You will be responsible for providing technical guidance concerning all Federal-aid Highway Program environmental programs, activities, and analyses within a State or, as a shared resource in multiple States. You will assist in assuring that environmental programs, studies, and documents on Federal-aid highway projects comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, archeology, noise impacts, Presidential Executive Orders, and other Federal environmental laws and requirements. You will also provide guidance and technical assistance to the FHWA Division Office, State DOT, State and local transportation partners, Tribal Governments, and Federal resource and regulatory agencies, and participate in process reviews related to the environmental aspects of all program areas.
The ideal candidate is an entry level to mid-career employee with experience implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and/or other environmental laws, regulations, or policy.
Summary
You will be responsible for providing technical guidance concerning all Federal-aid Highway Program environmental programs, activities, and analyses within a State or, as a shared resource in multiple States. You will assist in assuring that environmental programs, studies, and documents on Federal-aid highway projects comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Section 4(f) of the Department of Transportation Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, archeology, noise impacts, Presidential Executive Orders, and other Federal environmental laws and requirements. You will also provide guidance and technical assistance to the FHWA Division Office, State DOT, State and local transportation partners, Tribal Governments, and Federal resource and regulatory agencies, and participate in process reviews related to the environmental aspects of all program areas.
The ideal candidate is an entry level to mid-career employee with experience implementing the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and/or other environmental laws, regulations, or policy.
As an Environmental Protection Specialist, you will:
Represent the Division Office and serve as a technical advisor on FHWA policy, laws, regulations, Executive Orders, and directives related to NEPA and FHWA’s project development process.
Advise FHWA stakeholders and Federal and State partner agencies on Federal responsibilities and the requirements of NEPA, the Council on Environmental Quality regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508), and FHWA regulations, policies, and guidance.
Ensure environmental laws are addressed and integrated into the NEPA decision-making process.
Provide feedback on environmental documents and studies.
Collaborate with and advise stakeholders of special environmental concerns such as those related to context sensitivity, environmental justice, community impact assessments, wetlands, cultural resources, Section 4(f), biological resources, ecosystems, hazardous wastes and brownfields, greenhouse gas emissions, project level air quality conformity and global climate change, and highway traffic noise.
Must be eligible for Status consideration & meet specialized experience.
Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date.
Provide all required documents by closing date.
May be used to fill similar positions within 60 days for this location.
Announcement also advertised to U.S. Citizens: FHWA.FO-2018-0027.
CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:
SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
PROBATIONARY PERIOD: You must complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).
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 to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions contained in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
Qualifications
To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must meet the specialized experience requirements for the grade at which you are requesting consideration
For the GS-11, to qualify on Experience, you must have one year of specialized experience equal or equivalent to the following:
Experience applying environmental standards, methods, and practices to assure full implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other environmental laws, regulations or policy (such as Section 4(f) of the DOT Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, laws concerning archeology, endangered species, noise impacts, project level Air Quality conformity determinations, or Executive Orders).
Experience preparing and reviewing environmental documents including, but not limited to Environmental Impact Statements (EIS), Environmental Assessments (EA), Categorical Exclusions (CE), Environmental Assessments, Purpose and Needs Statements, Alternative Analyses, etc.
TO QUALIFY FOR THE GS-11 on Education, you must have:
Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree
3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree
A Masters of Law (LL.M.), if related
You can also qualify on a combination of higher level graduate education and matching experience.
For the GS-12, to qualify on Experience, you must have one year of specialized experience equal or equivalent to the following:
Experience applying environmental standards, methods, and practices to assure full implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other environmental laws, regulations or policy (such as Section 4(f) of the DOT Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, laws concerning archeology, endangered species, noise impacts, project level Air Quality conformity determinations, or Executive Orders).
Experience preparing and reviewing environmental documents including, but not limited to Environmental Impact Statements (EIS), Environmental Assessments (EA), Categorical Exclusions (CE), Environmental Assessments, Purpose and Needs Statements, Alternative Analyses, etc.
Experience working with other Federal and/or State agencies to advance projects in accordance with NEPA requirements.
There is no educational substitution for experience at the GS-12 grade level. 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.
Applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.
EEO STATEMENT: The Department of Transportation (DOT) maintains a model federal work environment that is free of discrimination. DOT ensures equal employment opportunity for employees and applicants for employment, regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), genetic information, age, disability, sexual orientation, or protected activity.
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.
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.
If you meet the qualification requirements, your application will be scored based upon your responses to the vacancy questions. The top rated applications will be reviewed for the quality of your experience, education and training relevant to the position.
Your application will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education and training relevant to the position. 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, your application may be updated or you may not be referred to the selecting official. Please ensure that your work history provides enough details to support your answers. If referred, all relevant documents including performance appraisals and awards submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review. The Automated Staffing Office is ultimately responsible for determining your final rating.
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.
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.
ALL Applicants must provide a resume that fully supports the required specialized experience and was created within USA Jobs Resume Builder and respond to the vacancy questions by the closing date of the vacancy.
