I 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5240 

To reform classification and security clearance processes throughout the Federal Government and, within the Department of Homeland Security, 

to establish an effective and transparent process for the designation, 

investigation, adjudication, denial, suspension, and revocation of security 

clearances, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 29, 2014 

Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition 

to the Committees on Homeland Security, Select Intelligence (Permanent 

Select), and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To reform classification and security clearance processes 

throughout the Federal Government and, within the Department of Homeland Security, to establish an effective 

and transparent process for the designation, investigation, adjudication, denial, suspension, and revocation of 

security clearances, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Clearance and Over-Classification Reform and Reduction 

4 Act’’ or the ‘‘CORRECT Act’’. 

5 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Definitions. 

TITLE I—REFORMS TO CLASSIFICATION AND CLEARANCE 

PROCESSES 

Subtitle A—Reducing Over-Classification 

Sec. 101. Trend information on classified information and third evaluations. 

Sec. 102. Uniformity in sampling. 

Sec. 103. Ten percent reduction in holdings of classified information. 

Sec. 104. Status update on efforts at reducing holdings of classified information. 

Sec. 105. Report. 

Sec. 106. Public Interest Declassification Board enhancements. 

Sec. 107. Classification designation training. 

Sec. 108. Reducing over-classification guidance. 

Subtitle B—Governmentwide Reforms 

Sec. 111. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 112. Report on certain designations. 

Sec. 113. Transparency and accountability in personnel security investigations. 

Sec. 114. Continuous evaluation programs and insider threat programs. 

Sec. 115. Mitigating factors in the context of a continuous evaluation program 

or insider threat program. 

Sec. 116. Appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board. 

Sec. 117. Automated or nongovernmental adjudication prohibited. 

Sec. 118. Report on media contacts policy for intelligence personnel. 

TITLE II—DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY CLEARANCE 

PROCESS REFORMS 

Subtitle A—Designation 

Sec. 201. Designation of national security sensitive and public trust positions. 

Sec. 202. Audits. 

Sec. 203. Review of position designations. 

Subtitle B—Investigation 

Sec. 211. Investigation services provider performance. 

Sec. 212. Metrics. 

Subtitle C—Adjudication 


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Sec. 221. Uniform adjudication standards. 

Subtitle D—Denial, Suspension, Revocation, and Appeal 

Sec. 231. Uniform revocation criteria and procedures. 

Sec. 232. Annual reporting. 

Sec. 233. Final appeals panel. 

Subtitle E—Miscellaneous Provisions 

Sec. 241. Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 review 

and security clearance reciprocity. 

Sec. 242. Office of Inspector General report. 

Sec. 243. Penalties for falsification relating to an investigation file. 

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) CHIEF SECURITY OFFICER.—The term 

4 ‘‘Chief Security Officer’’ means the Classified Infor5 mation Advisory Officer of the Department of 

6 Homeland Security (identified and designated pursu7 ant to section 210F of the Homeland Security Act 

8 of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 124m)). 

9 (2) INTELLIGENCE REFORM AND TERRORISM

10 PREVENTION ACT TERMS.—The terms ‘‘agency’’, 

11 ‘‘authorized investigative agency’’, ‘‘authorized adju12 dicative agency’’, ‘‘current investigation file’’, ‘‘peri13 odic reinvestigations’’, and ‘‘personnel security inves14 tigation’’ have the meanings given those terms in 

15 section 3001(a) of the Intelligence Reform and Ter16 rorism Prevention Act of 2004 (50 U.S.C. 3341(a)). 

17 (3) INVESTIGATION SERVICE PROVIDER.—The 

18 term ‘‘investigation service provider’’ means the Of19 fice of Personnel Management and any other entity 


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1 that undertakes investigative services, including 

2 criminal record checks, financial record checks, field 

3 interviews, employment review, and education 

4 verifications, for an investigation file for a national 

5 security position. 

6 (4) NATIONAL SECURITY POSITION.—The term 

7 ‘‘national security position’’ has the meaning given 

8 that term in section 732.102 of title 5, Code of Fed9 eral Regulations. 

10 TITLE I—REFORMS TO CLASSI11 FICATION AND CLEARANCE 

12 PROCESSES 

13 Subtitle A—Reducing Over14 Classification 

15 SEC. 101. TREND INFORMATION ON CLASSIFIED INFORMA16 TION AND THIRD EVALUATIONS. 

17 Subsection (b) of section 6 of the Reducing Over18 Classification Act (50 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public Law 111– 

19 258) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

21 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

22 (A)— 

23 (i) by striking ‘‘2016’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘2019’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘no less than two’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘not fewer than three’’; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

4 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

5 (C) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 

6 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (D) by adding after subparagraph (B) the 

8 following new subparagraph: 

9 ‘‘(C) beginning with the second evaluation 

10 under paragraph (2)(B), to assess, with respect 

11 to subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, the de12 gree to which the incentives for accurate classi13 fication decisions referred to in subsection (a) 

14 have been utilized, and the extent to which the 

15 use of such incentives, including cash incentives 

16 or other alternative, non-cash awards, has im17 proved the accuracy of original classification de18 cisions or derivative classification decisions and 

19 a reduction in classified information.’’; 

20 (2) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the 

21 following new subparagraph: 

22 ‘‘(C) THIRD EVALUATIONS.—Each third 

23 evaluation required by paragraph (1) shall re24 view progress made since the second evaluation 

25 and the adequacy of the records to support each 


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1 self-inspection program determination in ac2 cordance with subsection (c), and assess such 

3 department or agency’s procedures and activi4 ties regarding classification challenges. Specifi5 cally, each third evaluation shall— 

6 ‘‘(i)(I) assess implementation of pro7 cedures by such department or agency to 

8 encourage authorized holders of classified 

9 information, including authorized holders 

10 outside the classifying agency, to challenge 

11 the classification of information that they 

12 believe is improperly classified or unclassi13 fied, as required by section 1.8 of Execu14 tive Order 13526 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) or 

