Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to current permanent facility employees, current permanent VA employees, current permanent Federal employees and other Status Candidates (VEOA, Reinstatement, Schedule A, all Veteran categories, Military Spouse)

Government information work involves implementing policies and procedures to manage Government information and providing information-related assistance and services to the general public and VA staff members. The work requires interpreting and applying laws, regulations, policies, and guidance to provide access to VA records and information, while ensuring protected information is appropriately safeguarded. The Privacy/FOIA Officer Assistant makes determinations about disclosures, issuance of denials, redactions, access to Federal agency records and use and dissemination of personally identifiable information.

The incumbent focuses on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Privacy Act (PA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), and 38 U.S.C. statutes that govern the collection, maintenance, and release of information from VA records:

• The VA Claims Confidentiality Statute (38 U.S.C. 5701),
• The Confidentiality of Healthcare Quality Assurance Review Records (38 U.S.C. 5705), and
• The Confidentiality of Drug Abuse, Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Infection, and Sickle Cell Anemia Medical Records (38 U.S.C. 7332).

The incumbent fulfills the role of liaison with the facility staff by ensuring that information received is disseminated to the appropriate areas, that employees adhere to mandates from regulatory agencies, and that monitoring i.s conducted to ensure VA policies and procedures are being followed. In addition the incumbent promotes an awareness of privacy principles consistent with the mission, vision and values of the organization and those required by federal law.

Major duties include but not limited to:

• Researches, analyzes, and responds to FOIA requests for medical facility information applying FOIA exemptions as required. Reviews and analyzes appeals from denials of access to records requested under FOIA and makes recommendations on release/non-­release of records.
• Prepares responses to privacy inquiries from Congressional Offices, Human Resources, New Media, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights (HHS OCR) for the Privacy Officer. Investigates HHS OCR requests related to HIPAA-­privacy complaints, gathers facts and information and develops recommendations.
• Provides assistance with the investigation of privacy-related inquiries from the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) and the Office of the Medical Inspector (OMI), by researching and gathering necessary information. Prepares proposed responses for the Privacy Officer.
• Processes complaints and investigates allegations of inappropriate activities related to the medical facility privacy practices, using or accessing individually-identifiable health information, or disclosing or release of individually-identifiable health information. Prepares recommended solutions for release by the Privacy Officer.
• Investigates data breaches, and makes suggestions on appropriate remediation. Enters privacy complaints, incidents and data breaches into the Privacy and Security Event Tracking System (PSETS) in accordance with local procedures.
• On occasion, may be required to represent the Privacy Officer on committees, teams, and work groups to assist and guide issues related to disclosure of information and privacy related functions.
• Reviews facility compliance procedures, processes, and workflow to ensure information is appropriately safeguarded, used, and disclosed in accordance with established procedures. Assesses the facility's privacy posture through periodic evaluations. Reviews any products where individually identifiable information may be maintained to ensure use, storage, and maintenance of sensitive personal information is in compliance with program requirements. Identifies discrepancies and deficiencies and makes suggestions to Privacy Officer on how to resolve issues. Assists with completing the Facility Self-Assessment at the end of each quarter.

Other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 7:30 am - 4:00 pm OR 8:00 am - 4:30 pm
Telework: This position may be authorized for Ad-hoc telework. Ad-hoc telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Position Description/PD#: Government Information Specialist/PD08132O
Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized
Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required.
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 02/27/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: focuses on the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Privacy Act (PA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), and 38 U.S.C. statutes that govern the collection, maintenance, and release of information from VA records; processes complaints, investigate allegations, complaints, incidents, and data breaches and recommend appropriate remediation; processes complaints and investigates allegations of illegal or improper activities related to the handling or release of privacy protected information; participate and develop facility specific, privacy/FOIA training materials and provide training to staff and uses computer applications for word processing, manipulating documents in Portable Document Format (PDF) and database/spreadsheet creation to provide reports, charts, and formulas in Excel. OR,
• Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., where it is directly related to the work of a Government Information Specialist. OR,
• Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education beyond a graduate degree.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

How you will be evaluated

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

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position:

• Attention to Detail
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reading Comprehension
• Stress Tolerance

• Information Management
• Accountability
• Customer Service
• Teamwork

Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

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; religions; 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.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator.

Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position.

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes:

• Resume

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.

• Cover Letter
• DD-214/ Statement of Service
• Disability Letter (Schedule A)
• Disability Letter (VA)
• License
• Other (1)
• PCS Orders
• Performance Appraisal
• Professional Certification
• Proof of Marriage Status
• Resume
• Separation Notice (RIF)
• SF-15
• SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action
• Transcript

SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applicable for Time in Grade and/or Eligibility):

• Most recent SF-50 if you are a current or former Federal employee
• An SF-50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade
• Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade.
• Examples of appropriate SF-50's include:
  • Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or
  • Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or
  • SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old.

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit Feds Hire Vets - Veterans - Job Seekers - Veterans' Preference.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.

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