Improvements Needed in the Government's Personnel Security Clearance Program

GAO testified on the improvements needed in the government's security clearance program. GAO found that although the program has improved during the past 10 years, improvements are still needed in: (1) consistent standards for investigations and adjudications; (2) centralized adjudications at the agency level; (3) legislation or a new executive order; (4) continuous monitoring and periodic reinvestigation of cleared employees; (5) timely investigations; and (6) control of the number of requests for investigations. The type of security clearance an individual needs is determined by the classification level of information they handle, and most government and industry employees have either secret or top secret clearances. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is responsible for conducting all competitive service investigations; however, excepted service positions are not covered and agencies are free to use whatever means they choose to investigate the applicants. Since recent studies indicate that inconsistent standards and procedures still exist, GAO believes that OPM and other agencies need to develop definitive standards for reporting costs and for determining the scope of the investigations. GAO also believes that a centralized adjudication would provide uniformity and consistency in the applications of standards and criteria. The Department of Defense (DOD) is the only agency which has continuous monitoring of employees for reporting adverse information. GAO found that most agencies are reluctant to revoke security clearances because it might be considered an adverse action. GAO also found that delays in the processing of security clearances result in significant costs to the government and excessive requests for clearances contribute to backlogs and processing delays. DOD implemented a GAO recommendation that instructions be issued that would require advance approval of nominees' investigations and that requests not containing the advance approval be returned to help keep clearances to a minimum.