15 successor order, and the degree to which 

16 such department or agency makes each au17 thorized holder of classified information 

18 aware of the procedures and encourages 

19 such holders to challenge the classification 

20 of information that they believe is improp21 erly classified or unclassified; and 

22 ‘‘(II) to the extent practicable, review 

23 data reflecting the disposition of challenges 

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1 cluding how often such challenges resulted 

2 in a change in classification; 

3 ‘‘(ii) review the degree to which infor4 mation that was declassified was deter5 mined by the agency to be of extraordinary 

6 public interest that does not undermine the 

7 national security of the United States, in8 cluding information on the number of na9 tional security positions (pursuant to sec10 tion 732 of title 5, Code of Federal Regu11 lations), by classification level, that are 

12 designated within the agency during that 

13 period; and 

14 ‘‘(iii) shall be completed not later than 

15 September 30, 2019.’’; and 

16 (3) in paragraph (3)(B)— 

17 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

18 end; 

19 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period at 

20 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

21 (C) by adding after clause (ii) the following 

22 new clause: 

23 ‘‘(iii) information relating to the as24 sessment required under paragraph 

25 (1)(C).’’. 


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1 SEC. 102. UNIFORMITY IN SAMPLING. 

2 Section 6 of the Reducing Over-Classification Act (50 

3 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public Law 111–258) is amended by 

4 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(c) UNIFORMITY IN SAMPLING.—The President, 

6 acting through the Director of the Information Security 

7 Oversight Office, shall issue a standardized sampling tech8 nique for department and agency self-inspection programs 

9 as required pursuant to Executive Order 13526 (50 

10 U.S.C. 3161 note) in order to address any vulnerabilities 

11 in such programs.’’. 

12 SEC. 103. TEN PERCENT REDUCTION IN HOLDINGS OF 

13 CLASSIFIED INFORMATION. 

14 Section 6 of the Reducing Over-Classification Act (50 

15 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public Law 111–258), as amended by 

16 section 102 of this Act, is further amended by adding at 

17 the end the following new subsection: 

18 ‘‘(d) TEN PERCENT REDUCTION IN HOLDING OF

19 CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The President shall estab20 lish goals for reducing, by the date that is not later than 

21 five years after the date of the enactment of this sub22 section, classified information, through declassification 

23 and improved original and derivative classification deci24 sionmaking, by not less than ten percent as compared to 

25 the amount of such information as of the day before such 

26 date. For purposes of this subsection, classified informaVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:08 Jul 31, 2014 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5240.IH H5240

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1 tion that would otherwise be declassified pursuant to Ex2 ecutive Order 13526 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) shall not 

3 count towards such ten percent requirement.’’. 

4 SEC. 104. STATUS UPDATE ON EFFORTS AT REDUCING 

5 HOLDINGS OF CLASSIFIED INFORMATION. 

6 Section 704(d)(1) of the Public Interest Declassifica7 tion Act of 2000 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public Law 106– 

8 567) is amended by striking the period and inserting ‘‘and 

9 information on the status of efforts, to the extent prac10 ticable on an agency-by-agency basis, at reducing the hold11 ing of classified information pursuant to section 6(d) of 

12 the Reducing Over-Classification Act (50 U.S.C. 3161 

13 note; Public Law 111–258).’’. 

14 SEC. 105. REPORT. 

15 Section 6 of the Reducing Over-Classification Act (50 

16 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public Law 111–258), as amended by 

17 sections 102 and 103 of this Act, is further amended by 

18 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

19 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—The Inspector General of each de20 partment or agency of the United States with an officer 

21 or employee who is authorized to make original and deriv22 ative classification decisions shall submit to the appro23 priate entities (as such term is defined in subsection 

24 (b)(4)) a report relating to progress accomplished under 

25 subsections (c) and (d).’’. 


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1 SEC. 106. PUBLIC INTEREST DECLASSIFICATION BOARD 

2 ENHANCEMENTS. 

3 (a) REVIEWS OF CLASSIFICATION GUIDANCE.—Sub4 sections (a) and (b) of section 704 of the Public Interest 

5 Declassification Act of 2000 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note; Public 

6 Law 106–567) are amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(a) AGENCY DECLASSIFICATION PROGRAMS AND

8 CLASSIFICATION GUIDANCE.— 

9 ‘‘(1) DECLASSIFICATION PROGRAMS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) REPORT.—The head of any agency 

11 with the authority under an Executive order to 

12 classify information shall annually provide to 

13 the Board, the Select Committee on Intelligence 

14 of the Senate, and the Permanent Select Com15 mittee on Intelligence of the House of Rep16 resentatives a summary briefing and report on 

17 the progress and plans of such agency in the 

18 declassification of national security information. 

19 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—Each briefing and re20 port required under subparagraph (A) shall— 

21 ‘‘(i) cover the declassification goals set 

22 by statute, regulation, or policy, the 

23 progress of the agency towards completing 

24 such goals, and the planned goals and pri25 orities of the agency for its declassification 


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1 activities over the 2 fiscal years following 

2 the report; 

3 ‘‘(ii) give particular attention to 

4 progress on the declassification of records 

5 and materials that are of extraordinary 

6 public interest to the people of the United 

7 States; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) include information on the dis9 position of recommendations regarding 

10 Special Searches for Records of Extraor11 dinary Public Interest submitted pursuant 

12 to section 704(c). 

13 ‘‘(C) CONSOLIDATED REPORT.—The an14 nual briefing and report under paragraph (1) 

15 for agencies within the Department of Defense, 

16 including the military departments and the ele17 ments of the intelligence community (as defined 

18 in section 3(4) of the National Security Act of 

19 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003(4))), shall be provided 

20 on a consolidated basis. 

