Supervisory Government Information Specialist

Clarification from the agency

You may apply if you are a Status Candidate (Current or Former Federal employee and VEOA) and/or a Non-Competitive Hiring Authority Eligible (Military Spouse and Individuals with Disabilities).

The incumbent serves as a Supervisory Government Information Specialist (FOIA Branch Manager) for the Traveler Engagement Division, Civil Rights & Liberties, Ombudsman and Traveler Engagement (CRL/OTE), Office of the Administrator. In this role, the incumbent:

• Provides overall leadership and supervision for the FOIA Branch, including assigning and monitoring caseloads, shifting resources to meet demand, ensuring staff training and development, conducting quality compliance reviews, and reviewing staff decisions for legal and regulatory compliance.
• Formulates agency-wide policies, directives, and guidelines ensuring compliance with statutory mandates and executive orders. Develops agency positions and issues final determinations on FOIA and Privacy Act matters.

• Makes decisions regarding the release or redaction of sensitive, controversial, and complex records with significant legal, political, or operational implications. Manages conflicting interests (public transparency vs. national security/privacy) and oversees concurrent agency-wide projects. Coordinates stakeholder inputs, facilitates consensus, develops agency positions, and issues final determinations. Consults with information owners and collaborates with offices, such as Chief Counsel, Privacy Officer, and Sensitive Security Information office. Serves as primary liaison to DHS Chief FOIA Officer, TSA Chief Counsel, and TSA senior leaders on FOIA matters.

• Develops and delivers training for TSA personnel at headquarters and in the field. Ensures timely and accurate production of documents and compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements. Directs preparation and publication of documents to the TSA FOIA Reading Room.
• Develops and submits annual FOIA reports for inclusion in DHS's report to Congress and the public. Provides regular internal reports to inform CRL/OTE, TSA, and DHS leadership of case statistics and major issues.
• Establishes and maintains contact with Chief Counsel, Sensitive Security Information office, executive leadership, planning, budgeting, and accountability staff. Serves as agency liaison with other federal agencies, audit and budgeting agencies, and TSA Legislative Affairs.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Conditions of employment

1. You must possess U.S. citizenship or be a U.S. National.
2. You must have reached the minimum age (18) at the time of application.
3. Selective Service registration is required.
4. You must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret Clearance.
5. You must complete a favorable Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI).
6. Supervisory/Managerial Probationary Period Requirements: Unless previously completed, you must satisfactorily complete a one-year supervisory probationary period to continue in this supervisory/managerial position.

If you fail to meet the conditions of employment or any other pre-employment requirements, such as missing any of the scheduled appointments, the hiring agency may rescind their tentative offer of employment.

Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for TSA to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions.

Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change.

Qualifications

To qualify for the SV-K Pay Band (equivalent to GS-15), you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the SV-J Pay Band or GS-14 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in state or local government or the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of this position. Specialized experience is defined as:

• Applied expert knowledge of FOIA, Privacy Act, and federal regulations to resolve complex information access and disclosure issues for TSA and DHS, ensuring compliance with Sensitive Security Information (SSI) and agency priorities. AND
• Led agency-wide FOIA and Privacy Act policy development and process improvements, provided authoritative guidance and training, and made critical decisions on sensitive matters while managing resources and engaging stakeholders.

Credit for experience is given based on a 40-hour workweek. Part-time experience is credited on a part-time ratio (i.e., working 20 hours per week for two months equals one month of experience). No additional credit is given for overtime.

National Service Experience (i.e., volunteer experience): 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.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office.

You must meet the qualification requirements for this position no later than the closing date of the vacancy announcement.

How you will be evaluated

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

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

• A comparison of the position requirements against the quality and extent of the experience and/or related education as reflected in your resume and supporting documentation.
• A rating of competency-based accomplishments that you will be required to provide as part of your application. These accomplishments are to demonstrate your abilities in job-related competencies. The following competencies will be evaluated:
  • Decisiveness
  • Problem Solving
  • Creativity & Innovation

The competency-based accomplishments will be rated by trained raters against pre-established benchmarks. Those ratings will be used to rate and rank candidates into one of three Category Groupings:

• Best-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate high proficiency in all of the critical competencies as determined by the job analysis.
• Well-Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrates acceptable proficiency in all of the critical competencies as determined by the job analysis.
• Qualified: Applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position and demonstrate basic proficiency in most of the critical competencies as determined by the job analysis.

