive secret, top secret or other security clearance.
Federal job applicants and contract workers have complained for years that their employment prospects or job assignments fall into limbo because background checks take too long — frequently more than a year. With the system seemingly broke, companies that do business with the Pentagon and the intelligence agencies have offered luxury cars and signing bonuses of up to $20,000 for people holding clearances.
Congress also has pushed to speed up clearances. The 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Act requires that 80 percent of all security clearances be completed in an average of 120 days.
Last April, Linda Springer, director of the Office of Personnel Management, and Stephen Hadley, assistant to the president for national security affairs, developed recommendations for improving the security clearance process. In June, Pentagon and intelligence officials began their own review of the clearance process, with an eye to enhancing operations in spy agencies.
When officials became aware of each other’s initiatives, they decided to join efforts, Springer said.
About 90 percent of the government’s background investigations, nearly 2 million each year, are conducted by the Office of Personnel Management.
Springer said the office was steadily reducing the time it takes for the background checks. Most investigations for top secret and secret clearances are being completed in 199 days, on average, she said. That is from the time the job applicant completes a form for the investigation to the date that an agency decides to either grant or deny the clearance.
The president’s memo recommends the government develop a common method for conducting background investigations. Once basic investigations have been completed, any future inquiries, required when people change jobs or move to new security levels, should avoid duplicating the previous background checks.
Congress also has pushed to speed up clearances. The 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Act requires that 80 percent of all security clearances be completed in an average of 120 days.
Last April, Linda Springer, director of the Office of Personel Management, and Stephen Hadley, assistant to the president for national security affairs, developed recommendations for improving the security clearance process. In June, Pentagon and intelligence officials began their own review of the clearance process, with an eye to enhancing operations in spy agencies. When officials became aware of each other’s initiatives, they decided to join efforts, Springer said.
About 90 percent of the government’s background investigations, nearly 2 million each year, are conducted by the Office of Personnel Management.
Springer said the office was steadily reducing the time it takes for the background investigations. Most investigations for top secret and secret clearances are being completed in 199 days, on average, she said. That is from the time the job applicant completes a form for the investigation to the date that an agency decides to either grant or deny the clearance.
The president’s memo recommends the government develop a common method for conducting background investigations. Once basic background investigations have been completed, any future inquiries, required when people change jobs or move to new security levels, should avoid duplicating the previous background investigations.
2 comments:
The necessity to quicken the background investigation process must also coincide with the thoroughnes and full completion that a background investigation entails
Several experienced contract investigators were unlawfully suspended for security concerns that were never proven, did not exist, which included a process to defame their characters; disrupting livelihoods; and were judged as a Federal Employees, which they were not. The suspensions were conducted by Kathy Dillaman of OPM FISD, her staff to include those of USIS who were contracted by Dillaman to review the work of contract investigators.
Contracting Companies conducting backgrounds for OPM FISD and other agencies for years QUIT the OPM FISD contract (MSM & Omnisec) which caused a loss of over 4 thousand contract investigators and knowledgeable staff, because of OPM FISD abuse of power...
Those wrongfully accused of unproven criminal acts, made every effort to obtain proper due process, but OPM Officials failed in every sense of the word to provide fair and impartial justice, and purposely disregarded all responses and correspondence. The offices included: Director of OPM; OPM Inspector General; OPM FISD and the OPM General Counsel.
Dillaman, Director of OPM FISD purposely delays all inquiries against her, and her office, by ignoring all requests and appeals, which in it self is the route to the delays of security backgrounds. All those of OPM FISD had deliberately ignored our Constitutional and Federal Laws, Regulations and OPM Notices. Even the OPM General Counsel’s Office to include the OPM IG ignored all responses for a request of due process.
OPM FISD continuous deception and delays, is an endless road. The lack of fair and impartial justice not given and abuse of power, by those within OPM is the real reason for the backlog. Those great man and woman, with extensive experience, that have been conducting security backgrounds for years, under contract, are leaving the business, because of Dillaman and her staff’s unethical practices of abuse and injustice..
There are people in the business that can correct the backlog of security backgrounds in months, but because of the reputation of injustice and abuse of power, to include deception of OPM FISD, it will never be corrected.
This country depends on our soldiers and agents in the field, to protect us. Since the 80’s those soldiers and agents continued after retirement, as contract investigators, conducting Security Background Investigations for little money and got the job done, out of patriotism, and loyalty, but now we have those that are greedy, incompetent running our country’s security, like OPM FISD who has over 90% of the Security Background Investigative duties and can’t get it done - we deserve everything we get, if this country and those in our government don’t wakeup NOW.
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