How to Write to my Congressman
1. What can a Congressional Member do for me?
2. How to format my request? Please guide.
SUMMARY: My attorneys are trying to ascertain the process to appeal DoD’s denial of my security clearance. My firm’s SSO referred us to DSS, DSS referred us to DOHA, no answer there. So we have addressed the head of the Defense Legal Services Agency and hoping to hear anything back. Meanwhile, I want to reach out to my Congressman. I live in MD.
DETAILS: I am a DoD Federal contractor since 2009. In 2011 I passed a CI Poly and in 2012 I was granted TS/SCI by the Dept of Army. In 2013, while employed on a USAF contract, I received an offer to work with the CIA as a contractor. In 2013, I passed their LS Poly. In March 2015, the CIA declined to grant me a clearance and provided a SOR. It was based on Foreign Influence and was a major misinterpretation on the interviewer’s part whose only contact with me was over the phone. Nothing was found derogatory by CIA’s own investigation.
I was advised that in order to appeal a review of CIA’s decision, I should send a written request within 45 days of receipt of the SOR. The SOR also stated that my potential new company’s SSO may resubmit me for a security approval with the CIA one year after the date of disapproval. Feeling overwhelmed and defeated as well as underfunded, I decided to choose the latter option, i.e., to wait a year.
However, in December 2015, while still employed on the USAF contract I was denied Site Access by the NSA. I was informed a SOR would not be provided because I still had my TS/SCI with the Dept of Army/DoD. I worked from home until March 2016, when I received employment on a Dept of Army contract. I possess correspondence to prove the new firm was made aware of my situation. In February 2018, I phoned Scattered Castle (SC) Helpdesk to install certain certificates. SC Helpdesk saw the CIA clearance denial and panicked. I was escorted out of my office.
In March 2018, I was informed over the phone by my SSO that DoD CAF contacted him, also by phone, to state that a SOR will not be issued due to reciprocity with CIA denial. In April 2018, the FSO notified via email that the PSMO stopped my PR due to the February 2018, denial/revocation. Though the SSO is authorized to resubmit me in February 2019 as initial investigation, my firm decided to stand down on clearance processing.
Initially, in March 2018, my firm decided to let me go as I no longer fulfilled their security clearance requirement. However, I was able to convince them to keep me on unpaid status so that my clearance remains sponsored. I am on an admin leave without pay since then, and face termination in June 2018, due to an inability to appeal a decision to revoke my security clearance based on another agency’s final decision.
I did not receive a SOR from DoD. Without it, I have no due process. We want to determine where that process lies and to whom we address an appeal. The most important need at this time is to ascertain whether, based on reciprocity, the DoD has ceded control over its security clearance decision making to other agencies, in this case, the CIA. If there are no further due process avenues available to me, I should be notified so I can make appropriate plans. If, however, the policy has been misstated to me by not issuing me a SOR, I should receive the SOR as soon as possible so that we can begin the process to respond.
Thank you for reading thus far. I need your input on how to write and reach out to my congressional member. At this point, I do not even know what question to ask this community regarding a writing/contacting a congressman.