21 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF CLASSIFICATION GUIDANCE.— 

22 The Board shall, on an ongoing basis, review classi23 fication guidance required pursuant to Executive 

24 Order 13526 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) or any suc25 cessor order utilized within each agency to assess— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the validity of the national security 

2 basis for each instruction in the classification 

3 guidance; 

4 ‘‘(B) the clarity of each instruction within 

5 the classification guidance to ensure that only 

6 the minimum necessary information is classi7 fied; and 

8 ‘‘(C) the feasibility of narrowing or elimi9 nating any classification guidance that is un10 necessary or obsolete. 

11 ‘‘(3) PLAN FOR REVIEWING CLASSIFICATION

12 GUIDANCE.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

13 of the enactment of the Clearance and Over-Classi14 fication Reform and Reduction Act, the Chairperson 

15 of the Board shall submit a multi-year plan for re16 viewing classification guidance utilized within each 

17 agency, with benchmarks for when and, to the extent 

18 practicable, which classification guidance will be re19 viewed and how the findings will be shared with the 

20 head of each agency and the inspector general of 

21 each agency. 

22 ‘‘(4) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HARMONIZING

23 AND REDUCING CLASSIFICATION GUIDANCE.—Not 

24 later than one year after the date of the enactment 

25 of the Clearance and Over-Classification Reform and 


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1 Reduction Act, the Chairperson of the Board shall 

2 submit recommendations for harmonizing and reduc3 ing classification guidance across the Federal Gov4 ernment to the President. 

5 ‘‘(b) RECOMMENDATIONS ON AGENCY DECLAS6 SIFICATION PROGRAMS AND CLASSIFICATION GUID7 ANCE.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Upon reviewing classifica9 tion guidance and discussing declassification plans 

10 and progress with an agency, the Board shall pro11 vide to the head of that agency, the Director of the 

12 Office of Management and Budget, and the Assist13 ant to the President for National Security Affairs 

14 the written recommendations of the Board as to how 

15 the classification guidance and declassification pro16 gram of the agency could be improved. 

17 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 60 

18 days after the Board provides written recommenda19 tions to the head of an agency in accordance with 

20 paragraph (1), the Board shall make such rec21 ommendations public in accordance with subsection 

22 (k).’’. 

23 (b) STAFF AND DETAILEES.—Subsection (f) of sec24 tion 703 of such Act is amended to read as follows: 

25 ‘‘(f) DIRECTOR AND STAFF.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) DIRECTOR.—The Chairperson of the 

2 Board, in accordance with rules agreed upon by the 

3 Board, shall appoint and fix the compensation of a 

4 Director, except that no rate of pay fixed under this 

5 paragraph may exceed the equivalent of that payable 

6 for a position at level V of the Executive Schedule 

7 under section 5316 of title 5, United States Code. 

8 ‘‘(2) STAFF.—The Chairperson of the Board, in 

9 accordance with rules agreed upon by the Board, 

10 may appoint and fix the pay of personnel as may be 

11 necessary to enable the Board to carry out its func12 tions. 

13 ‘‘(3) APPLICABILITY OF CERTAIN CIVIL SERV14 ICE LAWS.—The Director and staff may be ap15 pointed without regard to the provisions of title 5, 

16 United States Code, governing appointments in the 

17 competitive service, and may be paid without regard 

18 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III 

19 of chapter 53 of such title relating to classification 

20 and General Schedule pay rates. 

21 ‘‘(4) DETAILEES.—Any employee of the Federal 

22 Government may be detailed to the Board with the 

23 agreement of, and without reimbursement to, the de24 tailing agency, and such detail shall be without 


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1 interruption or loss of civil, military, or foreign serv2 ice status or privilege.’’. 

3 (c) COMPENSATION AND TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Sub4 section (h) of section 703 of such Act is amended to read 

5 as follows: 

6 ‘‘(h) COMPENSATION AND TRAVEL EXPENSES.— 

7 ‘‘(1) COMPENSATION.— 

8 ‘‘(A) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson of 

9 the Board shall be compensated at the rate of 

10 pay payable for a position at level III of the Ex11 ecutive Schedule under section 5314 of title 5, 

12 United States Code. 

13 ‘‘(B) MEMBERS.—Each member of the 

14 Board shall be compensated at a rate of pay 

15 payable for a position at level IV of the Execu16 tive Schedule under section 5315 of such title, 

17 for each day during which that member is en18 gaged in the actual performance of the duties 

19 of the Board. 

20 ‘‘(2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Members of the 

21 Board shall receive travel expenses, including per 

22 diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance with appli23 cable provisions under subchapter I of chapter 57 of 

24 title 5, United States Code.’’. 


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1 (d) PUBLIC MEETINGS.—Section 704(c) of such Act 

2 is amended by adding at the end the following new para3 graph: 

4 ‘‘(3) In carrying out this subsection, the Board shall 

5 conduct public meetings on at least a semiannual basis 

6 and publish in the Federal Register notice of such meet7 ings.’’. 

8 (e) EXTENSION OF SUNSET.—Subsection (b) of sec9 tion 710 of such Act is amended by striking ‘‘2018’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘2024’’. 

11 SEC. 107. CLASSIFICATION DESIGNATION TRAINING. 

12 Section 7 of the Reducing Over-Classification Act (50 

13 U.S.C. 3344; Public Law 111–258) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

15 paragraph (1)— 

16 (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘, in17 cluding computer-based training,’’ after ‘‘an18 nual training’’; and 

19 (B) in the second sentence, by inserting 

20 ‘‘such’’ before ‘‘training’’; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub22 section: 

23 ‘‘(c) RECORDKEEPING.—The head of each Executive 

24 agency shall maintain records and make such records 

25 available to the inspector general of each such agency of 


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1 the extent to which training required under this section 

2 is completed by each employee subject to such training.’’. 

3 SEC. 108. REDUCING OVER-CLASSIFICATION GUIDANCE. 

4 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall develop 

5 and disseminate to components of the Department of 

6 Homeland Security and make available to other agencies 

7 guidance on best practices and strategies to implement the 

8 Reducing Over-Classification Act (Public Law 111–258), 

9 as amended by this Act. Such guidance shall include infor10 mation on the following: 

11 (1) Administrative approaches, including the es12 tablishment of internal quarterly meetings and work13 ing groups to carry out the requirements of the Re14 ducing Over-Classification Act (Public Law 111– 

15 258). 

