PSA on Marijuana Usage
Hi everyone, I'm an investigator and like to help answer some questions here in my free time. I've noticed an insane amount of marijuana usage questions today and want to share a couple of ideas on the subject to hopefully reduce the amount of these repetitive posts.
First, if you have a medical marijuana card, get rid of it ASAP, there's no reason to have that if you want to obtain a security clearance.
Marijuana usage is nuanced but to answer the common question, no you are not immediately out of the running for a clearance as a result of usage. The frequency and how recent the usage was both matter, and on top of that it matters how many / what other issues are present on your form.
Time removed is the biggest factor in mitigating listed drug use. No one can share with you the exact parameters for this, but if you smoke weed and haven't stopped yet, do that. If it's at least a few years removed, in my experience you shouldn't have much to worry about. If you used within the past year, in my opinion you aren't wasting your time in applying for the job/clearance, but the situation is murkier.
Asking "am I screwed" because you have smoked weed before is not productive. Adjudicators cannot reasonably share enough information to answer this question on this forum, and investigators can at best take an un-educated guess, because the contents of your entire EQip form are relevant and are not visible to us here.
You do not get drug tested as part of the clearance process and nobody on here can tell you if your individual employer will be conducting a drug test. It's safe to assume that they are, and if you've smoked so recently that this is of concern, it's probably time to think about how important your career goals are to you vs. how important getting high is to you. Clearance or not, it's incredibly stupid to use drugs while hunting for a job.
In addition, you cannot smoke marijuana while holding a clearance. This is a serious violation if you do, don't think that you can get through the process and get back to smoking weed afterwards. This is a serious process and a privilege.
Hopefully this post can help reduce the amount of basic and repetitive drug use questions asked on this page. In short, yes marijuana usage is an issue, no you aren't "screwed" if you've ever used it.
Edit: Glad to see I've sparked some good discussion on this topic. Feel free to DM me with questions at any time, I've received a few requests asking if doing so is alright. DO NOT message just to ask me “what are my chances at getting cleared” or message me your life story followed by “will this all mitigate my marijuana usage”. I cannot tell you your chances at getting cleared. I also can’t tell you what specifically will mitigate the marijuana usage. If you ask me a variation of "how screwed am I" I will not reply. Good luck to everyone in their clearance process.
Don’t use drugs while looking for a job, but alcohol, caffeine, and nicotine are totally ok because they’re state approved drugs
High level critical thinkers in federal government
track me
Always thought the same. I have heard of agents getting drunk as fuck and going off the rails then the agencies having a shit show to clean up. Granted I know they are strict on alcohol usage as well but just always seemed crazy to me.
This post shows you how ridiculous marijuana prohibition is .
Functioning alcoholic, who is barely qualified for the job and beats his wife into submission- cleared.
Highly qualified individual who doesn’t consume alcohol but engages in periodic marijuana use occasionally- scum bag criminal who can’t be trusted.
The crazy world we live in lol
So curious, as an investigator how would you determine someone smoked marijuana or did drugs if everything else about them is squeaky clean… i.e. no red flags anywhere else on their clearance form besides indicating minor drug usage. Or maybe drugs were done in the past but not listed on the form. Do investigators usually try to get further information through additional contacts they ask for from the contacts that you put on the application? Or for a normal secret clearance do they tend to even go that far if you seem to be squeaky clean otherwise?
late, but they ask people you know about you. And then once they canvas your close friends they step outward to the next set of mutual friends, and then maybe even 1-2 more times. They figure your close friends may lie for you but the people who you kind of know you will probably throw you under the bus.
How bout marijuana arrest (simple possession) from 5 years ago? Mitigating factors are I’ve disassociated with those friends… I was 19 Lol
Those mitigating factors will certainly work in your favor.
This is all just really stupid. The fact this even needs to be posted is insane. Just decriminalize weed already you dumb shits lurking this sub. I’m getting sick of having to explain to people I’m a fed when they offer it to me.
Let me toke and let those that toke be feds.
Edit: now let me go back to my federally approved bottle of whisky.
Couldn't agree more and honestly this has already been a national security issue for years. The number of potential candidates I've interacted with as a SWE who would take a cleared role but for this issue alone is astonishing. We're hemorrhaging talent to companies who don't have such draconian policies. The powers that be need to pull their collective heads out of their asses and get creative with rewriting the adjudicative guidelines.
I am in that process and I was a bit too honest maybe. I don’t smoke but I have eaten gummies and oil (tinctures) a total of 5 times to help sleep within the past 7 years. I have been dealing with anxiety and have problems staying asleep.
No problem with the security clearance people getting shit-faced drunk. But if they puff the leaf they might reveal the secrets. Smh. What a clown government
What about if you smoked after the military and secret clearance was inactive?
If the clearance was inactive then you did not smoke while holding a clearance. So you wouldn’t have violated that rule but you still smoked weed and if you are seeking a new clearance will have to disclose the drug use.
Can anyone explain here what the legality and usage of of delta-8 cannabis is like in the eyes of investigators?
In the absence of any other drug use, and combined with a positive personal character profile, how might psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy be handled in an investigation for one with a long, well-documented, history of depression?
I realize this may be a topic for its own thread.
Just out of curiosity, how long from last usage (infrequent usage, only used in occasional social settings) would you recommend before applying for any sort of clearance?
It can vary a bit on level of clearance but personally I’d say 3 months should be pretty safe from what I’ve seen. Keeping in mind that by the time you are scheduled for an interview it’s been 6-9 months since last usage.
They MUST change the laws. Too many people get rejected from job positions in federal work who are outstanding as employees all because of marijuana consumption or drug test which make sense but alcohol being okay is ridiculous. It should be okay as long as it doesn’t hurt you.
Had a secret clearance in navy, Was discharged on Feb 2019, i got a mmj card in April 2019. Bought a couple things at Local dispensary and didn't like it. Never went back or tried again and card expired.
Did I use marijuana with a secret clearance? I assumed it became inactive once I left the service. Will this be an issue when getting a clearance again? I have filled out sf86 and was honest and clear about it, but unsure about clearance being inactive. Thanks.