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Criminal Investigator

Department of Homeland Security
Transportation Security Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Securing Travel, Protecting People - At the Transportation Security Administration, you will serve in a high-stakes environment to safeguard the American way of life.  In cities across the country, you would secure airports, seaports, railroads, highways, and/or public transit systems, thus protecting America's transportation infrastructure and ensuring freedom of movement for people and commerce. For additional information about our agency please: Click Here 

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
05/21/2021 to 05/28/2021
Salary
$53,227 - $100,582 per year
Pay scale & grade
SV H - I
Locations
7 vacancies in the following locations:
Baltimore, MD
1 vacancy
Herndon, VA
3 vacancies
Springfield, VA
1 vacancy
Seattle, WA
2 vacancies
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
50% or less - Position requires domestic and overseas travel as necessary. Extensive travel is required. FREQUENT TRAVEL (GREATER THAN 50%) IS REQUIRED.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
I
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Announcement number
HQ-INV-21-900170-1-G-MGS
Control number
602312900

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Government-Wide: Current and former permanent civilian Federal employees. Applications also accepted from Individuals with Disabilities; Veterans' Preference eligibles OR Veterans who were or will honorably discharge from the Armed Forces after completing at least 3 years of continuous active duty by the closing date of this announcement. Veterans' Preference eligibles will compete under TSA's Merit Promotion procedures for which Veterans' Preference is not a factor in the selection process.

Duties

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This Criminal Investigator position is located in Investigations (INV), serves as a Special Agent for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in Herndon, VA, Baltimore, MD, Springfield, VA, Seattle, WA.

Typical duties include, but are not limited to:

  • Conducting, monitoring and coordinating complex criminal and administrative investigations and inspections which may lead to potential civil, administrative, or criminal actions. Types of investigation include those involving theft of government property, theft of personal property fraud in worker's compensation claims and mismanagement of government property. Cases might involve conflicting reports, discussions, or testimonies.
  • Performing the full range of investigation functions on assigned cases or portions of cases, from planning through fact-finding to reporting the result of investigations;
  • Responding to investigative matters through participating in searches, seizures, and arrests; performing undercover work involving contact with criminal elements or suspects in order to apprehend persons suspected of posting a threat to passenger security or of violating Federal criminal statutes; interviewing and interrogating witnesses and suspects, giving Miranda, Kalkines, and Garrity warnings when appropriate;
  • Establishing Partnership with other Federal, State, and local law enforcement and intelligence agencies, as well as federally regulated transportation entities for the purpose of securing information and pursuing investigation with multiple interests and responsibilities;
  • Analyze result of investigation and coordinates preparation of reports concerning fraud or administrative violations by agency personnel contractors, supplies, recipients and grantees in violation of U.S, criminal and civil laws, or agency regulations.

The major duties described reflect the full performance level of this position. Typically, the lower pay band (H Band) performs the same duties but will receive more guidance and training; and/or projects/work assignments may be less complex.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must possess U.S. Citizenship or be a U.S. National.
  • You must have reached the minimum age (18) at the time of application.
  • You must complete a favorable Background Investigation (BI).
  • Selective Service registration is required.
  • See additional "Conditions of Employment" and "Other Information" section
  • You must complete a favorable Single Scope Background Investigation (SSBI).
  • You must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret Clearance.
  • This is an Emergency Essential Position.
  • Must pass pre-employment drug screening AND random drug/alcohol testing.

Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for DHS 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-H Pay Band (equivalent to GS-12), you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the SV-G pay band or GS-11 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Such specialized experience is defined as:

  • Experience conducting, coordinating, and monitoring routine criminal and administrative investigations; AND
  • Experience performing investigative functions to include fact finding, and reporting of results of investigations.

To qualify for the SV-I Pay Band (equivalent to GS-13), you must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to the SV-H pay band or GS-12 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Such specialized experience is defined as:

  • Experience planning, conducting, coordinating, and monitoring criminal and administrative investigations; AND
  • Experience performing investigative functions to include fact finding, interrogations of witnesses and making arrests and reporting of investigation results.

Note: 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. 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.

Note: For positions requiring positive education requirements, or if you are using education to meet all or part of the qualification requirements, you MUST submit a copy of your transcripts or an itemized list of college courses from an accredited college or university, which includes equivalent information from the transcript (course title, semester/quarter hours, and grade/degree earned) in your resume. The information must be provided with the application by the closing date of the announcement. If selected, the applicant must supply a transcript or certification of degree.    

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.

Resumes must include the following:

  • Narrative description of duties with start and end dates (including the month and year) for work experience.
  • State the number of hours worked in a position (i.e. full-time or part-time). If part-time, state the total number of hours worked per week.
  • Performance level (i.e. band or grade)

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

Education

None

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

Age Requirement: In order to initially be appointed to a law enforcement position covered by the special retirement provisions of Title 5, USC, you must be under the age of 37 as of the date of appointment.

  • You must have successfully completed basic criminal investigator training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center or equivalent (e.g., FBI, DEA, Postal, AFOSI and DCIS training).
  • This is a critical sensitive position and the tentative selectee must undergo and successfully complete a background investigation as a condition of placement/retention in the position.
  • You must pass pre-employment Drug Screening AND you will be subject to post-employment random drug and alcohol testing.
  • Appointment to this position is contingent upon a negative drug test result. Any individual tentatively selected for this position will be required to submit to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment.
  • You will be entitled to Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) of up to 25% of base pay for availability to work substantial amounts of "unscheduled duty."
  • DHS TSA employees may be subject to 24-hour on call duty in the event of an emergency. This service may require irregular working hours, work at locations other than the official duty station, and may include duties other than those specified in the position description. You must be able to relocate to emergency sites with little advance notice and function under intense physical and mental stress.
  • You will be required to carry a firearm and maintain firearms proficiency as part of conducting law enforcement activities. Failure to maintain firearm proficiency may result in either assignment to another position, demotion, or separation by appropriate procedures. In addition, you must be proficient in the use of hand weapons and be knowledgeable in unarmed combat.
  • May be required to sign a mobility statement.
  • Position requires domestic and overseas travel as necessary.