16 (2) Consolidation of information security poli17 cies throughout an agency. 

18 (3) Provision of training, including in-person 

19 initial training and computer-based recurrent train20 ing, in accordance with section 7 of the Reducing 

21 Over-Classification Act, as amended by section 105 

22 of this Act. 

23 (4) Adoption of uniform formats for the prepa24 ration, production, or publication of classified infor25 mation. 


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1 (5) Ways to encourage an authorized holder of 

2 classified information to challenge the classification 

3 of information that such holder believes is improp4 erly classified or unclassified, as required by section 

5 1.8 of Executive Order 13526 (50 U.S.C. 3161 

6 note) or successor order. 

7 Subtitle B—Governmentwide 

8 Reforms 

9 SEC. 111. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

10 It is the sense of Congress that a position shall only 

11 be designated as a national security position if access to 

12 classified information is required or if that position— 

13 (1) presents a risk of a material adverse effect 

14 on the national security (as described in section 

15 732.201 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations); 

16 and 

17 (2) is determined to be a public trust position 

18 (as described in section 731.106 of title 5, Code of 

19 Federal Regulations). 

20 SEC. 112. REPORT ON CERTAIN DESIGNATIONS. 

21 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act and biannually thereafter, the 

23 head of each agency with the authority to designate a na24 tional security position shall submit to Congress a report 

25 that provides information regarding any national security 


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1 position for which access to classified materials is not re2 quired and the position is not determined to be a public 

3 trust position (as described in section 731.106 of title 5, 

4 Code of Federal Regulations). 

5 (b) CONTENTS.—The report required under sub6 section (a) shall include— 

7 (1) a description for the position, including spe8 cific information on duties and day-to-day oper9 ations; 

10 (2) the history of the position’s national secu11 rity position designation, including whether the posi12 tion is newly created or was transferred from an13 other department, division, or program; 

14 (3) an explanation of the position’s national se15 curity position designation and whether responsibil16 ities have been added to the position to explain the 

17 designation; 

18 (4) an explanation of the national security im19 plications of the position; 

20 (5) the advertising and recruitment mechanisms 

21 used to fill the position; 

22 (6) information on the individual who holds the 

23 position, including as appropriate, information on 

24 periods when the individual had previously held a 

25 national security position; and 


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1 (7) demographic information on the individual 

2 who holds the position, including age, gender, race, 

3 ethnicity, employment status, and geographic loca4 tion. 

5 (c) PUBLIC REPORT.—The report required under 

6 subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form and 

7 be made publicly available, but may include a classified 

8 annex for any sensitive or classified information if nec9 essary. 

10 SEC. 113. TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY IN PER11 SONNEL SECURITY INVESTIGATIONS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 120 days after the 

13 date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of National 

14 Intelligence and the Director of the Office of Personnel 

15 Management shall establish requirements for a uniform 

16 markings process to identify the investigation service pro17 vider that originated each piece of information in a current 

18 investigation file. 

19 (b) UTILIZATION.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

21 the establishment of the uniform markings process 

22 pursuant to subsection (a), investigation service pro23 viders shall utilize such uniform markings process 

24 and make available, upon request by the authorized 


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1 adjudicative agency, all documents in a current in2 vestigation file. 

3 (2) EXCEPTION.—This subsection shall not 

4 apply to a personnel security investigation that an 

5 agency conducts using its own personnel, under dele6 gated or statutory authority. 

7 SEC. 114. CONTINUOUS EVALUATION PROGRAMS AND IN8 SIDER THREAT PROGRAMS. 

9 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

10 (1) The term ‘‘continuous evaluation’’ as de11 fined in Executive Order 13467, means reviewing 

12 the background of an individual who has been deter13 mined to be eligible for access to classified informa14 tion at any time during the period of eligibility. 

15 (2) Since 1998, at least 10 continuous evalua16 tion pilot studies have been carried out by Federal 

17 agencies to monitor the individuals with security 

18 clearances on an ongoing basis. 

19 (3) The Department of Defense has conducted 

20 multiple continuous evaluation pilots since early 

21 2002 and has more than one pilot that is ongoing 

22 as of July 1, 2014. By October 2014, the Depart23 ment anticipates 100,000 people to be subject to 

24 continuous evaluation with the population steadily 

25 rising to 1 million by 2017. 


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1 (4) The Office of the Director of National Intel2 ligence plans for all individuals with Top Secret 

3 clearances or higher to be subject to continuous eval4 uation by 2016. 

5 (5) Since 2010, applicants submitting an appli6 cation for a security clearance, the Standard Form 

7 86, are required to consent to being monitored 

8 through continuous evaluation. 

9 (6) In February 2014, the Office of Manage10 ment and Budget issued a 120-day review of Federal 

11 employee suitability and contractor fitness deter12 minations as well as security clearance procedures 

13 and recommended an accelerated timetable for an 

14 integrated solution or continuous evaluation program 

15 across all Federal agencies and security levels. 

16 (7) In addition to continuous evaluation, some 

17 Federal agencies are establishing insider threat pro18 grams pursuant to Executive Order 13587 (50 

19 U.S.C. 3161 note), which authorized the establish20 ment of insider threat programs to, among other 

21 things, identify any Government or contracted em22 ployee that may have compromised national security 

23 through such employee’s work capacity. 

24 (8) Continuous evaluation and insider threat 

25 programs are proliferating throughout the Federal 


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1 government without requirements for protections to 

2 ensure that such programs be designed and imple3 mented in a manner that not only protects national 

4 security but also promotes fairness, transparency, 

5 and employee protections, including whistleblower 

6 protections. 

