Intern Waiting Game August 26, 2009 Kail Padgitt Kail Padgitt The National Journal reports that State Department interns are unable to start work do to the slow nature of the security clearance: Congress has tackled the issue of lengthy clearance wait times before: The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 mandated that agencies complete 90 percent of their clearance cases in 60 days. And the State Department, which processes 25,000 clearance cases a year, says it has responded. In the third quarter of this year, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security needed an average of 54 days to issue entry-level clearances, the kind most interns need. That’s down from 64 days in 2008. A friendly reminder to those interested in internships in DC: the Tax Foundation has no such security screening procedures. Here is some more information on Tax Foundation internships. Stay informed on the tax policies impacting you. Subscribe to get insights from our trusted experts delivered straight to your inbox. Subscribe Share Tweet Share Email Topics