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Copyright is a form of legal protection provided by the laws of the United States (Title 17, U. S. Code) to authors of literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, and other works. The Office of Registration Policy and Practice (RPP) examines copyright applications and deposits; issues certificates of registration; and catalogs copyright submissions. The Senior Copyright Specialist (Registration) (SME) works in the Performing Arts Division of the Office of Registration Policy and Practice.
Learn more about this agency08/03/2021 to 08/30/2021
$103,690 - $134,798 per year
GS 13
1 vacancy in the following location:
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Not required
No
Permanent - Position
Full-time - Flexitime.
Excepted
13
No
No
VAR001622
609631400
CONSIDERATION UNDER THIS VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT IS LIMITED TO THE PERMANENT AND INDEFINITE STAFF OF THE OFFICE OF REGISTRATION POLICY AND PRACTICE, US COPYRIGHT OFFICE DUE TO BUDGETARY CONSTRAINTS. TEMPORARY NOT-TO-EXCEED (NTE) AND INDEFINITE NOT-TO-EXCEED (NTE) STATUS CANDIDATES ARE INELIGIBLE. (EMPLOYEES MUST MAINTAIN ELIGIBILITY AT THE TIME OF SELECTION.).
The United States Copyright Office, located within the Library of Congress and under the direction of the Register of Copyrights, administers the Copyright Law, advises Congress and government agencies on legal and policy matters; provides international representation on copyright issues; administers the national copyright registration system; provides collections materials to the Library through voluntary registration and mandatory deposit programs; records documents relating to copyright chain of title; administers statutory license provisions of the law, including collecting and distributing royalties; maintains the world’s largest database of copyright public records; and, provides information and reference services to the public.
RPP provides leadership to the Copyright Office in the development and adoption of new solutions to improve quality, productivity, and efficiency in the Registration Program that will provide benefits to creators and the general public.
The position description number for these positions is 390217.
The salary range indicated reflects the locality pay adjustments for the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan area.
The incumbent of this position will work a flextime work schedule. This position is not intended for permanently remote work
This position is not intended for permanently remote work. Temporary allowances of full-time or majority telework have been made for the ongoing public health concerns. As regular operations resume, the incumbent will be required to live in the DC metropolitan area with the ability to commute on-site to conduct work duties. The incumbent will receive at least two weeks' notice to report on-site.
This position is a non-supervisory, bargaining unit position.
Relocation expenses will not be authorized for the person(s) selected under this vacancy announcement.
Assists the Chief and supervisors by personally handling the most difficult claims within the Division. These may pose unique challenges by virtue of the novel issues involved, emerging issues hitherto unseen, and/or the impact of new technologies on issues covered by the 1909 and the 1976 Copyright Acts.
Handles, in a timely fashion, Special Handling claims; Preregistration claims; processes ingested, GATT and, renewal claims. Identifies novel and complex matters which have the potential to reoccur and proposes practices to address the issues.
Creates and provides group and person-to-person written and classroom training, on a continual basis, to maintain high levels of proficiency among experienced as well as new examiners, and others targeted by the training. Attends Program, Division, and Team meetings to ensure consistency of information provided and application of practices, provides answers and clarifications, identify potential and/or emerging problems and issues, and brain-storm potential problem or issue resolutions. Creates solutions responsive to supervisory and managerial-identified issues. Works with supervisors to identify substantive and technical training needs. Facilitates communications between the Division and the Program itself. Identifies workflow inefficiencies and recommends detailed solutions for improvement.
Updates and/or writes new material for Compendium Updates, the Examiner Handbook, Regulatory Updates, and/or circular updates. Participates in Registration Modernization activities. Communicates with remitters via, as appropriate, telephone, letter, email, and other methods so as to request information, convey policies and practices, obtain acquiescence and compliance, and explain the law. Writes complex correspondence to claim remitters regarding the most difficult claims where such matters as ambiguity within the claim, emerging novel issues or other unprecedented matters. Communication created is clear, concise, authoritative, and grammatically correct.
Performs other duties as assigned.
No additional requirements to those listed above.
