Common Reasons for AF SAP Access Limitation or Revocation

No one is entitled to security clearance access, whatever their rank or position. This is even more true of Special Access Program (SAP) access. SAP access is not a category of classification, as in Confidential, Secret, or Top Secret. SAP access is just that: “access”; it is not ‘eligibility for access.’  One precedes the other; you qualify for ‘eligibility’ and then you may be granted, or allowed to maintain ‘access.’
The Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Special Projects (AFOSI PJ) Security Director is the final authority on AFSAP access, suspension, revocation, and reinstatement. If you require access to this information—even in other Executive branch departments—the AFOSI PJ is your gatekeeper.
A Program Security Officer (PSO) can suspend SAP access, but only temporarily and if circumstances demand it. If the PSO suspends your SAP access on emergency grounds, they are obligated to follow up with the Security Director of AFOSI PJ. The SAP Personnel Security Appeal Board (PSAB) then adjudicates all AF SAP access appeals. SAP PSAB is comprised of three people (the director and two appointees) who, by majority vote, determine the final outcome.

Who Can Appeal an AF SAP Access Limitation or Revocation?

If you have SAP access which is later limited or revoked, you have the right to appeal that decision. The SAP access appeal process is the same for military, government employees, and contractor personnel. But the SAP access appeal process is not similar to the routine adjudication of eligibility for access to classified information.  Your SAP privileges are narrowly tailored to the needs of the Special Access Program in question.
There are basic eligibility requirements you must meet. These include:

1. Signing the SAP indoctrination agreement, including consent to Counterintelligence (CI)-scope polygraph examination. CI-scope polygraph questions are limited to matters of espionage, sabotage, undisclosed contact with foreign nationals or their representatives, inappropriate disclosure of classified material, and terrorism. Refusal to undergo polygraph examination is not grounds for an appeal.
2. A valid need-to-know (NTK). Convenience, position, or rank alone are not justification enough for SAP access. Your presence must substantially benefit the SAP itself.
3. The required security clearance level and a current personnel security investigation; that is, you must qualify for ‘eligibility’.

Starting the AF SAP Adjudication Process: Request for Appeal Board Review

Unlike many security clearance adjudication processes, there is only one level of appeal. AF SAP PSAB decisions are final. It is crucial, therefore, that you approach the appeal carefully and strategically. This is your one shot: invest your resources accordingly. And remember, when you do go through an SAP appeal, you will need all the evidence you have collected over the course of your career in the classified workplace. If you have not been maintaining your own security file, you will have a hard row to hoe.
Once you receive notification of the decision to suspend or revoke your SAP access, you have 30 days to submit your review request to AF SAPCO. If you choose to appeal, you have two options:

(1)Submit an Appeal Package to SAP PSAB

You will not make a personal appearance.

(2)Make a Personal Appearance before SAP PSAB

You will make a personal appearance before SAP PSAB.

AF PSAB Appeal Package Review

With this option, you will not make a personal appearance. Instead, you will compile a package of mitigating information and submit this appeal package along with your written request for SAP PSAB review. But you do not necessarily receive a “Statement of Reasons”; you may have just done poorly on a polygraph.  So, understanding why you are being denied access can be difficult.  This is why you need all the evidence you have saved over the course of your career in the classified workspace.
If you choose this option, it is your one shot. There will be no further requests for information, follow ups, or explanations. Your only defense is what appears on the SAP PSAB’s desks with your review request. Nor will PSAB make their own additional investigations. Their decision will be based entirely on the appeal package.

The AF PSAB Hearing

After you have submitted your written request for review and declared your intention to make a personal appearance, an Adjudicator will contact you with the time and location of your hearing (usually within 60 days). Hearings take place in the Washington, DC area at a location of the PSAB Chair’s choosing. If you are military or a government employee, your agency may cover your travel expenses with temporary duty assignment funding. However, if you are a government contractor or other non-government personnel, the government will not cover your travel expenses.
Even with the potential expense, it is almost always more advantageous to choose a personal appearance over submitting an appeal package.
AF PSAB allows you to bring an attorney to your hearing. Should you choose to be represented by counsel, you must inform SAPCO at the time of your written request for SAP PSAB review. You are responsible for covering the cost of your own counsel whether you are military, government employee, or otherwise.

After the Hearing and the Decision

PSAB makes its final decision by majority vote. You will receive a letter with their final decision as well as the reasons behind it. Again, this decision is final. There is no second-level appeal. So, be forehanded.  Create a folder in File Manager to serve as your own personal security file. Get your official security file from the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency every two years, and check it for errors. Then include it in your own personal security file. Download your credit reports every two years, and save them for reference. It is also good to do a private background check on yourself, and include that in your file. All these documents will aid you on appeal, as will a complete copy of your personnel file built from the documents saved from every employer for whom you have worked.

Dan Meyer, Esq. is a Partner at Tully Rinckey PLLC’s Washington, D.C. office and has dedicated more than 25 years of service to the field of Federal Employment and National Security law as both a practicing attorney and federal investigator and senior executive. He is a lead in advocating for service members, Federal civilian employees, and contractors as they fight to retain their credentialing, suitability and security clearances.

Tully Rinckey attorneys understand that issues involving security clearances can be challenging, and they will handle your matter with the attention and tact it deserves. If you have additional questions, our team of dedicated security clearance attorneys is available to assist you today. Please call 8885294543, or schedule a consultation online.