USAO Clearance Form Forum

[The Duck]

I know the sf-86 can ask for information as far as 7 or 10 years back...what happens when you literally can't find someone (outside of family members) to verify a period of residence or unemployment. Immediate ding or if you reasonably didn't know anyone it's not a huge red flag?

Its 7 years for a Secret (generally 5 years of which you must provide contacts) and 10 years for Top Secret. If they can't verify enough info, they will deny you. That's why you should never list the same person twice anywhere on the form. That way if they can't get ahold of one or two people, hopefully the adjudicator still feels like they have enough info. (This isn't required but is a very good idea to do.)

It's definitely a huge red flag to not be able to list a name though. I had dozens of my people get turned down for less than this. Start looking people up online. With some work, you can do it and they know that. In fact, I'm not sure it would even get passed the USAO's security manger to be turned into OPM with a blank...because it'll never get approved and that prohibits them from issuing an interim clearance under OPM guidelines.

There are very few people who would legit not know anyone during a particular period of their life they could track down with effort. Were you in Antarctica? That's why they'd assume you were hiding something.

You realize they didn't have to be your best friend right? Just someone that can verify you lived there? It could even be a landlord, etc. During unemployment, probably any friend (any person really) you had contact with and knew about the unemployment would do. Even an old co-worker who knew you were unemployed...

[Anonymous User]

Prior PCP / meth use will disqualify you. Prior weed use won't automatically.

Drugs more commonly consumed in college (ecstasy, cocaine, mushrooms) are also probably automatic DQs. I heard that they are pretty much autos for JAG. I would also assume that none of the above stuff is really an automatic DQ for a term time externship, BUT now whatever drugs you did are on paper and could be an auto DQ for something else later down the line.

Personally I just decided to give myself the 7 years between drugs and federal jobs. It just doesn't really seem worth it to lie or be honest on a federal form for an internship.

[The Duck]

Prior PCP / meth use will disqualify you. Prior weed use won't automatically.

Drugs more commonly consumed in college (ecstasy, cocaine, mushrooms) are also probably automatic DQs. I heard that they are pretty much autos for JAG. I would also assume that none of the above stuff is really an automatic DQ for a term time externship, BUT now whatever drugs you did are on paper and could be an auto DQ for something else later down the line.

Personally I just decided to give myself the 7 years between drugs and federal jobs. It just doesn't really seem worth it to lie or be honest on a federal form for an internship.

Each agency, and each branch of the DoD, sets its own guidelines for what drugs and how much use disqualifies for a particular clearance. However, those standards are the same as any person getting that level clearance from that agency. There are no separate rules for summers.

After all, the point is they are saying that drug use makes you too unreliable to possess classified information. What would the difference be if that access occurred over the summer or as a full-time employee? Indeed, you're actually a riskier person to give access to if only there for the summer. (Given your loyalty to the organization, what you have to lose, etc.)

Secret in particular is not compartmentalized. Once you have that clearance, you can access any information as to which you have reasonably have a need to know. And this is interpreted broadly...e.g. I needed to look up files from those other cases I found to see how they handled X...no one pre-clears you to those files. There is not separate "summer" classified information.