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Read. Follow. Verify.Hearing on Security Clearance Processing and Backlogs
Record date · January 1, 2019
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What This Bill Does
The House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations held a hearing to review the status of the security clearance background investigation backlog. The committee discussed the ongoing transition of background investigation responsibilities to the Department of Defense and the use of technology to improve processing timelines.
The efficiency of the security clearance process directly impacts the government's ability to hire national security personnel and maintain military readiness.
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Department of Defense
The agency is assuming responsibility for background investigations for all federal agencies.
Office of Personnel Management employees
These employees are undergoing a personnel conversion process as the investigation function moves to the Department of Defense.
National security personnel applicants
The speed of the security clearance process determines the timeline for their hiring.
Key Facts
- The hearing was the fifth subcommittee event focused on security clearance reform.
- The Department of Defense is in the process of assuming responsibility for background investigations for all federal agencies.
- The National Background Investigations Bureau reported a reduction in the investigation backlog over the six months prior to December 2018.
- The Department of Defense is implementing continuous evaluation and automated processes to reduce timelines for periodic reinvestigations.
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- Concerns were raised regarding the potential for the adjudication phase of the clearance process to become a new bottleneck as investigative timelines improve.
- The subcommittee is monitoring the personnel conversion process for Office of Personnel Management employees moving to the Department of Defense.
- The hearing took place on December 12, 2018, in the Rayburn House Office Building.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is there a backlog in security clearances?
Is the Department of Defense taking over all background checks?
Are automated processes replacing human investigators?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceFull breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Centralization of Background Investigations
The hearing confirms a major policy shift moving all federal background investigation responsibilities to the Department of Defense.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.govinfo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance65How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy35Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz15Current news / social attention level
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