DOD and OPM Met 2008 Timeliness Requirements, but the Executive Branch’s 2009 Report Did Not Reflect the Full Range of Clearance Timeliness

IRTPA currently requires that the executive branch report annually on the  progress made during the preceding year toward meeting the act’s  timeliness requirements for clearances and that clearance decisions on at  least 80 percent of initial clearances be made within 120 days, on average. IRTPA also requires that a plan be implemented by December 2009 under  which, to the extent practical, 90 percent of initial clearance decisions be  made within 60 days, on average. The report stated that  the average time for completing the fastest 90 percent of initial clearances  for military and DOD civilians in fiscal year 2008 was 124 days. However,  because the average is the sole metric presented for timeliness and  because the slowest 10 percent of the data is excluded, the report does not  communicate the full range of time it took OPM and DOD to complete the  clearances. 2). Investigation and Adjudication Documentation Was Incomplete for Favorably Adjudicated Initial Top Secret Clearances

		Documentation in Most of the OPM-Provided Investigative Reports Was Incomplete

Based on our independent analysis, we estimated that 87 percent of the  investigative reports for about 3,500 initial top secret clearances—which  were favorably adjudicated—were missing at least one type of  documentation required by federal investigative standards and OPM’s   internal guidance. DOD Adjudicators Accept Incomplete Investigative Reports

DOD adjudicators made their clearance decisions based on incomplete  investigative reports. DOD has not issued formal guidance clarifying if and under what  circumstances adjudicators can adjudicate incomplete investigative  reports, although DOD adjudicators follow a risk-managed approach when  granting security clearances. Documentation in Some DOD Adjudicative Files Was Incomplete

We estimated that 22 percent of the adjudicative files for about 3,500  initial top secret clearances that were favorably adjudicated had  incomplete documentation. By not measuring the completeness of  adjudicative files departmentwide, DOD is limited in its ability to explain  the extent to which incomplete files exist and reasons why some files are  incomplete. Incomplete Investigation and Adjudication Documentation Negatively Affects the Clearance Process

Incomplete OPM-provided investigative reports lead to delays and increase  the cost of DOD’s personnel security clearance process. Executive Branch Reports on the Personnel Security Clearance Process Contain Limited Information on Quality

Past executive branch IRTPA-required reports to Congress on the  personnel security clearance process have provided congressional  decision makers with limited information on quality in the process. Previously we have pointed out that an emphasis on timeliness in the  clearance process alone does not provide a complete picture of the  process. To provide more comprehensive information about personnel security  clearance timeliness, which would aid the ongoing personnel security  clearance reform efforts, we recommend that the OMB Deputy Director  for Management, in the capacity as the Chair of the Performance  Accountability Council, include appropriate statistics that describe the full  range of the time required to complete all initial clearance applications in  the executive branch’s IRTPA-required annual reports. IRTPA currently requires  that 80 percent of initial clearance decisions are to be made within 120  days, on average. As we explained in our report, basing  clearance decisions on incomplete documentation that has not fully  adhered to federal investigative standards may reduce the assurance that  appropriate safeguards are in place to prevent DOD from granting  clearances to untrustworthy individuals. As a result, the  executive branch has missed opportunities to provide congressional  decision makers with full transparency over the clearance process. We are sending copies of this report to the Director of the Office of  Management and Budget, the Secretary of Defense, and the Director of the  Office of Personnel Management. Appendix I: Scope and Methodology

To determine the completeness of the timeliness data that the executive  branch reported for clearances granted in fiscal year 2008 for the  Department of Defense (DOD), we reviewed Title III of the Intelligence  Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (IRTPA), measured the  timeliness of nearly 630,000 clearances completed in fiscal year 2008 for  military, DOD civilian, and industry personnel, and analyzed the executive  branch 2009 annual report to Congress required by IRTPA. GAO-09-261R. DOD Personnel Clearances: Questions for the Record Related to the  Quality and Timeliness of Clearances.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Department of Defense (DOD) personnel security clearance program has been on GAO's high-risk list since 2005, due to delays in the process and incomplete documentation. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) conducts most of DOD's clearance investigations, which DOD adjudicators use to make clearance decisions. The Deputy Director for Management at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) chairs a Performance Accountability Council that is responsible for reforming the clearance process. Conducted under the authority of the Comptroller General, GAO's report addresses the (1) reporting on timeliness for DOD clearances, (2) documentation completeness for making initial top-secret clearance decisions for DOD personnel, and (3) reporting on the quality of the clearance process. To assess these issues, GAO analyzed data on most DOD clearances granted in fiscal year 2008, randomly sampled and analyzed 100 OPM investigative reports and DOD adjudicative files for clearances granted in July 2008, and analyzed 2006-09 executive branch annual clearance reports.

What GAO Found

DOD and OPM met statutory timeliness requirements for personnel security clearances in fiscal year 2008, but the executive branch's 2009 required report to Congress did not reflect the full range of time to make all initial clearance decisions. Currently, 80 percent of initial clearance decisions are to be made within 120 days, on average, and by December 2009, a plan is to be implemented in which, to the extent practical, 90 percent of initial clearance decisions are made within 60 days, on average. Under both requirements, the executive branch can exclude the slowest percent, and then report on an average of the remaining clearances. The most recent report stated that the average time to complete the fastest 90 percent of initial clearances for military and DOD civilians in fiscal year 2008 was 124 days, on average. However, without taking averages or excluding the slowest clearances, GAO analyzed 100 percent of initial clearances granted in 2008 and found that 39 percent still took more than 120 days. The absence of comprehensive reporting limits full visibility over the timeliness of initial clearance decisions. With respect to initial top secret clearances adjudicated in July 2008, documentation was incomplete for most OPM investigative reports and some DOD adjudicative files. GAO independently estimated that 87 percent of about 3,500 investigative reports that adjudicators used to make clearance decisions were missing required documentation, and the documentation most often missing was employment verification. Although DOD leadership asserted that adjudicators follow a risk-managed approach, DOD has not issued formal guidance clarifying if and under what circumstances adjudicators can adjudicate incomplete investigative reports. For DOD adjudicative files, GAO estimated that 22 percent were missing required documentation of the rationale for granting clearances to applicants with security concerns, and the documentation most often missing was related to foreign influence. Neither OPM nor DOD measures the completeness of its investigative reports or adjudicative files. As a result, both are limited in their ability to explain the extent or the reasons why some documents are incomplete. Incomplete documentation may lead to increases in both the time needed to complete the clearance process and in overall process costs and may reduce the assurance that appropriate safeguards are in place to prevent DOD from granting clearances to untrustworthy individuals. The executive branch's annual reports to Congress on the personnel security clearance process have provided decision makers with limited data on quality. The 2009 report did not provide any data on quality but, unlike previous reports, identified quality metrics that the executive branch proposes to collect. GAO has stated that timeliness alone does not provide a complete picture of the clearance process and emphasized that attention to quality could increase reciprocity--accepting another federal entity's clearances. The executive branch, though not required to include information on quality in its annual reports, has latitude to report appropriate information and has missed opportunities to make the clearance process transparent to Congress.