Applicants must have had progressively responsible experience and training sufficient in scope and quality to furnish them with an acceptable level of the following knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform the duties of the position without more than normal supervision.
Ability to identify, analyze and resolve novel and difficult/complex copyright claim issues.**
Ability to prepare and present information and training in formal and informal settings.**
Knowledge of copyright law, regulations, policies, procedures, and practices.**
Ability to Utilize Computer Technology/Software Applications.
Ability to interact collaboratively with others and serve as a liaison for an organization.
Ability to communicate in writing.
Ability to Communicate Effectively other than in Writing.
There are no educational requirements for this position.
Although it is the Library's policy to afford the maximum pay benefit to employees when setting rates of pay, a new appointee who has had no previous Federal service will generally be paid the minimum step of the grade.
The Library of Congress is an equal opportunity employer. Women, minorities, and persons with disabilities who meet eligibility requirements are strongly encouraged to apply.
Applicants must submit a complete application package that is received by the closing date of this announcement.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please email ADA@loc.gov. The decision on granting reasonable accommodation will be determined on a case-by-case basis.
Applicants with disabilities may be considered under special hiring procedures and must submit an appropriate certificate of eligibility when applying for this position. The proof or disability/certification may be issued by the State Vocational Rehabilitation Office, Disability Services or Career Services office of the applicant’s college or university, or the Department of Veterans Affairs. The letter must verify that the applicant has a severe disability and must be dated within three years of the date of the application. Certification from health care providers are not accepted. For more information contact the Library's Office of EEO/Diversity Programs at 202-707-6024 or email spp@loc.gov. FAILURE TO SUBMIT YOUR CERTIFICATION WILL CAUSE YOUR APPLICATION TO NOT BE CONSIDERED UNDER THE SELECTIVE PLACEMENT PROGRAM.
The Library of Congress is the national library of the United States and is part of the Legislative Branch of the Federal government. As such, all positions are in the excepted service.
Appointment/retention is subject to a favorable evaluation of an appropriate personnel security/suitability investigation.
The Library reserves the right to fill a lesser or greater number of vacancies indicated during the life of this vacancy announcement.
Initial appointments, permanent or indefinite, to the Library of Congress require completion of a one-year probationary period.
The Library of Congress may offer repayment for all or part of federally insured student loans. However, not all service units within the Library of Congress participates in the repayment of federally insured student loans. Therefore, determination to repay a federally insured student loan is subject to approval by the appropriate service unit.
A “Not to Exceed“ (NTE) status is used to identify an appointment with a specific ending date. However, the Library has the right to separate a NTE employee at any time due to either performance issues or budget constraints.
Are you a veteran? Please indicate the type of veterans' preference you are claiming in your application materials and/or applicant profile and provide the appropriate supporting documentation to validate your claim. Those applying for 5-point preference must submit Member Copy 4 of your DD 214. Those applying for 10-point preference must fill out an SF-15 (click here for the form) and provide the required documentation listed on the back of the form. If required supporting documentation is not attached, Veterans' Preference will not be considered in the application process.
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
The Library of Congress evaluates applicants through an applicant questionnaire and a structured interview. Applicants may also be screened for some jobs through licensing, certification, and/or education requirements, a narrative/application review, and/or a preliminary telephone interview. The knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) that are marked with a double asterisk (**) in the vacancy announcement and the applicant questionnaire are considered the most critical for a position. To be considered for final selection, applicants must demonstrate fully acceptable experience in these designated KSAs in the narrative/application review, preliminary telephone and/or full structured interview. The various assessment tools listed above are designed to verify or explore applicants' experience, knowledge, and training directly related to the job in order to identify the best qualified applicants for selection.
For more information regarding eligibility requirements, please see the Library of Congress Merit Selection Plan, Section X.D, at: http://www.loc.gov/hr/employment/msp010909.pdf.
Current or former federal employees must submit their most recent Notification of Personnel Action (SF-50 or equivalent).
