Attorney Advisor (DEPUTY DIRECTOR) Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. DE-12640304-25-TR Department Surface Transportation Board
Salary $167,603.00 to $195,200.00 Grade 15 to 15
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 1/16/2025 Close Date 1/31/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

The individual serves as the Deputy Director, GS-0905-15, in the Office of Environmental Analysis (OEA). OEA is responsible for ensuring the agency's compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and related environmental laws.

Duties

The purpose of the Deputy Director position is to provide high-level expertise and advice to OEA and agency staff. The individual will also oversee the agency's environmental program when the Director is unavailable, or the Director designates the Deputy Director to be in charge.

The major duties of this position are:

  • Ensure the agency's compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and related environmental laws and administer the agency's environmental rules.
  • Ensure the clarity, technical adequacy, and defensibility of all environmental analyses and documents prepared for Board proceedings subject to environmental review.
  • Provide high-level expertise and advice to OEA and agency staff.
  • Prepare and edit memoranda and environmental documents including Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) and Environmental Assessments (EAs) for rail constructions, abandonments, mergers, acquisitions, and other transportation actions.
  • Ensure public participation in the Board's NEPA review process by overseeing and implementing a public outreach program that includes local public meetings; site visits; consultations with local, state and local agencies and any affected parties.
  • Assist the Director in administrative tasks, such as budget preparation.
  • Manage a multidisciplinary staff, including third-party contractors.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • All qualification requirements must be met by 01/31/2025.
  • Your application package will not receive consideration if it lacks any of the required documents under the "Required Documents" tab.
  • Trial Period: A two-year trial period may be required.
  • Required to participate in the Direct Deposit program.
  • Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See http://www.sss.gov/
  • Background Suitability Investigation: Continued employment is contingent upon satisfactory completion of a background investigation and the granting of a Federal suitability or security clearance.
  • If selected, you may be offered tentative employment until the background investigation has been fully adjudicated.
  • E-Verify: If you are selected for this position, the documentation that you present for purposes of completing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Form 1-9 will be verified through the DHS "E-Verify" System. The STB is an E-Verify Participant.
  • Employment is contingent upon the satisfactory completion of a background investigation and the granting of a Federal suitability clearance. If selected, you may be offered a tentative offer until the background investigation has been adjudicated.
  • Relocation expenses are not authorized.
  • Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.
  • Must submit a complete resume, writing sample, cover letter, and all required documents. Only experience and education obtained by the closing date of this announcement will be considered.
  • Current member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia. Proof of bar membership will be required before entering on duty.

Qualifications

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has not issued qualification standards for attorney positions. However, STB sets minimum qualifications for attorney positions and sets forth these qualifications for this position. You must meet both requirements below:

A.

  • You must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA);
  • Current member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia. Proof of bar membership will be required before entering on duty.

TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements. Proof of bar membership will be required before entering on duty.

AND

B.

Candidates must have at least four years of professional legal experience involving the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

A cover letter and writing sample is required to be submitted with the application package.

The qualification requirements listed above must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

You must provide your transcripts to support your educational claims. Transcripts may be unofficial copies, but they must come from an accredited college or university, and they also must include the courses' names and number of credit hours. To search the database of accredited institutions, visit: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/Search.aspx

Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at U.S. accredited college or university. For further information visit: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html

Additional information

A career with the U.S. Government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. In addition, the Surface Transportation Board (STB) has work/life-balance flexibilities that may be right for you. We offer:

This position is eligible for telework per STB's telework policy.

Fitness Center: STB employees, at no cost, have access to the fitness center conveniently located in the building; and

A monthly transit subsidy for a portion of your commuting costs to help defray the commuting costs of employees who use mass transportation, including commuter bus, Metrorail or Metrobus, or commuter rail systems.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Once the application process is complete, a review of the resume and supporting documentation will be made to determine if you are qualified for this job. If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your rating may be lowered to more accurately reflect the submitted documentation.

All candidates who meet the qualifications described above will be referred to the hiring official for consideration.

Required Documents

Please be advised, the following documents are required even if you are already a current Federal or STB employee:

1. Resume and cover letter that includes the experience you wish to be considered for the review of your qualifications, including the dates of employment with month and year, and hours worked per week, if part-time. Resumes that do not contain all of the necessary information to determine qualifications may be marked as insufficient and applicants may not receive consideration for this position. Your latest resume submission is the one that will be used to determine your qualifications.

2. Responses to questionnaire.

3. Educational Transcripts (unofficial transcripts may be submitted with your application.)

4. Writing Sample: applicants must include an unedited or lightly edited writing sample that demonstrates your ability to perform the duties of the position and illustrates your ability to conduct complex legal research and analysis. The writing sample should total no more than 5 pages. Selected excerpts of larger documents are acceptable. If appropriate, please attach an explanatory cover memo to your writing sample. Do not submit sensitive or classified documents or documents containing personally identifiable information.

5. Supporting documents verifying your eligibility or any preference eligibility along with your application package. These documents may include, but are not limited to:

  • Veteran's documentation: There is no formal rating system for applying veterans' preference to attorney appointments in the Excepted Service. However, if you are eligible for veteran's preference, you may attach supporting documents. If submitting DD214, a MEMBER 4 copy is required. If you are currently on active duty, you must submit an official statement of service from your command or other official documentation that proves your military service was performed under honorable conditions.
  • Preference eligible documentation: If claiming a 10-point preference you must also submit an SF-15 and any other proof that you are eligible for a 10-point preference if a job offer is extended to you, a final VA letter including percentage (please do not include a letter from VA noting specific private medical information).

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all the instructions before you begin an application.

To apply for this position, you must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above.

The complete application package must be submitted before the announcement closes on 01/31/2025. The following instructions outline our application process. You must complete this application process and submit any required documents by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. ET, Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, please contact us by noon ET on the announcement's closing date.

To begin your online application:

You must create a login.gov account, if you don't already have one. You must:
-Create a login.gov account - you only need to do this once.
-Enter an email address during the account set up - use the same email address you use for USAJOBS (your primary or secondary email address).
-Create a new password.
-Have a working phone number (mobile or landline) near you - login.gov will send you a security code.
-Finish setting up your login.gov account.

Once you've finished setting up your login.gov account, you'll go back to USAJOBS to finish the process. Double check your USAJOBS Profile to make sure all of your information is accurate. You must use your login.gov email address, password, and security code every time you want to sign into USAJOBS. Follow the prompts in USAJOBS to take the online questionnaire and submit the required documents. See Required Documents section for more details.

Note: We recommend you don't use a .gov, .mil or .edu email address. Instead, use a personal (non-government) email address when you create your login.gov account. Please do not use an email address you share with someone else

** For any issues signing into login.gov, go to https://login.gov/contact/

Agency contact information

Tara Rauch
Address
Surface Transportation Board
395 E Street SW
Washington, DC 20423
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

To be considered for the position, you must meet all qualifications, including meeting or exceeding the cut score on the required assessments.

Once referred, you may be asked to complete a structured interview, written demonstration, and/or fit interview. Deliberate attempts to falsify information may be grounds for not selecting you or for dismissing you from the position/agency during the probationary period.

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. Your application will be evaluated. You will receive another notification about the status of your application.

All candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration and possible interview.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.


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