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The Pentagon will soon take over security checks for the federal government, according to sources who spoke with The Associated Press.

Defense Department officials said that over the next three years it will be responsible for all background investigations for military and civilian employees and contractors, the AP reported.

The change aims to fix the dense backlog of people waiting for clearance and the weak points of the security system that were exposed when a Navy contractor killed a dozen people at Washington’s Navy Yard in 2013.

The contractor had kept his security clearance despite concerns about his mental health and an unreviewed arrest.

The new program would automatically review workers' records on a regular basis instead of every five or 10 years, as is currently the norm.

The shift of responsibility will give the OPM a chance to get through its backlog of 700,000 workers, about 500,000 of whom are reportedly with the Defense Department. The Defense Department will not take over these cases, as they are already being handled by OPM.