If you are best qualified, you may be referred to the hiring manager for consideration and may be called for an interview.

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration

NOTE: Your resume must clearly demonstrate how you meet this requirement; otherwise, you will be deemed ineligible. Additionally, copying and pasting information from the announcement into your resume will not adequately convey your qualifications.

Resume Requirements:

1. All applicants are required to submit a resume limited to two (2) pages. The USAJOBS database will not allow an applicant to submit an application that includes a resume over two pages.
2. Narrative description of duties with start and end dates (including month and year) for work experience.
3. Number of hours worked in a position (i.e., full-time or part-time). If part-time, (i.e., less than 40 hours per week) state the total number of hours worked per week.
4. If you are a current Federal employee or previous Federal employee, provide your performance level for federal civilian positions (i.e., band or grade).

If your resume does not contain this information, your application will be marked as insufficient, and you will not receive consideration for this position.

Do NOT include photographs (or links to social media such as LinkedIn), inappropriate content, classified information, nor personal information such as age, gender, religion, social security number, etc. on your resume.

Utilizing the USAJOBS Resume Builder and completing all available fields is strongly encouraged.

In addition to a resume and the assessment questions, you must submit copies of any of the following documents if you are applying based on being a current eligible TSA employee (which includes permanent employees and 5 year temporary employees), or education or a combination of education and experience:

Detail Documentation: Eligible applicants who wish to qualify for this position based upon experience obtained while serving on a detail with TSA must submit signed copies of the corresponding TSA Form 1160, Terms And Conditions For Temporary Internal Assignment - Detail, or an SF 52, Request for Personnel Action, as supporting documentation along with their application otherwise the experience cannot be credited.

Veterans: If claiming VEOA or Veterans Preference, submit a copy of the official DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, which must include the character of service (i.e., with an Honorable or General discharge). If no DD Form 214 is available, please submit a memo/certification of military service as outlined in the Veterans Opportunity to Work (VOW) Act. This will be annotated in block 24 on member copy 2,4, or 7 of the DD Form 214. If claiming veterans' consideration which involves considering your disability rating, you must submit a VA Letter or a disability determination from a branch of the Armed Forces. Note: All veterans claiming 10-point preference must also submit a SF 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference.

TSA Employees: Current TSA employees are strongly encouraged to submit the most recent non-Award SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action, at the time of application, to support eligibility for Status consideration. TSA employees who do not submit the SF-50 with the application must document their current TSA position in their resume and may be required to provide the SF-50 document during the selection process. TSA employees may obtain a copy of their most recent non-Award SF-50 at https://eopf.opm.gov/dhs/.

Current or Former Federal Civilian employees (Non-TSA): You must submit a legible copy of a SF-50. The SF-50 block 24 must contain a "1" or "2" AND block 34 must contain a "1" or "2."

Individuals with Disabilities: Documentation of eligibility for employment under this hiring authority can be obtained from a licensed medical professional (e.g., a physician or other medical professional certified by a state, the District of Columbia, or a U.S. territory to practice medicine); a licensed vocational rehabilitation specialist (i.e., state or private); or any Federal agency, state agency, or agency of the District of Columbia or a U.S. territory that issues or provides disability benefits. Documentation is used to verify that the individual being hired is indeed a person with an intellectual disability, severe physical disability, or psychiatric disability.

Military Spouse Preference: If you are eligible based on one of the below, please submit the following:

• Spouse of an active-duty member of the armed forces: DD Form 214 of spouse, marriage license, and PCS orders showing dependency (if applicable).
• Spouse of a service member who is 100% disabled due to a service-connected injury: DD Form 214 of spouse, marriage license, and VA Letter or disability determination showing 100%.
• Spouse of a service member killed while on active duty: DD Form 214 of spouse, marriage license, documentation from the Armed Forces casualty office.

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