WASHINGTON — Thousands of Defense Department employees and contractors trusted with the nation’s top secrets can’t be relied upon to pay Uncle Sam.
A new audit of defense workers and vendors with high security clearances found 83,000 owe $730 million in back taxes.
What’s more, the Defense Department probably doesn’t know who they are because the IRS doesn’t share tax information freely over legal concerns, according to the Government Accountability Office.
The GAO warned the debt burden could be a dangerous “vulnerability” to the US because strapped workers might be tempted to sell secrets to foreign governments.
“You only want to give a clearance to someone who is trustworthy. But if they are financially extended, they are at risk,” said GAO spokesman Steve Lord.