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Contracting Officer (Procurement Contracting Officer - UNICOR)

Department of Justice
Justice, Bureau of Prisons/Federal Prison System

Summary

Corrections professionals who foster a humane and secure environment and ensure public safety by preparing individuals for successful reentry into our communities.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
11/26/2025 to 12/18/2025
Salary
$124,531 to - $161,889 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Locations
2 vacancies in the following locations:
Greenville, IL
Butner Federal Correctional Complex, NC
Gregg Township, PA
Memphis, TN
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
25% or less - Travel may be required for training and/or work related issues.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—Reimbursement is authorized for travel and transportation for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
14
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
Yes
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
N-2026-0016
Control number
851143100

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

• BOP Employees nationwide. • DOJ Surplus and Displaced (CTAP) Employees in the local commuting area. • Division: Procurement Business Group, Federal Prison Industries, Central Office, Washington, DC • Duty Location: To Be Determined Upon Selection (at an active UNICOR factory facility - FCC Allenwood, FCC Butner, FCI Greenville, or FCI Memphis.) • NOTE: Pay rates are based on Rest of the U.S. but could change depending on the location of the position.

Duties

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Serves as the Procurement Contracting Officer for the Procurement Branch, Federal Prison Industries (FPI), also known as its trade name UNICOR, Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP)

Prescribes procedures for all procurement functions, including buildings and equipment acquisitions, administrative legal claims matters and miscellaneous regulatory procedures.

Responsible for forming appropriate types of contracts with the private sector for supply, service, construction, architect and utility contracts.

Responsible for forming interdisciplinary teams involving program management, financial management, information systems, sales and marketing, users/customers and engineering support for complicated source selection contracting.

Along with all other correctional institution employees, incumbent is charged with responsibility for maintaining security of the institution. The staff's correctional responsibilities precede all others required by this position and is performed on a regular and recurring basis.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is Required.
  • See Special Conditions of Employment Section.

Career Transition Programs (CTAP): These programs apply to Federal and/or DOJ employees who meet the definition of surplus or displaced from a position in the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must:

  • 1. Meet CTAP eligibility criteria;
  • 2. Be rated well-qualified for the position with a score of 85 or above based on scoring at least half of the total possible points for the vacancy KSAs or competencies; and
  • 3. Submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP eligibility.

NOTE: Applicants claiming CTAP eligibility must complete all assessment questions to be rated under the established ranking criteria.

Qualifications

To be considered for the position, you must meet the following:

Basic Requirements:

GS-14:

A. Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher-level contracting positions, including at least 4-years’ experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the GS-12 level of the position, and must have provided the qualifications to perform successfully the work of the position.

NOTE: Applicants are responsible for submitting appropriate documentation when requesting certification for GS-1102 positions at grades GS-13 and above, e.g. college transcripts, course syllabus, etc.

AND

B. 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester or 36 quarter hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

Acceptability of Higher Education: Education such as foreign education, home study and correspondence courses, academic credit for work experience, military education, continuing education units, life experience, etc., is acceptable to the extent that it is determined to be equivalent to conventional higher education programs of U.S. institutions. Such education must be accepted for college-level credit by an accredited U.S. college or university.

Exceptions: Employees currently occupying a GS-1102 position at certain grades (i.e., GS-13 or higher) since January 1, 2000, are considered to have met the basic requirements for other GS 1102 positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver under Paragraph D.

D. Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, the Senior Procurement Executive of the selecting agency (agency is defined as Department of Justice), at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the Senior Procurement Executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience.

Bureau of Prisons employees currently occupying a Contract Specialist position on an approved waiver submit a copy of the waiver prior to the closing date of this announcement. Contract Specialists who do not possess a four-year degree and the required 24 semester hours, may apply and be considered for a waiver of the educational requirements. The waiver is discretionary tool available to the Procurement Executive as such does not constitute automatic approval.

NOTE: Current federal employees not employed by the Bureau of Prisons and former Bureau of Prisons’ Employees MUST submit documentation (i.e., SF-50(s) covering the period from January 1, 2000) for verification of the above referenced exception criteria to receive consideration. Failure to provide these documents will result in non-consideration for this vacancy.

