INSIDE THE

Security Clearance Reciprocity

Will your clearance transfer from one agency to another? The answer is “It depends.”

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management conducts the background investigations for the majority of federal government agencies. However there are several that conduct their own investigations, such as the intelligence agencies and Department of Homeland Security.

The more closely related the agencies, the more likely an agency will reciprocate another agency’s adjudication. Under certain guidelines, some agencies are required to reciprocate the clearance adjudication of another agency.

OMB Memorandum dated December 12, 2005 provides that an agency that needs to determine the eligibility for access to classified information for an individual who has current eligibility with another federal agency or program cannot:

1. Request the individual to complete a new security questionnaire;
2. Review existing backgrounds for individuals;
3. Review existing security questionnaires for the individual; or
4. Initiate any new investigative checks

Unless the agency can establish that:

1. The existing clearance was granted on an interim or temporary basis;
2. The investigation upon which the clearance is based is more than seven years old for top secret designations, 10 years old for secret designations, and fifteen years old for confidential designations;
3. The gaining agency is aware of substantial information indicating that the standards of Executive Order 12968 may not be satisfied.

Furthermore, if the individual is being considered for access to a highly sensitive program at the new agency, the new agency can decline to reciprocate another agency’s clearance adjudicative if:

1. The existing access eligibility determination is based upon a waiver or deviation, or the access is otherwise subject to conditions;
2. The individual does not satisfy a polygraph requirement imposed by the new program;
3. The individual does not satisfy a requirement imposed by the new program that does not allow any non-U.S. immediate family;
4. The individual does not satisfy an investigative and/or adjudicative criterion that is additional to the standards set forth in Executive Order 12968.

Some agencies are not sure if they are required to reciprocate the clearance adjudication of another agency. However, there are various databases that agencies can utilize to determine if they are required to reciprocate the clearance adjudication of another agency, including:

1. OPM’s Central Verification System (CVS);
2. The Department of Defense’s Joint Personnel Adjudication System (JPAS); or
3. The Intelligence Community’s Scattered Castles database

Additionally, an agency can fax an “Inter-Agency Clearance Verification Request” to the appropriate agency to determine the relevant clearance information.

Therefore if you have a basic clearance without special access issued by an agency such as the Department of Defense, it is unlikely that one of the intelligence agencies will reciprocate that clearance. As such you will have to undergo another background investigation.

In cases in which an agency is not required to reciprocate a clearance determination of another agency, it is also entirely possible that you are granted a favorable determination by one agency, while another agency denies you a clearance using the same set of facts from your background.

Greg Rinckey is the Managing Partner of Tully Rinckey PLLC, one of the largest federal sector employment law firms in the country. Greg is a recognized leader in the military and federal employment law sectors. Nicole Smith, Tully Rinckey Associate, represents government employees and contractors in a wide range of security clearance matters, with a concentration on application and interview counseling. Nicole spent nine years as a national security background investigator. Follow Tully Rinckey on Twitter @FedLawSource