CIA Clearance Denial Appeal Length

[ptrckhsu]

to date, the cia hasn't replied back

[another cia reject]

ptrckhsu, write another letter to the person who you appealed to.  It is probably some Senior Adjudicator in the DC area.  If you write another letter checking on your status, you should get a reply within a week or two.  Unfortunately, using snail mail is the only way to contact these people.  My appeal took 2 years before I heard anything a few years back.  Maybe more people are appealing their polygraph failures and there is a backlog now? 

What sucks for you is that from your previous posts, they have you recorded on audio and video confessing to viewing illegal porn.  So you don't stand much of a change winning your appeal.  But at least you are on record opposing the polygraph with the rest of us.

[ptrckhsu]

I have already written two letters to the senior adjudicator personally. He hasn't responded to either.

[xenonman]

...and as I've said before ad nauseum: just don't hold your breath!  "You ain't got nothin' comin' "   lol

[ptrckhsu]

And if they never respond back to me, then that's basically a clearance denial? But if I don't hear back, then how will I know when I can reapply to another agency?

[a cia reject]

You can still reapply to another agency.  You just can't reapply to the CIA specifically while you are going through the appeal.  If the new agency, or job, is nice enough, they will still sponsor your security clearance.  When they do your background check and see this glitch from the CIA, they can still move forward and adjudicate it.  However, it is up to your new agency to do so.  If you are unlucky, the agency/job may not even consider you because of this red flag and will just move on to another candidate who has no issues.  Most government agencies and big name contractor jobs will still sponsor you for a security clearance.  Most small private sector jobs that want you to already have a clearance will bypass you.  Just be honest.  Your life isn't over.  Forget about the CIA.  Fuck them.  You can still have a good career.

[ptrckhsu]

CIA Reject,

Thanks a lot for the encouragement.

//However, it is up to your new agency to do so.  If you are unlucky, the agency/job may not even consider you because of this red flag and will just move on to another candidate who has no issues.//

I would hope that the other agency doesn't read the SOR though. The allegations the CIA made against me were false and some of which they manipulated me to confess to. I just wanted to leave the interrogation room and give them what they wanted.

[Ex Member]

It takes 2 years. And your appeal will be denied.  You'll be given one more chance to appeal to someone higher up, and that appeal will also be denied.  At that point the letter they send you will say something like "this is our final correspondence with you".

I wonder what would happen if, attached to the appeal, were a polygraph report, with charts from a qualified and recognized polygrapher, disputing the previous results?

[George W. Maschke]

It takes 2 years. And your appeal will be denied.  You'll be given one more chance to appeal to someone higher up, and that appeal will also be denied.  At that point the letter they send you will say something like "this is our final correspondence with you".

I wonder what would happen if, attached to the appeal, was a polygraph report, with charts from a qualified and recognized polygrapher, disputing the previous results?

Extra special blacklisting, I suspect.

[another cia reject]

I don't know if another job or agency can see the SOR.  I doubt it.  What they will see when they run your clearance background check, when they check all the clearance databases with your SSN, is an "Incident Report" from OGA...or Other Government Agency...which everyone knows is CIA.  The details probably won't be there.  That new job/agency will either ask you about this and this is when you provide the details so they can still adjudicate your clearance with them, or not even bother and just tell you something like "you are no longer being considered" or "we selected another candidate". 

[ptrckhsu]

Thanks for the helpful information. Ok, so this would be at the first step of the background investigation process, they won't proceed to conduct background investigation interviews of employers and friends until they've decided to continue the investigation process despite the incident report?

[another cia reject]

The security clearance process contains several steps, check Wikipedia for details, but the order of those steps may vary.  It will not start until you get a job offer, or a conditional job offer of employment (COE).  Most government agencies like the CIA will first give you an interview with your prospective office and then issue a COE if the office likes you.  Then the security folks will step in and the polygraph is first, along with psych, medical, and drug testing, all over a 3 day period.  If you fail the poly, they don't even bother with the rest of the security clearance process.  You are rejected right there, COE rescinded, game over.  It is cheaper to polygraph applicants than to run the top secret background check. I hear the NSA may do the poly and background check concurrently.

If you apply for another job that requires a clearance, one of two things may happen.  They may have you fill out a pre-clearance survey as part of your initial job application to assure them you can get a clearance.  That survey may include a question like "have you ever had a security clearance/access revoked, suspended, or denied"?  You are to answer truthfully, and when you answer "yes", they will toss your application in the garbage.  No chance to explain yourself.  They want a candidate with no issues so they don't waste time and money on trying to clear someone who may not get cleared.

Or, they may interview you and hire you and make you sign a form that says you must get a security clearance within the first year on the job or your employment can be terminated.  So if you get hired, and you never get your clearance, and the security folks see that Incident Report (IR) from OGA in your file, they will ask you "What is taking so long? Is there something you wish to tell us about this IR".  After you explain yourself and the company/agency gets tired of waiting on your clearance to be adjudicated after a year, you are fired.  But at least you got a paycheck for a year!

An IR in your clearance file, whether from a failed polygraph or an arrest, when you are not currently employed with a job that needs a clearance, is a big red flag.  You are in a tough situation.  The IR cannot be adjudicated until some company/agency sponsors you for a job-needed clearance.  However, the catch is that not many companies/agencies want to waste money on sponsoring a prospective employee for a clearance who has an IR in his/her file because the company/agency does not know how severe that IR is or how long it will take to resolve!  You are now a reject in the national security community.  You are a red-headed-bastard-gay-stepchild that nobody wants.

You'll just have to seek and find one of the select few agencies/companies who will hire you and sponsor you for a clearance, despite the IR that the CIA put in your file because of the stupid polygraph.

[ptrckhsu]

//You are a red-headed-bastard-gay-stepchild that nobody wants.//

Well that just sucks then.

[Ex Member]

//You are a red-headed-bastard-gay-stepchild that nobody wants.//

Well that just sucks then.

"What a revoltin' development this is!"

Chester A. Riley

[xenonman]

//You are a red-headed-bastard-gay-stepchild that nobody wants.//

Well that just sucks then.

It does suck, and it ain't going to change in our lifetimes either, I'm afraid.
One factor in your favour:  The CIA is a law unto itself with respect to its employment selection process.  Thus, you may still have a chance at a security clearance at another three-letter agency.  (Such other clearance won't let you into Langley to sightsee, however!  lol)
Also, as I've said many times already on this board:  It ain't just the polygraph, it's also the whole Agency BI process that stinks!