Following numerous complaints about delays in processing security clearance applications, the Office of Personnel Management and the Defense Department announced they are working to ramp up their processing.  They recently released statistics showing that in spite of a growing workload they are reducing their case workloads and that after a 2 ½ month delay due to “financial shortfalls” they are again fully operational.  The number of Top Secret applications has increased from 3,000 in 2004 to 7,000 per month in 2006 and the number of Secret/Confidential clearances has increased from 14,000 to 34,000 a month in 2006 while the processing time has been cut more than half.  The marked improvement seems to be a result of OPM awarding contracts to five companies to perform the background investigations it normally conducts.

Meanwhile a coalition of industry groups have applauded provisions in the fiscal 2007 homeland security authorization bill that would require DHS to recognize security clearances granted by other agencies and not subject to secondary investigations.  The failure to do so in the past has been a significant source of criticism of DHS.  In addition the coalition has come out in favor of the new requirement to have all DHS components “meet or exceed” government-wide or departmental standards for clearance investigations, adjudications and suitability reviews.

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