United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2007-05-17 monographic deposited born digital 24 p. GA 1.13:GAO-07-842T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T P0b002ee1803707b4 f:d07842t DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-24 GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T GAO-07-842T Background investigations Classified defense information Classified information Department of Defense contractors Documentation Eligibility determinations Employees Policy evaluation Program evaluation Regulatory agencies Reporting requirements Security clearances Government delays Timeliness GAO High Risk Series Testimony A69736 Individuals working for the private industry are playing a larger role in national security work conducted by Department of Defense (DOD) and other federal agencies. As of May 2006, industry personnel held about 34 percent of DOD-maintained personnel security clearances. The damage that the unauthorized disclosure of classified information can cause to national security necessitates the prompt and careful consideration of who is granted a security clearance. Long-standing delays in determining clearance eligibility and other challenges led GAO to designate the DOD personnel security clearance program as a high-risk area in January 2005 and again in GAO's January 2007 update of the high-risk areas. In February 2005, DOD transferred its security clearance investigations functions to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and now obtains almost all of its clearance investigations from OPM. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is responsible for effective implementation of policy relating to determinations of eligibility for access to classified information. This testimony addresses the timeliness of the process and completeness of documentation used to determine eligibility of industry personnel for top secret clearances in January and February 2006. This statement relies primarily on GAO's September 2006 report (GAO-06-1070). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T/pdf/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T.pdf GAO-07-842T https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-07-842T Testimony GAO-07-842T; DOD Personnel Clearances: Delays and Inadequate Documentation Found for Industry Personnel; Background investigations Classified defense information Classified information Department of Defense contractors Documentation Eligibility determinations Employees Policy evaluation Program evaluation Regulatory agencies Reporting requirements Security clearances Government delays Timeliness GAO High Risk Series Public Law 108-458