Physical Demands: Selectee must maintain a high standard of physical condition enabling him/her to work long hours under adverse conditions with unscheduled travel.

Training Requirements: The selectee is expected to successfully complete all agency required training. This includes firearm proficiency requirements as defined by TSA.

LAUTENBERG AMENDMENT: This position requires the incumbent to carry a firearm. Any person who has been convicted of a misdemeanor crime or domestic violence cannot lawfully possess a firearm or ammunition (Title 18, U.S.C., Section 922(g)(9)). A "misdemeanor crime of domestic violence" is generally defined under the statute as any offense involving the use or attempted use of physical force, or the threatened use of a deadly weapon, committed by the victim's current or former domestic partner, parent, or guardian. The term "convicted", as defined in the statute, excludes any person whose conviction has been expunged, set-aside, or pardoned or any person whose civil rights have been restored unless the pardon, expungement or restoration of civil rights expressly prohibits the possession of firearms or ammunition. Applicants who have been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence within the meaning of the referenced statue are not qualified for this position. Applicants under consideration will be required to certify whether they have ever been convicted of such an offense. False or fraudulent information provided by applicants is criminally punishable by fine or imprisonment (Title 18, U.S.C., Section 1001).

Screeners, uniformed law enforcement officers, Federal Air Marshals (FAMs), and criminal investigators are required to serve a new probationary period, whether or not they have completed a prior Federal probationary period, except that FAMs who enter service for the TSA directly from a FAM position with the FAA and have begun or completed a probationary period as a FAM will be given credit for FAM probationary time served.

This position is under "primary" law enforcement retirement coverage provisions.

Law Enforcement Retirement: This position meets the eligibility criteria for law enforcement retirement under both the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Employees covered by either retirement system that reach age 50 or over with at least twenty years of service as a Federal law enforcement officer are qualified for law enforcement retirement. In addition, employees covered by FERS (all new hires to the Federal government) of any age with at least 25 years of service as a Federal law enforcement officer are qualified for law enforcement retirement. Finally, employees who reach age 57 with at least twenty years of service as a Federal law enforcement officer (LEO) are subject to mandatory retirement. Therefore, prior service as a Federal LEO, depending on number of years served in such capacity, your current age and retirement status may impact your eligibility to apply for this position.

This is a sensitive position and the tentative selectee must undergo and successfully complete a background investigation and polygraph as a condition of placement/retention in the position.

Additional information

**The reflected salary on this announcement does not include locality pay. Salary will be adjusted in accordance with the locality pay of the duty location selected.

Eligibility to apply for other Federal positions: TSA is an Excepted Service agency exempt from most of Title 5 United States Code, including regulations which apply to displaced Federal employees (CTAP/ICTAP) of other agencies, and employment with TSA does not confer "Competitive Status" that generally results from selection and service in Competitive Service agencies.  The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has established an Interchange Agreement, which allows most permanent TSA employees to apply and be considered for vacancies in Competitive Service agencies.  Information from OPM on this or other Interchange Agreements is available at: http://www.opm.gov .

To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy.  To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully pass a background investigation as a condition of placement into this position.  

DHS uses E-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify including your rights and responsibilities.

If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.

TSA employees who are absent for the purpose of performing military duty may apply for any vacancies announced in their absence.

It is the policy of the Government not to deny employment simply because an individual has been unemployed or has had financial difficulties that have arisen through no fault of the individual.  Information about an individual’s employment experience will be used only to determine the person’s qualifications and to assess his or her relative level of knowledge, skills, and abilities.  Although an individual’s personal conduct may be relevant in any employment decision, including conduct during periods of unemployment or evidence of dishonesty in handling financial matters, financial difficulty that has arisen through no fault of the individual will generally not itself be the basis of an unfavorable suitability or fitness determination. For more information, click here .

Permanent Change of Station (PCS) expenses are not authorized.

Relocation expenses are not authorized.

More than one position may be filled from this announcement.

If you are entering TSA employment on an appointment without time limitations, you must serve a basic trial period unless you have already met the requirement.

TSA policy requires verification of Selective Service registration for male applicants born after 12/31/59. For more information click here .

View common definitions of terms found in this 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 based on 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.  You are encouraged to ensure work experiences clearly show possession of the competencies required for this position.  We will compare your resume and supporting documentation to your responses on the assessment questionnaire. If, after reviewing your resume and any supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your category placement may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job.

Candidates will be rated and ranked using Category Grouping procedures.  Under Category Grouping, candidates will be rated and ranked into one of three categories:

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.


To preview questions please click here.

Transportation Security Administration

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is calling on those who want to help protect American interests and secure our Nation. DHS Components work collectively to prevent terrorism; secure borders and our transportation systems; protect the President and other dignitaries; enforce and administer immigration laws; safeguard cyberspace; and ensure resilience to disasters. We achieve these vital missions through a diverse workforce spanning hundreds of occupations. Make an impact; join DHS.

Agency contact information

HR Help Desk
Phone
877-872-7990
TDD
877-872-7992
Fax
1-877-872-7993
Email
Helpdesk@mailserver-hraccess.tsa.dhs.gov
Address
DHS/Transportation Security Administration
TSA ServeU
Contact the TSA ServeU Help Desk at
1-877-TSA-7990 TTY 1-877-TSA-7992
Arlington, Virginia 22310
United States

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