Summary
The Attorney-Advisor in the Regulatory and Legislative Affairs division of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration serves as the legal counsel to agency regulatory development teams and provides legal sufficiency review of rulemaking notices involving motor carrier and driver safety; hazardous material transportation; and motor carrier licensing, operations, and commercial regulations.
This job is open to
Clarification from the agency
Applications will be accepted from any U.S. Citizen.
This position is in the Excepted Service. For information on the Excepted Service, please visit: Excepted Service Appointing Authorities@ https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/excepted-service/
Duties
As an Attorney Advisor (Regulatory & Legislative Affairs), you will:
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Provide legal services for implementing and overseeing the national motor carrier safety policy and the national goals of the FMCSA to promote and regulate commercial motor vehicle safety in accordance with Title 49, U.S. Code.
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Research and prepare legal documents (opinions, guidance, interpretations, orders) and correspondence interpreting statutes and regulations applicable to the motor carrier safety programs and policies of the FMCSA and implementing FMCSA’s statutory authorities and regulations.
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Research complex and policy-sensitive legal issues to develop or support the agency's position on matters within the Office of Chief Counsel's responsibility.
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Serve as legal counsel to the agency’s regulatory development teams to assist in the formulation of legally sound and defensible regulations, provide drafting support, and conduct full legal sufficiency review of agency rulemaking work products.
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Review and assess for legal sufficiency policy guidance, correspondence, and other documents, prepared by agency program offices.
The ideal candidate will have experience drafting memoranda, correspondence, regulations, guidance documents, and/or legal opinions; experience drafting and evaluating legislative proposals, testimony before legislative bodies (e.g. Congress), or responses to legislative inquiries; strong legal research skills and the ability to interpret complex statutes and regulations, particularly those applicable to commercial motor vehicle safety, (which may include medical, health, and physical qualifications, drug and alcohol testing programs, electronic data systems, or emerging technologies like automation or cyber-security, among others); an extensive working knowledge of the Administrative Procedure Act, statutes related to regulatory evaluation, and executive orders and procedures applicable to the Federal rulemaking process; strong communication skills both orally and in writing (drafting and editing); and the ability to work effectively in a collaborative team environment, as well as the ability to work independently with limited direct supervision.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- You must be a U.S. Citizen and eligible for consideration.
- Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.
- This is an Excepted Service position.
- Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
- SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service.
- TRIAL PERIOD: This is an Excepted Service position. This job will be filled by an alternative hiring process and is not in the competitive service. Applicants selected for an excepted service position may be subject to a two-year trial period.
- ETHICS/CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT: All employees are subject to the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch, set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 2635, including restrictions on owning financial interests that may conflict with performance of their duties. Some employees, like those involved in contracting or regulating non-Federal entities, are subject to Executive Branch Financial Disclosure requirements set out in Title 5 of the Code of Federal Regulations, section 263.
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TELEWORK ELIGIBILITY: This position may be eligible for occasional and/or regularly scheduled telework. The number of telework days approved will be determined by your immediate supervisor or manager following the agency’s telework policy and guidance. If participating in the telework program, you will be required to sign a telework agreement detailing agency telework policy requirements, working conditions, and expectations for the position.
- GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
- FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE FORM: This position requires completion of OGE-450, Financial Disclosure Form.
- REMOTE WORK: Washington, D.C. location preferred, but position is remote work eligible. Remote work is an arrangement in which an employee works at an alternative worksite (e.g., from home) and is not expected to report to the office to work. Remote work location will be determined upon/after selection and may affect locality pay. If selected as a remote work position, you must have access to high speed internet and cell phone service meeting current Agency standards from the approved work location within the Contiguous United State and sign a remote work agreement. The difference in salary is determined by the locality pay in each location. If the position is offered to you remotely (approved to work from home), your home address becomes your duty station for pay setting purposes. Salaries for all areas are available on the OPM website at: General Schedule (opm.gov)
Qualifications
To qualify, your experience should include experience and education equal or equivalent to the following:
GRADE 13 - A law degree, bar membership in good standing and at least two years of professional experience working as an attorney handling regulatory, legislative, or compliance matters; practicing administrative law or litigation; or applying and interpreting Federal or State statutes and regulations relating to commercial motor vehicle safety or other Federal statutes.
