Community Planner - DIRECT HIRE Job in Washington, DC

Vacancy No. FTA.DH-2025-0007 Department Federal Transit Administration
Salary $99,200.00 to $181,216.00 Grade 12 to 14
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 11/1/2024 Close Date 11/8/2024
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Washington, DC


Summary

This is a public notice for FTA authorized Community Planner (0020) positions open to U.S. Citizens.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. citizen. Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position. The 'Rule of Three', Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants does not apply to this vacancy.

Duties

As a Community Planner, you will:

  • Serve as resource on FTA procedures and guidance related to transportation planning and project development processes for major transit capital investments and Federal laws, regulations, Executive Orders, and directives for one or more of the following: tribal, urban, suburban, and/or rural public transportation systems.
  • Keep current as to recent or emerging changes affecting FTA programs and projects.
  • Develop regulations, position papers, and instructions related to community planning aspects of FTA programs.
  • Review office programs related to community planning for technical and program management effectiveness; make reports and offer suggestions for improvement based on findings.
  • Provide technical advice and coordinate planning or related problems or projects with stakeholders.
  • Review regulations, reports, procedures, and techniques pertaining to community planning matters and provides comments or recommendations. Participates in the investigation of complaints and inquiries and prepares responses as necessary.
  • Support statewide and metropolitan technical planning analyses systems, planning, and Federal environmental review process and ensures adequate oversight of major transit capital investment projects.

The ideal candidate for this position is a transportation planning professional skilled in managing transportation planning programs or technical areas. This candidate is someone who has the skills and abilities to effectively represent the agency to Federal, state and local officials and the general public. The candidate is also someone with good communication, negotiation, and partnering skills, who desires to work in a challenging, complex, and innovative environment.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
  • Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
  • Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
  • Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

  • SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
  • BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: You may be required to complete a background/security investigation and meet preliminary requirements prior to onboarding.
  • GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel.  A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
  • TIME-IN-GRADE: Federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade in the competitive or excepted service in the executive branch to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
  • PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
  • 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.

Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of transcripts for verification, AND (3) meet the specialized experience requirements for the grade at which you are requesting consideration.

To qualify for the GS-12, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-11, it must include:

  • Experience planning, coordinating, or monitoring planning projects or studies or carrying out operating assignments; AND
  • Experience developing and/or evaluating transportation planning and program development processes at a local, regional, state, or national level; AND
  • Experience developing reports and presentations for meetings and conferences.


To qualify for the GS-13, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-12, it must include:

  • Experience planning, coordinating, or monitoring grants, planning projects or studies, and/or carrying out operating assignments.; AND
  • Experience improving or assisting others in improving transportation planning processes or programs with an emphasis on emerging areas; AND
  • Experience developing, evaluating, and/or overseeing the development of transportation planning and program development processes at a local, regional, state, or national level; AND
  • Experience representing an organization during public meetings and conferences and addressing programmatic and technical issues and questions raised by stakeholder groups.


To qualify for the GS-14, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-13, it must include:

  • Experience leading coordination efforts and promoting transportation planning best practices with Federal, state, local agencies and other professional transportation organizations; AND
  • Experience developing, evaluating, and/or overseeing the development of transportation planning and program development processes at a local, regional, state, or national level; AND
  • Experience in technical writing; preparing briefing papers to convey results of options, interpretation, analysis, guidelines, recommendations, and advice; and conveying transportation planning policies with stakeholders on behalf of an agency at national conferences, workshops, or meetings; AND
  • Experience developing and implementing laws, regulations, policies, and initiatives as they relate to transportation planning or project development processes at a local, regional, state, or national level.

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:

  • Public Planning: Knowledge of functions, principles, methods, and techniques related to community planning, outdoor recreation planning, and natural resource management, such as demand forecasting, environmental impact analysis, financial forecasting, and land use planning and zoning.
  • Planning and Evaluation: Organizes work, sets priorities, and determines resource requirements; determines short- or long-term goals and strategies to achieve them; coordinates with other organizations or parts of the organization to accomplish goals; monitors progress and evaluates outcomes.
  • Oral and Written communication: Makes clear and convincing oral presentations. Listens effectively; clarifies information as needed. Writes in a clear, concise, organized, and convincing manner for the intended audience.
  • Transportation: Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including costs and limits.


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/frequently-asked-questions/employment-faq/federal-hiring/how-do-i-apply-for-federal-jobs/

All applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

Degree: Community Planning; or related field such as urban affairs, architecture, landscape architecture, engineering, sociology, geography, economics, political science, or public administration that included at least 12 semester hours in the planning process, socioeconomic and physical elements of planning, urban and regional economic analysis, and development finance.

Note: Applicants with degrees in related fields, such as those listed above, who do not have the 12 semester hours of specified course work must have had at least 1 year of work experience in community planning acquired under the supervision and guidance of a community planner. 

OR

Combination of education and experience: courses equivalent to a major in one of the above disciplines, or a combination of related courses totaling at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the above disciplines of which at least 12 semester hours were in the planning process, and socioeconomic and physical elements of planning, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Additional information

The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act prohibits the Department of Transportation and its Operating Administrations from requesting an applicant's criminal history record before that individual receives a conditional offer of employment. In accordance with 5 U.S. Code § 9202(c) and 5 C.F.R § 920.201 certain positions are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Chance to Compete Act. Applicants who believe they have been subjected to a violation of the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act, may submit a written complaint to the Department of Transportation by email at, FairChanceAct@dot.gov. To learn more, please visit our page at: The Fair Chance to Compete Act | US Department of Transportation 

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Qualified CTAP/ICTAP candidates receive priority and will be referred to the hiring manager.

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.

For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational requirements.  Applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.

Applicants will not be rated or ranked.  Veteran’s Preference does NOT apply.

DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC.  WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE.  All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume.  If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.

Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. 


You may preview questions for this vacancy.

Required Documents

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/how-to

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. 

DISPLACED EMPLOYEES: If requesting consideration under the Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or Interagency CTAP program (ICTAP), you must meet the well qualified standards for this vacancy (meeting minimum requirements for position and scoring at least an 85) and provide all of the following documents:  

  • your most recent performance appraisal,
  • the proof of eligibility letter from the Agency, and
  • your most current SF-50, displaying current series and grade.

Displaced employees may be eligible for ICTAP or CTAP priority consideration.  

For more information, please review the OPM Employee's Guide to Career Transition.

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 USA Jobs 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

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is an equal opportunity employer committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities. If you require an accommodation or other assistance to apply online, please notify the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at: Transjobs@dot.gov. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the interview process, please notify the Office of Human Resources, Staffing and Classification Division, via email at FTAStaffing@dot.gov.

Agency contact information

Automated Staffing Office
Address
DOT, FEDERAL TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION
Submit Application and Documents Online
1200 New Jersey Ave SE / HAHR - 50
Washington, District of Columbia 20590
United States
Learn more about this agency

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. 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.


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


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