Clarification from the agency

This is NOT a remote position. The duty station is Washington, DC. The selectee will be required to report to the duty station at least 4 days per bi-weekly pay period. Applicants must be U.S. Citizens. Applicants will be considered under Delegated Examining and/or Merit Promotion procedures based upon eligibility.

(The duties described reflect the full performance level of this position)

The incumbent serves as a Senior Benefits Specialist and has primary responsibility for the development, coordination, and determination PSOB death, disability, and education claims. Assesses program effectiveness and the improvement of complex program and management processes and systems encompassing difficult and diverse functions or issues that affect critical aspects of PSOB death, disability and educational assistance claims.
Coordinates the development, administration, implementation and evaluation of PSOB programs consistent with the Public Safety Officers' Benefits Act, and performs technical review and oversight of PSOB program activities.
Performs technical oversight activities within assigned program area to ensure that claims are processed in accordance with DOJ/OJP program procedures and policy, and that program goals and objectives are achieved.

Provides expert advice and guidance on broad projects and programs with national impact.
Guidance requires extensive interpretation for many different and unrelated program processes and methods, such as interpretations of original legislative or judicial intent and advice on revisions to existing policies and programs to meet requirements.
Maintains state-of-the-art expertise in assigned program area as well as an awareness of major national-level issues relative to the cause and incidence of public safety officer line-of-duty deaths. Assists reviewers by providing and interpreting data relative to public safety officer deaths and disabilities and by recommending data sources outside of the PSOB Program.
Responds to public/private sector inquiries regarding claim eligibility, PSOB Program requirements, appeal procedures, etc. Addresses concerns regarding death, disability and educational assistance cases. Recommends alternative and appropriate documentation to approve or disapprove eligibility where basic required documentation cannot be located or obtained.

Provides expert technical advice and assistance on complex benefit program issues. Recommendations impact long-range planning and implementation of program objectives.
Participates in the development of PSOB policies and initiatives related to program coverage. Reviews DOJ/BJA/PSOB rules, regulations, and policies in response to specific inquiries. Recommends policies, procedures, and guidelines for claims management/processing activities. Develops evaluation criteria for new PSOB Program initiatives.

Conditions of employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Subject to background/suitability investigation/determination.
• Submit all required documents and Online Assessment Questionnaire.
• Federal payments are required to be made by Direct Deposit.
• Requires registration for the Selective Service. Visit www.sss.gov.
• Pre-employment drug testing required.
• 1-year probationary period may be required.

See Other Information for further requirements.

Qualifications

Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualification Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions and is available at OPM's website: https://www.opm.gov/qualifications/standards/indexes/num-ndx.asp

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

MINIMUM FEDERAL QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS:

Qualifying experience for the GS-14 level includes one year of specialized experience at least equivalent to the GS-13 level which is in or directly related to the line of work of the position to be filled and which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position.

Examples of specialized experience at the GS-13 level include: Experience performing analytical studies involving issues related to key agency death, disability or education benefit programs; experience developing plans for implementing short- and long-range death, disability or education benefit program goals; experience reviewing complex prior death, disability or education benefit claims to gather information and reconcile conflicting data; devising new or modified methods of analyzing complex findings in death, disability, or education benefits reviews.

TECHNICAL QUALIFICATIONS:

Applicants who meet the minimum qualifications as described above will be further evaluated based upon the following technical qualifications:

Ability to analyze death, disability or education organizational and operational benefits administration and claims processing and techniques for program evaluations.
Ability to provide advice and guidance on death, disability or education program management issues.
Knowledge of the mission, structure, programs, and responsibilities of a wide range of public safety agencies, including law enforcement, firefighters, and other responders.
Ability to communicate effectively other than in writing.
Ability to communicate in writing.

How you will be evaluated

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

You will be considered under all categories for which you are eligible.

For All U.S. Citizens: Your application will be evaluated and rated under DOJ's Category Rating and Selection Procedures. Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the online assessment questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. Your application will then be placed in one of three categories: Best Qualified, Highly Qualified, or Qualified. Names of all candidates in the best qualified category will be sent to the hiring official for employment consideration. Candidates within the best qualified category who are eligible for veterans preference will receive selection priority over non-veteran preference eligibles.

For Status/Merit Promotion/VEOA candidates: Your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed on the announcement. If you are basically qualified for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the online assessment questionnaire. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your resume and application materials, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this job. If you are found to be among the top candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.

For Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP)/Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) applicants: The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. The CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, or if your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP/CTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. Under merit promotion procedures, to be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and score 85 or better on established ranking criteria. Under category rating procedures, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria.