Security Clearance Jobs Blog

Looks like OPM is keeping USIS busy. I thought OPM said that security clearance investigation times were now all complete within a few months. Perhaps not?

USIS, a provider of security investigations to the federal government, is hoping to hire 200 field investigators in the next three months.

Falls Church-based USIS said in its hiring announcement that the new investigators are required for projects in high-need areas across the U.S.

USIS is also searching to hire independent contractors for work overseas. The contractors would work on national security contracts helping nations train local law enforcement personnel.

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In the fiscal 2010 Defense appropriations bill a test program aims to set up a secure telework site in the D.C. metro area for federal employees who need to access classified networks. Nextgov reports that at least two sites in the D.C. area will be identified where they can test the efficacy of a secure teleworking location for government workers.

Teleworking is seen as a retention and recruitment tool to help deal with the latest BRAC round where DISA is being forced to move employees from Northern Virginia to Fort Meade. Approximately 70% of DISA employees live in Northern Virginia. More than 2,000 DISA employees already work remotely, but on unclassified work only.

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A CBS News article looks at what is required if you want to apply for a job with the City of Bozeman, Montana.

If you want the job you will need to hand over your usernames and passwords for “…any Internet-based chat rooms, social clubs or forums, to include, but not limited to: Facebook, Google, Yahoo, YouTube.com, MySpace, etc.”

“I think its indefensibly invasive and likely illegal as a violation of the First Amendment rights of job applicants,” said Kevin Bankston, an EFF attorney. “I don’t think the government can condition your application for employment on your giving up your First Amendment rights and your Fourth Amendment rights,” Bankston said.

However, some social networking sites flatly prohibit disclosure of passwords.  Facebook’s terms of service, say: “You will not share your password (or) let anyone else access your account.”

Update: City of Bozeman has decided it will no longer ask job applicants for social networking user names and passwords following a worldwide outrage to the hiring policy.

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A June 20, 2009 article at WashingtonPost.com reported, “The Obama administration has proposed the creation of an intelligence officer training program in colleges and universities that would function much like the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps run by the military services.”

Under the sponsorship of the Director of National Intelligence the new program would expand on two earlier educational programs and focus on first- and second-generation Americans with language and cultural knowledge. Candidates would be selected from among sophomores and juniors at participating schools and would receive financial assistance similar to the support given to those in ROTC, plus paid summer internships. Participation in the program would obligate the student to serve in an IC agency for a period of time based on the financial assistance they received. The intelligence community (IC) currently provides funding to 14 colleges and universities for programs in national security studies.

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When you are security-cleared, everyday life events like vacations, new friends and neighbors, and personal relationships can have an impact on national security. Take a few minutes and watch our very own Emelyne Smith discuss the many seemingly common activities that are of concern to the U.S. government and those with security clearances.

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An article in The Houston Chronicle detailed a two-year forbidden foreign love affair that got a Houston engineer six months in federal prison. The engineer wasn’t accused of spying, but was accused of and pleaded guilty to conspiring to make false statements.

Gregory W. Blackard, 38, was sentenced for hiding his affair with a Chinese woman while working on construction of the U.S. Embassy in Beijing.

Having a high-security clearance to work on the embassy, Blackard was banned from fraternizing with Chinese nationals. He met other Chinese people through the woman and traveled with her to places such as Hong Kong, the Great Wall, and Long Mai Hot Springs.

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A May 2009 report, “The DHS Personnel Security Process,” issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) stated that:

“Department of Homeland Security personnel security offices are performing similar functions but use different policies throughout the personnel security process. Across the department, components strive to provide quality results in a timely manner but often are delayed by applicants, overwhelmed by customer service requests, restricted by database functions, and limited by information availability.”

The report made 20 recommendations to improve the Department of Homeland Security’s personnel security process, including some recommendations to consolidate security functions. As of November 2008 DHS was phasing in the use of a new department-wide web-based system to manage investigations and clearances to replace the 9 separate systems used by component agencies. Currently about half the components of DHS have authority to conduct their own clearance investigations. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Custom Enforcement contract for background investigations with several private companies. US Coast Guard and DHS Headquarters use a mix of investigative services provided by contractors and the Office of Personnel Management. The Secret Service uses internal investigative resources.

The report also contained investigative and adjudicative elapse times by departmental components. For 2008 average investigative times ranged from 30 to 96 days and average adjudicative times ranged from 17 to 147 days.

Related Article: DHS to Streamline Security Clearance Process

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Veritas Capital, a leading private equity firm, announced the acquisition of Kroll Government Services, Inc. from Kroll, Inc. Kroll Government Services, Inc. has been a leading provider of U.S. government security-clearance background investigations.

Kroll Government Services, Inc. has been renamed KeyPoint Government Solutions, Inc.

KeyPoint will continue to service U.S., state and local government customers including the Office of Personnel Management, the Department of Homeland Security, the Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Department of Justice, the US Coast Guard, the Army National Guard and the Los Angeles Police Department, among others.

KeyPoint Government Solutions is currently looking for Background Investigators.

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The Partnership for Public Service and American University’s Institute for the Study of Public Policy Implementation published their 2009 rankings of the best places to work in the federal government. The rankings were based on data from the biannual Federal Human Capital Survey administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and are posted at http://data.bestplacestowork.org/index.php/bptw/index.

Data was collected from 212,000 federal employees in 279 federal organizations and subcomponents, including 30 large agencies and 32 small agencies. Index scores for large organizations ranged from 80.7 to 52.2.

Among those listed as large agencies, the Nuclear Regulatory Agency ranked 1st overall for employee satisfaction and commitment. The US Intelligence Community, which was included in the rankings for the first time, ranked 4th. Surprisingly (or perhaps not) OPM, whose title implies expertise in creating employee satisfaction and commitment, ranked 20th. The Department of Homeland Security ranked 28th.

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On May 8, 2009 John Berry, the Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) jokingly told a senate subcommittee that his agency was sometimes referred to as the ‘Office of Personnel Recommendations.’” Berry made this comment at a hearing on the “Federal Hiring Process Improvement Act of 2009” (S.736). OPM has no ability to force other federal agencies to comply with existing personnel rules, and no penalties exist for noncompliance.

Regardless of Berry’s stated intent to administratively implement the provisions of S736, the legislation is necessary for any substantive changes to the government’s cumbersome and slow hiring practices. S.736 seeks to:

• Require agencies to promptly notify applicants of their status at each major step of the selection process.
• Fill vacancies in an average of 80 days or less.
• Allow applicants to submit a cover letter, resume, and answers to brief questions, such as questions relating to United States citizenship and veterans status, to complete an application
• Improve job announcements
• Eliminate KSAs (Knowledge, Skills and Abilities) essays.

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