7 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

8 the date of enactment of this Act, the Privacy and Civil 

9 Liberties Oversight Board, established under section 1061 

10 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act 

11 of 2004 (42 U.S.C. 2000ee), shall publish in the Federal 

12 Register standards for the protection of national security 

13 and promotion of fairness, transparency, and employee 

14 protections, including safeguards to preserve the rights 

15 and confidentiality of whistleblowers with respect to the 

16 operation of a continuous evaluation program and the op17 eration of an insider threat program by a Federal agency. 

18 (c) CERTIFICATION.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

20 the date of publication of the standards under sub21 section (b), the head of any agency that is operating 

22 a continuous evaluation program or insider threat 

23 program as of the date of the enactment of this Act 

24 shall— 


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1 (A) certify whether such program is in 

2 compliance with the standards established 

3 under subsection (b); and 

4 (B) publish such certification in the Fed5 eral Register. 

6 (2) SUSPENSION OR PROGRAM.—Any such head 

7 who certifies that a continuous evaluation program 

8 or insider threat program does not meet such stand9 ards or who fails to publish a certification of compli10 ance pursuant to paragraph (1) shall suspend the 

11 program until such program is compliant and certifi12 cation of compliance is published in the Federal 

13 Register. 

14 (d) REPORT.—The head of any agency that is oper15 ating a continuous evaluation program or insider threat 

16 program as of the date of enactment of this Act shall an17 nually submit to Congress a report that includes the fol18 lowing information: 

19 (1) The number of individuals in the agency 

20 subject to the continuous evaluation program or in21 sider threat program. 

22 (2) The number of individuals in the agency 

23 whose eligibility for access to classified information 

24 was suspended or revoked as a result of information 


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1 acquired through the continuous evaluation program 

2 or insider threat program. 

3 (3) The total number of individuals in the agen4 cy who are eligible to access classified information. 

5 (4) Demographic information on each individual 

6 whose eligibility for access to classified information 

7 was changed as a result of information collected 

8 through the continuous evaluation program or in9 sider threat program, including age, race, gender, 

10 and ethnicity. 

11 (5) A description of the mechanisms used to 

12 conduct the evaluations, including how individuals 

13 were selected, whether the evaluations were random14 ized, and if so, the nature of the randomization, in15 cluding the degree to which it was temporally ran16 domized and the degree to which the selection of in17 dividuals subject to the program was randomized. 

18 (6) A description of the types of information 

19 that were captured through the continuous evalua20 tion program or insider threat program and were the 

21 basis for further investigation. 

22 (7) The frequency that information captured 

23 through the continuous evaluation program or in24 sider threat program was the basis for further inves25 tigation. 


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1 (8) Information on any individual whose eligi2 bility for access to classified information was 

3 changed as a result of information collected through 

4 the continuous evaluation program or insider threat 

5 program, including the clearance level of each im6 pacted individual and what position, if any, the indi7 vidual holds within the agency, number of years the 

8 individual has been eligible to access classified infor9 mation at the level held at the time that the indi10 vidual was subject to the continuous evaluation pro11 gram or insider threat program and, if available, the 

12 frequency that classified information was accessed 

13 by each such individual. 

14 (9) Identification of each database that was 

15 accessed. 

16 (10) Protocols for resolution of information 

17 captured through the continuous evaluation program 

18 or insider threat program that was the basis for fur19 ther investigation, including the provision of notifica20 tion to the impacted individual’s supervisor and the 

21 impacted individual. 

22 (11) Information on any specific instance in 

23 which the continuous evaluation program or insider 

24 threat program resulted in the protection of classi25 fied information and national security. 


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1 (12) Information on the annual and life-cycle 

2 costs of the continuous investigation or insider 

3 threat program and, in the event that the head of 

4 the agency intends to expand the program, informa5 tion on the anticipated costs of expansion. 

6 (e) PILOT PROGRAM.—The head of any agency that 

7 establishes a continuous evaluation program after the date 

8 of the enactment of this Act shall be subject to the fol9 lowing requirements: 

10 (1) Before initiating a continuous evaluation 

11 program or insider threat program, such head shall 

12 conduct a pilot continuous evaluation program or 

13 pilot insider threat program that is not shorter than 

14 120 days in duration and uses a representative sam15 ple of individuals eligible for access to classified in16 formation, including individuals employed by con17 tractors. Participants in the program shall receive 

18 notification and, in the event that derogatory infor19 mation is identified through the program that re20 sults in changes to such participant’s eligibility for 

21 access to classified information, shall be provided ac22 cess to the redress process described under section 

23 116. 

24 (2) Before conducting a pilot continuous eval25 uation program or pilot insider threat program 


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1 under paragraph (1), such head shall publish, in the 

2 Federal Register, a notice of the program that pro3 vides information on the provisions of the program, 

4 metrics for evaluating its efficacy, and a privacy im5 pact assessment. 

6 (3) Not later than 90 days after the initiation 

7 of a pilot continuous evaluation program or pilot in8 sider threat program pursuant to paragraph (1), 

9 such head shall submit to Congress a preliminary re10 port that includes— 

11 (A) the number of individuals evaluated 

12 under the program; 

13 (B) the total number of individuals in the 

14 agency who are eligible to access classified in15 formation; 

16 (C) demographics of the individuals evalu17 ated under the program, including age, race, 

18 gender, ethnicity, employer, clearance level, and 

19 the number of years the individual has been eli20 gible to access classified information; 

21 (D) a position description for each indi22 vidual evaluated under the program; 

23 (E) a description of the mechanisms used 

24 to conduct the evaluations, including how indi25 viduals were selected, whether the evaluations 


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1 were randomized, and if so, the nature of the 

2 randomization, including the degree to which it 

3 was temporally randomized and the degree to 

4 which the selection of individuals subject to the 

5 program was randomized; 

6 (F) a description of the types of informa7 tion that were captured through the program 

8 and were the basis for further investigation; 

9 (G) the frequency that information cap10 tured through the program was the basis for 

11 further investigation; and 

12 (H) information on the number of individ13 uals whose eligibility for access to classified in14 formation was changed as a result of informa15 tion collected through the program. 

