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Ethics Specialist

Department of the Interior
Office of the Solicitor
This job announcement has closed

Summary

What General Information Do I Need To Know About This Position?

Salary: GS-11 $64,412 (Step 01) to $83,734 (Step 10); GS-12 $77,204 (Step 01) to $100,369 (Step 10); GS-13 $91,805 (Step 01) to $119,350 (Step 10); NOTE: First time hires to the Federal Government are typically hired at the Step 01.

The Departmental Ethics Office is seeking a highly motivated, self-starter to join their dynamic team.

Open to All U.S. Citizens: Vacancy # SOL-21-10958807-DE-KHB

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open date: 11/27/2020
Closed date: 12/11/2020
Location
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$64,412 - $119,350 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11 - 13
Promotion potential
13
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-Time
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Moderate Risk (MR)
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Announcement number
SOL-21-10958808-ST-KHB
Control number
585237300

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Open to current or former Federal employees w/perm comp status; OR those eligible under a special or noncomp appointing authority (e.g.,VRA, disabled, Pathways Interns & Recent Grads who are elig for noncomp conversion, etc.); OR current or former employees who are serving, or previously served, on temp or term appt in a land mgmt agency; OR veterans with preference or have been separated from the armed forces under honorable conditions after approx 3yrs or more of continuous active service.

Duties

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As an Assistant Ethics Counselor within the Department of the Interior, Office of the Solicitor, Departmental Ethics Office located in Albuquerque, NM some of your specific duties will include:

  • Assists in the provision of written and verbal advice to all levels of bureau employees on issues involving traditional ethics subjects, including but not limited to: outside employment; employee gift acceptance; fundraising; bureau gift authority, obtaining approval for employees to serve, in their official or personal capacity, as officers/board members for outside organizations; lobbying; political activities; use of Government affiliation, official position and title; nepotism; use of government property; gambling; and post-Government employment.
  • Assists with reviews of outside employment and activity requests, requests for travel payments from non-Federal sources (1353 gift travel), and other ethics forms/documents.
  • Assists with implementing ethics policies, procedures, forms, Manual chapters, and guidance materials.
  • Assists with managing the electronic filing systems for financial disclosure. Communicates with financial disclosure filers regarding financial disclosure reports to help ensure filer's understand reporting requirements and accurately report financial data. Reviews and recommends approval of public and confidential financial disclosure reports.
  • Assist with administering ethics training, in accordance with OGE and Departmental regulatory requirements, and helps ensure training meets the unique needs of managers, scientists, technical personnel, and other employees.
  • Assists with maintaining accurate tracking data on employees required to take training, in addition to data required to be reported to DEO leadership and the OGE.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

Key Requirements:

  1. Applicants must be U.S. Citizens.
  2. Suitable for Federal employment, as determined by background investigation.
  3. Selectee may be subject to serving a one-year probationary period.
  4. More requirements are listed under Qualifications and Other Information.
Requirements:
  • A background investigation will be required for this position. Continued employment will be subject to the applicant's successful completion of a background security investigation and favorable adjudication. Failure to successfully meet these requirements will be grounds for termination.
  • Throughout the recruitment and hiring process we will be communicating with you via email; therefore, it is imperative that the email address you provide when applying for this vacancy remains active. Should your email address change, please notify the point of contact identified in the vacancy announcement as soon as possible so that we can update our system.
  • Because this position requires travel for official business, the selectee will be required to apply for a charge card within 30 calendar days of appointment. Individuals who have delinquent account balances from a previous Government charge card will be required to satisfy their existing obligation before a new card can be issued.

Qualifications

GS-11:

In order to qualify at the GS-11 level, you must meet one of the following:

--Possess 1-year of specialized experience in or directly related to this position that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position. To be creditable, the required specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal service. Examples of GS-09 level work may include: assisting in the preparation of written and verbal advice to managers and employees on issues such as outside employment, gift acceptance, fundraising, lobbying, political activities, nepotism, etc.; assisting in managing an electronic financial disclosure system and the public financial disclosure reporting process; assisting in preparing communication materials for filers regarding their financial disclosure reports; reviewing public and confidential financial disclosure reports and preparing them for approval; researching the laws, regulations and policies that govern the financial interests; and assisting in preparing and developing training ethics related training materials.

--Possess 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree.

