Security clearance czar still not named

The White House is almost a month late in naming a senior official to oversee the federal security clearance process, and Bush administration officials this week declined to forecast when the position will be filled.

The intelligence reform law-which was signed into law in December 2004-calls for a security clearance "czar" to ensure that agencies adhere to standard procedures for granting clearances and that they accept one another's credentials. The czar was supposed to be in place by mid-March, but observers are still waiting for the appointment of the senior official and a coordinating agency for security clearance reform.

A spokeswoman at the Office of Management and Budget said Wednesday that officials are "vigorously reviewing" the intelligence reform law to determine the exact job description and responsibilities of the new clearance czar.

"The administration takes this very seriously, and we are just trying to make sure that this responsibility, and the delegation of this responsibility, is properly reviewed," the spokeswoman said. "All I can say is that there will be something forthcoming."

At a congressional hearing last year, personnel officials said there were 188,000 Defense Department contractors waiting for investigators to make a determination on their security clearances. Last August, the Pentagon said there are more than 100,000 unresolved security clearance cases in the department from 2003 and 2004. The office of Rep. Tom Davis, R-Va., the chairman of the House Government Reform Committee, estimated that there are more than 850,000 contractors and federal employees waiting for security clearances.

An array of lawmakers have said the backlog hinders national security programs and military operations overseas.

Jennifer Kerber, who works with homeland security issues at the Information Technology Association of America, said that her organization's members are growing uneasy as delays grow longer. The organization represents about 400 companies in the information technology industry, according to the ITAA Web site. Federal personnel officials have embraced the use of contractors to help reduce the extensive backlog of federal security clearance investigations.

"We're still waiting for the administration to come forward with the agency or the person," said Kerber. "Our members feel like they are in a state of flux on the process; they are concerned with delays."

"Alarm bells aren't ringing for me. The point is that the legislation makes very sensible changes," Stier said. "It's a little early. I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt here."

Kerber also emphasized that she is not criticizing any politicians involved in the security clearance reform. She praised Davis for his work crafting the intelligence bill's language and for pushing for clearance reform. In January, however, Davis said that the intelligence reform bill could significantly reduce the security clearance backlog by September. That target appears to be in danger with no security clearance czar in place.

"We are somewhat disappointed," Kerber said, "that the timeline has been blown because this is a major issue."