Continuous Evaluation (CE) is the cornerstone of current security clearance reform efforts. Enrollment continues to advance, but most security clearance holders are still unaware if they’re enrolled in the program.
The issue was exacerbated when JPAS and the Defense Information System for Security (DISS) were both working simultaneously – CE status can be seen in DISS, but wasn’t viewable in JPAS. With JPAS officially sunset as of March 15, it is now easier for security clearance holders within the DoD to know if they’re under CE – any security clearance officer can check the system.
CE is a critical piece of the Trusted Workforce 2.0 security clearance reform efforts. While the goal is to enroll the entire cleared population into CE, efforts thus far have focused on Secret clearance holders. A key step in mitigating the 700,000 case backlog was to defer new reinvestigations by placing those individuals into CE. Those efforts have also largely focused on DoD security clearance holders, who make up more than 95% of the security clearance population.
The Intelligence Community will likely someday embrace a CE program, but it may not take advantage of the same program DoD uses – similar to the way it currently maintains its own security clearance system of record, Scattered Castles. And much like JPAS, determining if an IC security clearance holder is enrolled in CE isn’t as simple as looking it up in Scattered Castles. Those with SCI access are likely to be the last enrolled in a CE program, and both security clearance holders and security officers shouldn’t expect a straightforward directive from the government letting them know when enrollment has taken place.