--Possess a combination of graduate level education beyond the first 2 years of progressive graduate study and appropriate experience that together meets qualification requirements for this position.

GS-12:

In order to qualify at the GS-12 level, you must meet the following:

--Possess 1-year of specialized experience in or directly related to this position that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position. To be creditable, the required specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-11 level in the Federal service. Examples of GS-11 level work may include: advising employees on ethics statutes and policies; assisting in managing an electronic financial disclosure system and the public financial disclosure reporting process; communicating with filers; reviewing and recommending approval of public and confidential financial disclosure reports; assisting in developing informational materials to explain the laws, regulations and policies that govern the financial interests of all Bureau employees; and assisting with the ethics training programs, participating in developing on-line and in-person training modules and conducting ethics training in a variety of forums.

GS-13:

In order to qualify at the GS-13 level, you must meet the following:

--Possess 1-year of specialized experience in or directly related to this position that equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of this position. To be creditable, the required specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-12 level in the Federal service. Examples of GS-12 level work may include: providing advice and recommendations to key agency officials on policies and procedures that concern conflict of interest status and regulations, standards of conduct, ethics program policies, and other ethics related matters; administering and managing an organizational ethics program, providing counsel to officials regarding statutory prohibitions under government-wide standards of conduct; reviewing and evaluating financial interest reports and overseeing the resolution of matters dealing with conflicts of interest; managing an electronic financial disclosure system and the public financial disclosure reporting process; communicating with filers; assisting other ethics officials with questions that arise during their review of employee financial disclosure reports; assisting in the development of informational materials to explain the laws, regulations and policies that govern the financial interests of all Bureau employees.

Candidates should have excellent oral communication, writing, research and analysis skills, and the ability to work effectively with other people, and exercise sound judgment.

You must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements for the position by the closing date of the announcement.

Education

  • 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.
  • Education completed in colleges or universities outside the United States may be used to meet the above requirements. You must provide acceptable documentation that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. For more information on how foreign education is evaluated, visit: https://www.usgs.gov/about/organization/science-support/human-capital/how-foreign-education-evaluated-federal-jobs .

Additional information

Other Information:

  • Identification of promotion potential in this announcement does not constitute a commitment or an obligation on the part of management to promote the employee selected at some future date. Promotion will depend upon administrative approval and the continuing need for and performance of higher-level duties.
  • Under Executive Order 11935, only United States citizens and nationals (residents of American Samoa and Swains Island) may compete for civil service jobs. Agencies are permitted to hire non-citizens only in very limited circumstances where there are no qualified citizens available for the position.
  • The application contains information subject to the Privacy Act (P.L. 93-579, 5 USC 552a). The information is used to determine qualifications for employment, and is authorized under Title 5, USC, Section 3302 and 3361.
  • DOI uses E-Verify to confirm the employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/E-Verify.
  • THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.
Agency Benefits:

How you will be evaluated

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

--Vacancy Related Questions: As part of the online application process, you will need to respond to a series of questions designed to assess your possession of the following knowledge skills, abilities and/or competencies: Management Advisory; Program/Project Management; Regs/Procedural Guidance; Written Communication; Compile/Analyze data; and Interpersonal Communication.

--Basis of Rating: You will be rated on the extent and quality of your experience, education, and training relevant to the duties of the position. If you are eligible, you will receive a numerical rating based on your on-line responses to the application questions. These responses must be substantiated by your resume. If you do not respond to the application questions you may be rated ineligible.

Due weight will be given to performance appraisals and awards during the interview/selection process conducted by the hiring manager. If referred, all relevant documents including performance appraisals and awards submitted with your application package will be forwarded to the hiring official for review.

--NOTE: If it is determined that you have rated yourself higher than is supported in your description of experience and/or education as described in your resume/application, or that your resume or application is incomplete, you may be rated ineligible, not qualified, or your score may be lowered.

To preview the announcement questionnaire, click here: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/10958808

Office of the Solicitor

Agency contact information

Office of the Solicitor Mailbox
Phone
703-648-7463
Fax
703-648-4113
Email
sol@usgs.gov
Address
ASIA BRANCH
12201 Sunrise Valley Drive
Mail Stop 600
Reston, VA 20192
US

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Learn more about what it's like to work at Office of the Solicitor, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

http://www.doi.gov/solicitor/about.html

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