16 (4) Not later than 180 days after the conclu17 sion of a pilot continuous evaluation program or 

18 pilot insider threat program pursuant to paragraph 

19 (1) or expansion of a pilot continuous evaluation 

20 program or pilot insider threat program, such head 

21 shall submit to Congress a final report that updates 

22 the information required in the preliminary report 

23 under paragraph (3). The report shall include— 

24 (A) an identification of each database that 

25 was accessed; 


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1 (B) protocols for resolution of information 

2 captured through the program that was the 

3 basis for further investigation, including the 

4 provision of notification to the impacted individ5 ual’s supervisor and the impacted individual; 

6 (C) information on any specific instance in 

7 which continuous evaluation resulted in the pro8 tection of classified information and national se9 curity; and 

10 (D) information regarding the annual and 

11 life-cycle costs of the program and, in the event 

12 that such head intends to expand the program 

13 or initiate a continuous evaluation program or 

14 insider threat program, information on the an15 ticipated costs of an expansion or initiation. 

16 (5) Prior to expanding a pilot continuous eval17 uation program or insider threat program or initi18 ating a continuous evaluation program or insider 

19 threat program, such head shall secure a privacy im20 pact assessment from the top privacy and civil lib21 erties officials at such agency. 

22 (f) UNCLASSIFIED REPORTS.—All reports required 

23 under this section shall be submitted in unclassified form 

24 and be made publicly available, but may include a classi25 fied annex if necessary. 


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1 (g) LIMITATION ON DATA COLLECTION.—Not later 

2 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

3 the head of an agency that operates a continuous evalua4 tion program shall ensure that data collection under the 

5 program is limited to databases and other sources of infor6 mation accessed for a periodic reinvestigation as of the 

7 date of enactment of this Act. 

8 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

9 (1) CONTINUOUS EVALUATION PROGRAM.—The 

10 term ‘‘continuous evaluation program’’ means any 

11 program continually reviewing the background of an 

12 individual who has been determined to be eligible for 

13 access to classified information pursuant to Execu14 tive Order 12968 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) or any 

15 other similar authority. 

16 (2) INSIDER THREAT PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘in17 sider threat program’’ means any program moni18 toring the activity of an individual who has been de19 termined to be eligible for access to classified infor20 mation to improve insider threat detection and pre21 vention pursuant to Executive Order 13587 (50 

22 U.S.C. 3161 note), or successor order. 


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1 SEC. 115. MITIGATING FACTORS IN THE CONTEXT OF A 

2 CONTINUOUS EVALUATION PROGRAM OR IN3 SIDER THREAT PROGRAM. 

4 (a) CONTINUOUS EVALUATION.—Not later than 120 

5 days after the date of enactment of this Act, for each adju6 dicative guideline for individuals with access to classified 

7 information (as described in part 147 of title 32, Code 

8 of Federal Regulations or similar successor regulation) the 

9 President shall update and tailor the conditions that miti10 gate security concerns to address continuous evaluation of 

11 such individuals performed pursuant to Executive Order 

12 12968 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) or any other authority, in13 cluding the implications of recency on the availability of 

14 mitigation. 

15 (b) INSIDER THREAT PROGRAM.—Not later than 240 

16 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the President 

17 shall establish adjudicative guidelines, including conditions 

18 that mitigate security concerns that consider the implica19 tions of recency on the availability of mitigation, for an 

20 individual who is subject to an adverse decision based on 

21 an insider threat program established pursuant to Execu22 tive Order 13587 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note) or successor 

23 order. 


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1 SEC. 116. APPEAL TO THE MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION 

2 BOARD. 

3 An employee for whom a final determination of ineli4 gibility for a national security position has been made is 

5 entitled to appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board 

6 under section 7701 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 SEC. 117. AUTOMATED OR NONGOVERNMENTAL ADJUDICA8 TION PROHIBITED. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—An adjudication by an agency 

10 that an individual may not have access to classified infor11 mation may only be made by a Federal employee and may 

12 not be rendered by an automated, electronic, or computer 

13 system. 

14 (b) FEDERAL EMPLOYEE DEFINED.—In this section, 

15 the term ‘‘Federal employee’’ has the meaning given the 

16 term ‘‘employee’’ in section 2105 of title 5, United States 

17 Code, and includes any member of the uniformed services. 

18 SEC. 118. REPORT ON MEDIA CONTACTS POLICY FOR IN19 TELLIGENCE PERSONNEL. 

20 Not later than 90 days after the date of the enact21 ment of this Act, the head of each element of the intel22 ligence community (as such term is defined in section 3(4) 

23 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3003(4))) 

24 shall submit to Congress a report on each such element’s 

25 implementation of policy directives regarding contacts 

26 with news media by intelligence community personnel. 


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1 Such report shall describe how each such element’s imple2 mentation of such directives protects the free speech rights 

3 of intelligence community personnel, including intelligence 

4 community personnel who choose to discuss unclassified 

5 public policy issues with friends or family members who 

6 may use new media technologies. 

7 TITLE II—DEPARTMENT OF 

8 HOMELAND SECURITY 

9 CLEARANCE PROCESS RE10 FORMS 

11 Subtitle A—Designation 

12 SEC. 201. DESIGNATION OF NATIONAL SECURITY SEN13 SITIVE AND PUBLIC TRUST POSITIONS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu15 rity shall require the Department of Homeland Security, 

16 including all components of the Department, to designate 

17 the sensitivity level of national security positions (pursu18 ant to part 732 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, 

19 or similar successor regulation) in an accurate and con20 sistent manner within the Department, including all such 

21 components. 

22 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—In carrying out subsection 

23 (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security shall require the 

24 utilization of uniform designation tools throughout the De25 partment of Homeland Security, including all components 


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1 of the Department, and provide training to appropriate 

2 staff of the Department, including staff of all such compo3 nents, on such utilization. Such training shall include 

4 guidance on factors for determining eligibility for access 

5 to classified information and facilities with classified infor6 mation. 

