I have posted here before and received some really good information (especially from EdFarmerIII and amberbunny).
I received a job offer from a contracting company. They asked if I had an active public trust and I said yes because I am current federal employee. The client is an agency within DoD so I was surprised to hear that I only needed public trust. I receive an email saying that I need to fill out the e-Qip and SF-86 for Tier 3 (T3), IT2 (not sure what this means) investigation. This goes back 7 years and is much more detailed that the public trust I had before. It seems a lot for only a public trust, so I am a bit confused.
Also because of the “EVER” question, I had to list all of my incidents/charges related to alcohol even though they were outside 7 years. Is the e-Qip/SF-86 the place to “plead my case” and explain myself where they have the “Additional Comments” section or should I wait to speak to the investigators or does it matter? Is this also the time to write every detail of the arrests or just that I was arrested/charged or do I wait to speak with investigator? To be clear ALL of my past is on the table and I did not attempt to lie or hide anything.
Welcome aboard. In the process of going thru my 5 year reinvestigation for my Public Trust, Modrate 5n position I received the equip for the sf85p(7 years) and a “supplemental questionaire” with the wonderful EVER questions. I had to answer yes to the domestic violence question for an incident that occurred 28 years ago? I will leave it to Marko and Ed…but I would just answer honestly. It blows having to discuss something outside the sf form…but just be honest and open. Good luck!!
Thank you @Laak for your response. I was very honest about all of my situations, I just wasnt sure when was the appropriate time to get into details in terms of how I got arrested and what not. I also wasnt sure when I should try to “explain myself” to ensure them that that time in my life is over. I wanted to make sure I have the opportunity to do that.
Do you have to sit and meet with the investigator to go over everything? Or did you just have to respond to the LOI?
I submitted my eqip and supplemantal in oct 2018, and heard from an investigator in feb. 2019. The investigator went to town on the domestic…did I have blood alcohol test, did I cause wounds, some very odd questions. At one point…out of the blue she said…did ur alcohol and drug abuse ruin your marriage? Lol Never mentioned anything about drugs? Also kept talking about classified info access…I kept explaining I dont have access to classified? Just relax and be sure to listen to the questions carefully. This person was pulling different binders with different docs in doc protectors and “running” through questions at a mile a minute…even repeating the same inflammatory questions. Inwoukd just answervthe qisations they throw at you honestly. Inhad one follow up call with her and havent heard anymore questions. My colleague had this younger kid working his…and rhis kid came to see him in peraon 5-6 times…swearing him in everytime. The guy was more than alittle happy when he got his adjudication papers.
Are you sure that you only need a public trust? They asked about it, perhaps, because your resume indicated it or they may have work that you can do with a public trust but the job might require a secret. I don’t believe that an SF86 would have been used for a public trust.
It sounds like the HR is confused. If they are requiring a T3, then it sounds like the position requires a minimum of a secret investigation. Personally, I would “plead your case” and explain in great detail. You’re in much better shape due disclosing up front as well as the time frame being outside of 7-yrs. The reason I would add the detail is because a T3 can take a year plus to adjudicate, often an organization will look to grant an “interim secret” while awaiting final adjudication. The more information they have up front, the easier it will be for them to make a decision on the interim.
If they said you only need Public Trust, ask them to confirm/clarify if that’s really the level that’s required. If it is, ask them why you’re not doing a T2 investigation with an SF-85 form. If you need Moderate Risk Public Trust classification, then ask why not a T2S investigation with an SF85P. It’s possible the contracting company is wrong.
All good advice but not quite right. Certain IT position, although not requiring access to classified information, are designated as needing access to “sensitive” information and instead of going the normal public trust investigation route, use the SF-86 to ferret out more information and fall under national security guidelines.
Answering the ever questions on the SF86 in the eQIP should prompt you to provide the additional information (arrest date, law enforcement agency, court date, court mandated actions). The SF86 is designed to help answer the bulk of the questions the investigator is required to gather. This is not the time to rush through the responses, especially the arrest date and the court date. Also, take the time to google the addresses for the law enforcement and the courts. Heck, you can probably google the court documents and provide the exact court requirements from your case.
I want to thank you ALL for the great advice here. I have concluded that the contractor maybe wrong here and this investigation, while I may not have access to Secret information, would qualify as the same investigation used to grant Secret clearances. So they may say public trust but ultimately it can be used to grant a different level of clearance.
