Polygraph Use by the Department of Energy: Issues for Congress
Abstract
On January 7, 2005, the DOE proposed a new regulation that would institute a polygraph screening program, but only for individuals with regular access to the most sensitive information. The result would be to reduce from more than 20,000 to approximately 4,500 the number of DOE and contractor personnel potentially subject to mandatory polygraph tests. DOE's new proposal came after some Members of Congress urged that the Department adopt a more focused polygraph program in the wake of a 2002 study by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) that questioned the validity of polygraph testing, particularly when it is used for screening purposes. In the wake of the Wen Ho Lee case, DOE in March 1999 initiated and later announced its first-ever use of the polygraph to screen approximately 800 DOE federal and contractor employees in certain high-risk programs. Congress in October 1999 formally mandated that DOE employ the polygraph as a screening tool (P.L. 106-65, Sec. 3154) and expanded the program to cover 13,000 DOE employees. The following year, Congress further expanded polygraph screening to cover approximately 20,000 DOE employees (P.L. 106-398, Sec. 3135). In 2001 Congress requested that NAS review the scientific evidence regarding the validity and reliability of the polygraph, particularly when used for personnel security screening. Congress directed DOE to institute a new polygraph program that took into account the NAS findings (P.L. 107-107, Sec. 3152). Department of Energy (DOE) Deputy Secretary Kyle E. McSlarrow recommended on September 4, 2003, that DOE issue a regulation that would sharply curtail the use of the polygraph for screening DOE employees with access to classified information. In issuing its new proposed polygraph testing rule, DOE said that although it found many of the NAS's concerns about the polygraph to be well taken, the utility of the polygraph is strong enough to merit its use in certain situations.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 03, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA480888
Entities
People
- Alfred Cumming
Organizations
- Library of Congress