7 SEC. 202. AUDITS. 

8 Not later than 180 days after the Director of Na9 tional Intelligence and Director of the Office of Personnel 

10 Management issue a rule for designation of national secu11 rity positions (pursuant to part 732 of title 5, Code of 

12 Federal Regulations, or similar successor regulation), the 

13 Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Secu14 rity shall conduct regular audits of compliance of the De15 partment with such rule. 

16 SEC. 203. REVIEW OF POSITION DESIGNATIONS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu18 rity, acting through the Chief Security Officer of the De19 partment of Homeland Security, shall biennially conduct 

20 a review of all sensitivity level designations of national se21 curity positions (pursuant to part 732 of title 5, Code of 

22 Federal Regulations, or similar successor regulation) at 

23 the Department. 

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1 land Security determines that a change in the sensitivity 

2 level of a position that affects the need for an individual 

3 to obtain access to classified information is warranted, 

4 such access shall be administratively adjusted or periodic 

5 reinvestigation completed, as necessary. 

6 (c) REPORT.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon completion of each re8 view required under subsection (a), the Secretary of 

9 Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee 

10 on Homeland Security of the House of Representa11 tives and the Committee on Homeland Security and 

12 Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on the 

13 number of positions by classification level and by 

14 component of the Department of Homeland Security 

15 that are to be redesignated in accordance with sub16 section (b) to— 

17 (A) require access to classified informa18 tion; 

19 (B) no longer require access to classified 

20 information; or 

21 (C) otherwise require a different level of 

22 access to classified information. 

23 (2) FORM.—The report required under para24 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form 

25 and be made publicly available, but may include a 


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1 classified annex for any sensitive or classified infor2 mation if necessary. 

3 Subtitle B—Investigation 

4 SEC. 211. INVESTIGATION SERVICES PROVIDER PERFORM5 ANCE. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu7 rity, acting through the Chief Security Officer of the De8 partment of Homeland Security, shall annually survey the 

9 head of each component or office of the Department with 

10 the authority to adjudicate a current investigation file for 

11 a national security position to help determine whether— 

12 (1) investigation service providers are adhering 

13 to Federal requirements, including requirements 

14 under the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Pre15 vention Act of 2004 (Public Law 108–458) and re16 quirements promulgated by the Office of Personnel 

17 Management; and 

18 (2) records provided are adequate to conduct 

19 adjudications. 

20 (b) CONTENTS.—Each survey under subsection (a) 

21 shall consider the following: 

22 (1) Punctuality of completed personnel security 

23 investigations, including adherence to timelines re24 quired under section 3001 of the Intelligence Reform 


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1 and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (50 U.S.C. 

2 3341). 

3 (2) Frequency that the adjudicator must seek 

4 clarifying or additional information from the inves5 tigation service provider. 

6 (3) Frequency that the adjudicator orders a full 

7 or partial reinvestigation. 

8 (4) Frequency that the adjudicator finds ad9 verse information after the completed background 

10 investigation is submitted by the investigation serv11 ice provider. 

12 (5) Frequency that the complete investigation 

13 file, including investigative notes, is provided. 

14 (6) Overall performance of the investigation 

15 service provider. 

16 (7) Satisfaction with the overall performance of 

17 the investigation service provider. 

18 (c) CORRECTIVE ACTION.—If information provided 

19 under subsection (a) identifies a pattern of performance 

20 problems with a particular investigation service provider, 

21 the Chief Security Officer of the Department of Homeland 

22 Security shall make a recommendation to the Secretary 

23 of Homeland Security and, where appropriate, to the head 

24 of each component or office of the Department that uses 

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1 rective action, including suspension or cancellation of serv2 ices. 

3 (d) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of Homeland Se4 curity shall publish the results of each survey under sub5 section (a) and make each such publication publicly avail6 able on the website of the Department of Homeland Secu7 rity. 

8 SEC. 212. METRICS. 

9 The Secretary of Homeland Security shall utilize 

10 metrics, including, to the extent practicable, any metrics 

11 in use by the Office of Personnel Management as of the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act, to assess the timeliness, 

13 completeness, and overall quality of the provision of inves14 tigative services by investigation service providers. 

15 Subtitle C—Adjudication 

16 SEC. 221. UNIFORM ADJUDICATION STANDARDS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu18 rity, acting through the Chief Security Officer of the De19 partment of Homeland Security, shall issue uniform adju20 dication standards, consistent with part 147 of title 32, 

21 Code of Federal Regulations, or similar successor regula22 tion, to be utilized by Department adjudicators with re23 spect to adjudicating the eligibility of an individual for ac24 cess to classified information. 


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1 (b) CERTIFICATION.—Not later than one year after 

2 the issuance of the uniform adjudication standards under 

3 subsection (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting 

4 through the Chief Security Officer of the Department of 

5 Homeland Security, shall require the head of each compo6 nent and office of the Department with the authority to 

7 adjudicate access to classified information of an individual 

8 to certify compliance with the uniform adjudication stand9 ards under subsection (a). 

10 (c) AUDIT.—Not later than two years after the last 

11 head of a component of the Department of Homeland Se12 curity certifies compliance under subsection (b) with the 

13 uniform adjudication standards under subsection (a), the 

14 Inspector General of the Department shall audit all such 

15 components to verify such compliance. 

16 Subtitle D—Denial, Suspension, 

17 Revocation, and Appeal 

18 SEC. 231. UNIFORM REVOCATION CRITERIA AND PROCE19 DURES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu21 rity, acting through the Chief Security Officer of the De22 partment of Homeland Security, shall issue a Department23 wide directive that sets forth uniform criteria and proce24 dures, consistent with any appropriate Federal Govern25 mentwide standards, including notice requirements, for 


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1 the suspension, denial, and revocation of eligibility for ac2 cess to classified information of an individual issued by 

3 the Department. 

