Attorney Advisor (FOIA)

The incumbent is an Attorney-Advisor in the General Law Division of the Office of Chief Counsel, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). The incumbent is responsible for rendering legal services and furnishing legal advice on difficult and complex aspects of all areas of responsibility of the division. Such legal services and advice can influence changes in agency policy.

Duties

As an Attorney Advisor, you will:

• Provide oral and written legal advice and guidance on general law matters within the Division's responsibility with a focus on FOIA, Privacy Act, records management, paperwork reduction act, protection of security information issues, and information release issues involving Federal or state partners.
• Serve as the principal legal advisor to the PHMSA FOIA program.
• Provide PHMSA officials and personnel legal advice and support, either orally or in writing, in the areas of FOIA, Privacy Act, and regarding other information release matters.
• Research statutes, legal opinions, policies, regulations, guidance, case law, and historical PHMSA and Department practice, on matters for which the division is responsible, including those involving complex or high-profile issues of law or policy.
• Recommend revisions of policy and procedural guidance on an ongoing basis thereby ultimately influencing policy and program decisions.
• Represent PHMSA in meetings and conferences with representatives of other Federal Government executive departments and agencies, on matters for which the Division is responsible.

The ideal candidate will have extensive knowledge of the Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act.  The ideal candidate will have experience analyzing records and evaluating what portions of information may be released or withheld under FOIA.  The ideal candidate will also possess the skills necessary to perform detailed legal research and provide oral or written determinations, recommendations, and justifications to the FOIA Officer and agency leadership regarding the releasability of records.

Salary

• $139,395 - $181,216/year

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.
• GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel.  A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
• PCS/RELOCATION/RECRUITMENT:  Permanent Change of Station (PCS), Relocation, and Recruitment Incentive authorization varies by position/selection and a service agreement may be required.
• 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.
• 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 qualify, your experience should include experience and education equal or equivalent to the following:

GRADE 14 - A law degree, bar membership in good standing and at least 1 year of professional attorney experience to include:

• Experience providing legal services regarding the agency’s implementation of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

• Experience conducting legal research and working with a FOIA Program to develop policies, procedures, and responses to situations that adhere to regulations and FOIA-precedential cases.

• Experience conducting legal research into the statutes, legal opinions, policies, regulations, guidance, case law, and historical matters, including those involving complex or high-profile issues of law or policy.

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:

• Administrative Law - Knowledge of state and Federal administrative laws, including procedures, regulations, guidelines, and precedents related to case preparation and settlements.
• 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.
• Attention to Detail - Is thorough when performing work and conscientious about attending to detail.
• Reasoning - Identifies rules, principles, or relationships that explain facts, data, or other information; analyzes information and makes correct inferences or draws accurate conclusions.
• Stakeholder Management - Knowledge of the concepts, practices, and techniques used to identify, engage, influence, and monitor relationships with individuals and groups connected to a work effort; including those actively involved, those who exert influence over the process and its results, and those who have a vested interest in the outcome (positive or negative).
• Technical Competence - Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on the applicability of FOIA to those technical issues.

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. Other Information

PLEASE NOTE:

TELEWORK: Managers may exercise discretion to allow a limited amount of regular or task-based telework for this position.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

How to Apply

TO APPLY:

Please submit a cover letter, resume, and proof of bar membership via email to:

PHMSA.Attorney.Jobs@dot.gov no later than 11:59 pm (EST) on the closing date of the announcement.

Indicate that you are applying to the Attorney Advisor (Grants/Procurement) job vacancy. Incomplete applications will not be considered.

If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office via email at Transjobs@dot.gov.

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. Learn more about federal benefits.

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