I’m currently in the later stages of interviews for a federal contractor role and may be close to receiving an offer that would require a Tier 2 / Public Trust background investigation. As part of preparing for that process, I had a few general questions about how these reviews are typically conducted.
For individuals who have held a long-term primary W-2 position and, at different points, also worked additional W-2 or 1099 roles in unrelated industries, how do investigators generally view situations where work periods may have overlapped?
In these types of scenarios, the work was actually performed, income was fully reported and taxed, time records were not falsified, there were no conflicts of interest, and no employer ever raised concerns or alleged misconduct.
From a definitions and standards perspective:
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How is “double dipping” defined in the context of Public Trust reviews?
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Is overlapping employment itself a concern, or is the focus primarily on falsified time, false claims, or misuse of funds?
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What factors do investigators typically look for when determining whether overlapping work presents an issue?
I also wanted to better understand investigative scope and information handling. Are Public Trust investigations generally limited to assessing suitability and trustworthiness for the role, or do they involve broader inter-agency referrals for matters outside suitability that do not involve criminal activity?
More broadly, how is information from a Public Trust investigation typically shared or limited across agencies, and what types of issues would normally warrant referral beyond the employing agency?
I’m asking from a general process and policy standpoint to better understand how these reviews work as I prepare for a potential Public Trust process, rather than in reference to any specific case.