4 (b) CERTIFICATION.—Not later than one year after 

5 issuance of the uniform criteria and procedures under sub6 section (a), the Secretary of Homeland Security, acting 

7 through the Chief Security Officer of the Department of 

8 Homeland Security, shall require the head of each compo9 nent and office of the Department with the authority to 

10 adjudicate eligibility for access to classified information of 

11 an individual to certify compliance with such uniform cri12 teria and procedures. 

13 SEC. 232. ANNUAL REPORTING. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu15 rity, acting through the Chief Security Officer of the De16 partment of Homeland Security, shall annually submit to 

17 the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 

18 Representatives and the Committee on Homeland Security 

19 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a report on the 

20 following: 

21 (1) The number of denials, suspensions, revoca22 tions, and appeals of the eligibility for access to clas23 sified information of an individual throughout the 

24 Department. 


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1 (2) The date and status or disposition of each 

2 reported action under paragraph (1). 

3 (3) The identification of the originator, whether 

4 by a component or headquarters, of each adverse ac5 tion under paragraph (1), and description of the 

6 grounds for each such action. 

7 (4) Demographic data, including data relating 

8 to race, sex, national origin, and disability, of each 

9 individual for whom eligibility for access to classified 

10 information was denied, suspended, revoked, or ap11 pealed, and the number of years that each such indi12 vidual was eligible for access to such information. 

13 (5) In the case of a suspension in excess of 180 

14 days, an explanation for the such timeframe. 

15 (b) FORM.—The report required under subsection (a) 

16 shall be submitted in unclassified form and be made pub17 licly available, but may include a classified annex for any 

18 sensitive or classified information if necessary. 

19 SEC. 233. FINAL APPEALS PANEL. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu21 rity shall establish an internal appeals 5-person panel for 

22 final national security clearance denial and revocation de23 terminations that is comprised of designees who are ca24 reer, supervisory employees from departmental compo25 nents and headquarters. 


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1 (b) CHAIR.—The Chief Security Officer of the De2 partment of Homeland Security shall serve as the chair 

3 of the panel established pursuant to subsection (a). 

4 (c) POSITIONS.—At least two of the positions on the 

5 panel shall be held by non-security related supervisory em6 ployees for not more than two consecutive years, and at 

7 least one position shall held by a security related super8 visory employee for not more than three consecutive years. 

9 (d) SUBPANELS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—For each matter before the 

11 panel, a 3-person subpanel shall be convened by the 

12 chair, and may include the chairman. 

13 (2) PROHIBITION.—The chair may not select a 

14 panelist to serve on a 3-person subpanel referred to 

15 in paragraph (1) from the same component or office 

16 of the Department of Homeland Security as from 

17 which the matter before such subpanel originated or 

18 who has a prior relationship with any of the individ19 uals involved in such matter. 

20 (e) PROCEDURES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each individual issued ac22 cess to classified information by the Department of 

23 Homeland Security whose access is denied or re24 voked after a decision from a first-line deciding au25 thority and a supervisor of such first-line deciding 


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1 authority may appeal, in writing, to the 5-person ap2 peals panel and appear, with a representative, before 

3 such panel to make a statement. 

4 (2) RULINGS.—A simple majority of the ap5 peals panel is required to uphold or overturn a de6 nial or revocation. 

7 (3) TIMING.—All determinations of the appeals 

8 panel shall be rendered within 90 days of receipt of 

9 an appeal under this section. 

10 (4) FINALITY.—All determinations of the ap11 peals panel shall be final, and no further administra12 tive review shall be permitted. 

13 Subtitle E—Miscellaneous 

14 Provisions 

15 SEC. 241. INTELLIGENCE REFORM AND TERRORISM PRE16 VENTION ACT OF 2004 REVIEW AND SECURITY 

17 CLEARANCE RECIPROCITY. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than two years after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

20 of the United States shall submit to the Committee on 

21 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 

22 the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

23 Affairs of the Senate a report on— 

24 (1) the impact of the implementation of section 

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1 vention Act of 2004 (50 U.S.C. 3341; Public Law 

2 108–458) on security clearance processes, includ3 ing— 

4 (A) with respect to the quality of personnel 

5 security investigations and adjudications; and 

6 (B) the extent to which the timelines speci7 fied in such section have impacted security 

8 clearance backlogs, and include recommenda9 tions for areas for reform; and 

10 (2) the extent to which individuals with eligi11 bility for access to classified information, adju12 dicated by the Secretary of Homeland Security or 

13 the head of a component or office of the Department 

14 of Homeland Security, are granted reciprocity within 

15 the Department and by other agencies, in accord16 ance with subsection (d) of section 3001 of the Intel17 ligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 

18 2004 (50 U.S.C. 3341; Public Law 108–458), in19 cluding— 

20 (A) the extent to which the lack of harmo21 nization of suitability standards is a barrier to 

22 such reciprocity; and 

23 (B) recommendations on whether such 

24 standards should be included in interagency 

25 reciprocity agreements. 


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1 (b) FORM.—The report required under subsection (a) 

2 shall be submitted in unclassified form and be made pub3 licly available, but may include a classified annex for any 

4 sensitive or classified information if necessary. 

5 SEC. 242. OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL REPORT. 

6 Not later than two years after the date of the enact7 ment of this Act, the Inspector General of the Department 

8 of Homeland Security shall submit to the Committee on 

9 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 

10 the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 

11 Affairs of the Senate a report on the implementation of 

12 responsibilities and mandates of the Department under 

13 this Act, and the amendments made by this Act. The re14 port required under this section shall be submitted in un15 classified form and be made publicly available, but may 

16 include a classified annex for any sensitive or classified 

17 information if necessary. 

18 SEC. 243. PENALTIES FOR FALSIFICATION RELATING TO AN 

19 INVESTIGATION FILE. 

20 Section 1001(a) of title 18, United States Code, is 

21 amended by inserting at the end the following: ‘‘If the of22 fense involves an investigation file for a national security 

23 position (as such term is defined in section 732.102 of 

24 title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, or similar successor 

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1 erwise authorized under this section may be increased by 

2 one year.’’. 

Æ 


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