GRADE 14 - A law degree, bar membership in good standing and at least three years of professional experience working as an attorney handling regulatory, legislative, or compliance matters; practicing administrative law or litigation; or applying and interpreting Federal or State statutes and regulations relating to commercial motor vehicle safety or other Federal statutes.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:
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Administrative Law - Knowledge of state and Federal administrative laws, including procedures, regulations, guidelines, and precedents related to case preparation and settlements.
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Interpersonal Skills (‡) - Treats others with courtesy, sensitivity, and respect. Considers and responds appropriately to the needs and feelings of different people in different situations.
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Legal, Government, and Jurisprudence - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, legal practices and documents, Government regulations, Executive orders, agency rules, Government organization and functions, and the democratic political process.
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Oral Communication (*) - Expresses information (for example, ideas or facts) to individuals or groups effectively, taking into account the audience and nature of the information (for example, technical, sensitive, controversial); makes clear and convincing oral presentations; listens to others, attends to nonverbal cues, and responds appropriately.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4
All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
Education
MANDATORY EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS:
In order to qualify for this position, candidates must have successfully completed a full course of study in a school of law accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and have a professional law degree, and must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State or Territory of the United States or the District of Columbia.
Benefits
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. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
Review our benefits
Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume/application does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Your resume must contain sufficiently detailed information upon which to make a qualification determination. Please ensure that your resume contains specific information such as position titles, beginning and ending dates of employment for each position, average number of hours worked per week, and if the position is/was in the Federal government, you should provide the position series and grade level
For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational and specialized experience requirements.
Applicants will not be rated or ranked.
All applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.
The answers you select in the on-line process must be substantiated in your application package. If upon review, it is determined that your described work history, competencies, and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, you may not be referred to the selecting official. Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. You may preview questions for this vacancy.
Required Documents
The following is a list of documents that are only required based on the type of position. Please review each of the following sections to determine which documents you need to provide with your application.
RESUME: Your resume MUST contain specific information used to make a qualification determination that includes employment beginning and ending dates for each position, whether employment is Full-time or Part-time or average number of hours worked per week, and position titles. If the position is/was in the Federal government, you will need to provide the position series and grade level. The resume should show relevant experience and education as well as support the required specialized experience. Formatted resumes may be uploaded later in the application process. For assistance with the resume builder, please visit: https://help.usajobs.gov/
COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRE.
PROOF OF BAR MEMBERSHIP.
COVER LETTER.
TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED as there is a stated education requirement for the series. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - click here.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - click here. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course-by-course listing along with your application.
WRITING SAMPLE: If selected for an interview, a writing sample may be requested.
VETERANS: Your last DD214 (member 4 copy), Certificate of Release or Discharge From Active Duty, that shows the type of discharge and all dates of active duty is required to verify your eligibility. It need not be official.
- If you are applying to a vacancy opened to all US Citizens under category rating and wish to be considered as a preference eligible, you need to submit a copy of your DD214 (member-4 copy).
- If you are claiming preference eligibility as a disabled veteran, you must submit proof of entitlement of this preference which is normally a valid letter from the Department of Veterans Affairs certifying to the present existence of the service-connected disability and indicating the percentage of your disability. An SF-15 is desired, but not required.
- If you are applying to a vacancy opened Status and you are requesting consideration under Veteran's Employment Opportunity Act (VEOA) (https://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/shav/#veoa), you need to provide a copy of your last DD214 (member-4 copy), which verifies your military service dates, reason for separation, OR certification of separation that shows a discharge date within 120 days of the closing of this announcement, and eligibility for consideration under the Veterans Employment Opportunity Act.
Failure to submit any of the required documents by the closing date of the vacancy will result in your removal from consideration for this position. Please review your application prior to final submission and ensure you have submitted all appropriate documents. Uploading documents to USAJobs does NOT ensure inclusion with your application to our system. You must verify that the documents are in the system with your application prior to final submission.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than 11:59 pm (EST) on the closing date of the announcement.
- To begin, click the "Apply Online" button on the job announcement posting.
- Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
- You may review your saved application(s) at https://help.usajobs.gov/
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at Transjobs@dot.gov.
Next steps
You may check your application status by logging into USAJobs.com (Select "My USAJobs" and click "Applications". Within two weeks of the closing date, a Human Resources Specialist will evaluate your application. Qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager. Appropriate veteran's preference will be applied. If you are selected for an interview, the hiring agency will contact you directly. Once the position is filled, we will notify all applicants of their final status.
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