The following is a list of documents that are only required based on the type of position and consideration for which you are applying. Please review each of the following sections to determine which, if any, additional documents you need to provide with your application.
TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED if there is a stated education requirement for the series OR if you are substituting education for experience. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements.
If you have previously held a government position in the same series as this position, you may be able to provide an SF-50 showing that you have already qualified and worked in the federal service in this series.
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL - Most recent performance appraisal (dated within last 3 years) showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan that does not include this information.
AWARDS - Copies of any award(s) received within the last 3 years.
VETERANS: Your last DD214, 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.
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,which verifies your military service dates, reason for separation, and eligibility for consideration under the Veterans Employment Opportunity Act.
STATUS APPLICANTS: If seeking eligibility consideration as status/agency/DOT employee, you must provide proof of eligibility in the form of an SF-50. Your SF-50 must verify the highest grade held competitively, full performance level of position, and eligibility as a status applicant. Please do not submit an Award SF-50, as these are often incomplete and do not verify grade or status eligibility.
NON COMPETITIVE APPLICANTS: If requesting concurrent consideration for Non-competitive (NC) appointment eligibility, you must provide the appropriate SPECIAL APPOINTING AUTHORITY DOCUMENTS, such as PCS orders (military spouse) describing move & marriage certificate; letter from VA or DD214 describing 100% disability of spouse; letter from State Vocational Office certifying disability (schedule A), etc. For more information, visit military spouse NC appointments or Persons with Disabilities NC appointments.
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 or falling in the Gold Category) 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.
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:
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.
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than midnight Eastern Time on the closing date of the announcement.
To begin, click the Apply Online button on the job announcement.
Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
You may review your saved application(s) at https://my.usajobs.gov.
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office during regular business hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, Mondays through Fridays) at (202) 366-1298. You may also email us at Transjobs@dot.gov.
DOT, FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION
Submit Application and Documents Online
1200 New Jersey Ave SE / HAHR - 50
Washington, District of Columbia 20590
United States
Next steps
You may check your application status into by logging into your USAJOBS account. Within two weeks of the closing date, your application will be reviewed and rated. Ratings will be determined based on the documents and information received by the closing date. The most highly qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration. If you are selected for an interview, the hiring manager will contact you directly. Once a hiring decision is made, we will notify all applicants of their final status.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
ALL Applicants must provide a resume that fully supports the required specialized experience and was created within USA Jobs Resume Builder and respond to the vacancy questions by the closing date of the vacancy.
The following is a list of documents that are only required based on the type of position and consideration for which you are applying. Please review each of the following sections to determine which, if any, additional documents you need to provide with your application.
TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED if there is a stated education requirement for the series OR if you are substituting education for experience. The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements.
If you have previously held a government position in the same series as this position, you may be able to provide an SF-50 showing that you have already qualified and worked in the federal service in this series.
PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL - Most recent performance appraisal (dated within last 3 years) showing the official rating of record, signed by a supervisor, or statement why the performance appraisal is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan that does not include this information.
AWARDS - Copies of any award(s) received within the last 3 years.
VETERANS: Your last DD214, 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.
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,which verifies your military service dates, reason for separation, and eligibility for consideration under the Veterans Employment Opportunity Act.
STATUS APPLICANTS: If seeking eligibility consideration as status/agency/DOT employee, you must provide proof of eligibility in the form of an SF-50. Your SF-50 must verify the highest grade held competitively, full performance level of position, and eligibility as a status applicant. Please do not submit an Award SF-50, as these are often incomplete and do not verify grade or status eligibility.
NON COMPETITIVE APPLICANTS: If requesting concurrent consideration for Non-competitive (NC) appointment eligibility, you must provide the appropriate SPECIAL APPOINTING AUTHORITY DOCUMENTS, such as PCS orders (military spouse) describing move & marriage certificate; letter from VA or DD214 describing 100% disability of spouse; letter from State Vocational Office certifying disability (schedule A), etc. For more information, visit military spouse NC appointments or Persons with Disabilities NC appointments.
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 or falling in the Gold Category) 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.
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:
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.
You must submit a complete application package (including resume, vacancy questions and supporting documents) no later than midnight Eastern Time on the closing date of the announcement.
To begin, click the Apply Online button on the job announcement.
Follow the directions to register, submit all required documents and complete the assessment questionnaire.
You may review your saved application(s) at https://my.usajobs.gov.
If you are having difficulty applying online, please contact the DOT Automated Staffing Office during regular business hours (8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET, Mondays through Fridays) at (202) 366-1298. You may also email us at Transjobs@dot.gov.
DOT, FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION
Submit Application and Documents Online
1200 New Jersey Ave SE / HAHR - 50
Washington, District of Columbia 20590
United States
Next steps
You may check your application status into by logging into your USAJOBS account. Within two weeks of the closing date, your application will be reviewed and rated. Ratings will be determined based on the documents and information received by the closing date. The most highly qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring manager for further consideration. If you are selected for an interview, the hiring manager will contact you directly. Once a hiring decision is made, we will notify all applicants of their final status.
Fair and transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