Applicants with disabilities may be considered under special hiring procedures and must submit an appropriate certificate of eligibility when applying for this position. The proof or disability/certification may be issued by the State Vocational Rehabilitation Office, Disability Services or Career Services office of the applicant’s college or university, or the Department of Veterans Affairs. The letter must verify that the applicant has a severe disability and must be dated within three years of the date of the application. The program does not accept certification from health care providers. For more information contact the Library's Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity Programs at 202-707-6024 or email spp@loc.gov. FAILURE TO SUBMIT YOUR CERTIFICATION WILL CAUSE YOUR APPLICATION TO NOT BE CONSIDERED UNDER THE SELECTIVE PLACEMENT PROGRAM.
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
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.
Please carefully follow all instructions under the How to Apply tab to ensure you are considered for the position.
You are required to apply online for this announcement. We are unable to accept mailed or emailed documents. You must complete the entire application process, including submission of all documents BEFORE this announcement closes. To do so, complete the following steps.
Step 1: If you do not already have one, create a resume on USAJOBS. Although you must enter your Social Security Number for USAJOBS, this information will not be provided to the Library of Congress.
Step 2: Review the Job Announcement. We recommend you go to the end of the Qualification and Evaluation section of the job announcement to preview the online questions that you will answer in Step 4. You may wish to customize your USAJOBS resume to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions.
Step 3: Click on the "APPLY ONLINE" button to the right of this announcement. Follow USAJOBS' instructions to access your account and submit your resume. You will be redirected to the Hiring Management website to complete the application process. If this is your first time in Hiring Management, you will be asked to answer questions related to your eligibility for Federal employment. You will be able to update this information and save it to our account for future announcements.
Step 4: Once you have completed the eligibility questions, you will be taken directly to the vacancy application questions. Answer all questions honestly and thoroughly.
Step 5: Hiring Management offers three options that will electronically attach your documentation to your online application once you finish answering the questions in the job announcement.
(1) You may select a document that you have already uploaded to USAJOBS for a previous announcement.
(2) You may electronically upload a document directly from your computer to your application. Be certain to review your complete application for confirmation of the document uploaded and click on "Finished" to be returned to USAJOBS.
IMPORTANT NOTE: If you have multiple documents of the same kind, e.g. 2 undergraduate transcripts from different schools or 2 SF-50s, etc., be sure that they are all in the same file on your computer or in your USAJOBS profile before uploading them. If you try uploading them individually, only the last one sent will be visible in our system. If you have any questions about this information, please contact the person on this announcement BEFORE the closing date.
Step 6: Click on "Finish" after you have completed your application. Once you have submitted your application, you can check your status online through your Hiring Management or MY USAJOBS account. Your complete online application and any required supplemental documentation (e.g., SF-50, etc.) must be received by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST) on the closing date of the announcement. It is your responsibility to ensure that all documents are received on time and that the materials are readable. Failure to do so will result in your application being excluded from consideration for this announcement.
If you are experiencing any technical difficulty with the online process, you MUST CONTACT THE POINT OF CONTACT FOR THIS ANNOUNCEMENT BEFORE THE CLOSING DATE. For all technical issues please contact jobhelp@loc.gov , no later than 4:30pm EST of the Closing Date. REQUESTS FOR EXTENSIONS WILL NOT BE GRANTED.
Please review our evaluation process under Evaluation. You may check the status of your application for this position at any time by logging onto the USAJOBS "My USAJOBS" tab and clicking on "My Applications." You will receive final notification via e-mail when the vacancy has been filled.
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
This job originated on www.usajobs.gov. For the full announcement and to apply, visit www.usajobs.gov/job/609631400. Only resumes submitted according to the instructions on the job announcement listed at www.usajobs.gov will be considered.
Learn more about
The Library of Congress serves the Congress in fulfilling its duties and preserves and promotes knowledge and creativity for the benefit of the American people. It is the nation's oldest federal cultural institution and the world's largest library, with more than 158 million items in its physical collections (including books, manuscripts, prints, photos, film, video, and sound recordings) and over 37 million items online. Located primarily on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., the Library is the home of the U.S. Copyright Office, the Congressional Research Service (CRS), the Law Library of Congress, and the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped.