In addition to the basic requirements, you must have one of the following:

Education:

GS-14: There is no substitution of education for specialized experience for this grade level.

Experience:

GS-14: In addition to the basic requirements, you must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade level. To be creditable, this experience must have equipped the applicant with the particular qualifications to perform successfully the duties of the position and must typically be in or related to the position to be filled.

Some examples of this qualifying experience are:

  • Experience applying regulations and guidelines in formulating, awarding, administering and closing-out contracts; experience directing, planning, developing, implementing, and administering all procurement actions required to procure and support major multi-million dollar programs.
  • Experience in reviewing, interpreting, and implementing statutes and regulations of other government agencies and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) relating to all phases of procurement, contracting and related financial management .
  • Experience in business development though innovative contracting procedures that include soliciting and receiving proposals from private sector firms for the introduction of new products, as well as products and services to be supplied to other agencies.
  • Experience in supervisory responsibility for the formation, administration, termination, and the close out of contracts for services, design and construction, equipment, Automated Data Processing (ADP), non- personal, R&D, supply contracts, contract manufacturing agreements and commission agreements.

If applicable, credit will be given for paid and unpaid experience. To receive proper credit, you must show the actual time (such as the number of hours worked per week) spent in activities.

**Your eligibility for consideration will be based on your responses to the questions in the application.**

Education

See Qualifications Section for education requirements, if applicable.

ONLY if education is a requirement/substitution for specialized experience, applicant MUST upload legible transcripts as verification of educational requirement. Transcripts MUST be uploaded and electronically linked from USAJOBS at the time you apply and MUST include identifying information to include School Name, Student Name, Degree and Date Awarded (if applicable). All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, Click Here.

Foreign Education: For information regarding foreign education requirements, please see Foreign Diploma and Credit Recognition at the U.S. Department of Education website: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications.

If you are selected for this position and qualified based on education (i.e. basic education requirement and/or substitution of education), you will be required to provide an OFFICIAL transcript prior to your first day on duty.

Additional information

In accordance with 5 U.S.C. 3307, a maximum entry age of 36 has been established for original appointment to a position in a Bureau of Prisons institution.

The representative rate for this position is $136,984 per annum ($65.64 per hour).

Special Conditions of Employment Section:

Initial appointment to a supervisory/managerial position requires a one-year probationary period.

The incumbent is subject to geographic relocation to meet the needs of the agency.

Appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of a urinalysis, physical, and background investigation. All applicants are subject to National Crime Information Center (NCIC) and credit checks.

All applicants not currently working in an institution will be required to complete a qualification inquiry regarding convictions of misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence in order to be authorized to carry a firearm.

The Core Value Assessment (CVA) is an in-person assessment that must be facilitated at a Bureau of Prisons Human Resource Servicing office. On the day of the scheduled interview, a CVA will be administered. The applicant assessment must be completed within a 70 minute time period and a passing score of 68 must be obtained. Further employment consideration will not be extended if the applicant fails to complete the examination or fails to achieve a passing score. Note: The Core Value Assessment will not be administered to current BOP employees.

Successful completion of the "Introduction to Correctional Techniques," three-week training course at Glynco, Georgia is required.

The addresses listed on the USAJOBS account/resume must be the primary residence at the time of application. You may be required to provide proof of residence.

Additional selections may be made if vacancies occur within the life of the certificate.

Although competitive and non-competitive applications are being accepted, the selecting official may elect to have only one group reviewed.

Duty Location: To Be Determined Upon Selection (Active UNICOR factory facility - FCC Allenwood, FCC Butner, FCI Greenville, or FCI Memphis.)

SALARY RANGE:  

Salary reflected on this vacancy announcement is for the “Rest of the U.S.”; however, the selectee’s salary may be higher based on the worksite/duty station of the appointee. See Salary Tables for your location. 

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Exceptions may apply. See 5 CFR part 11.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

How you will be evaluated

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

If your composite score exceeds the average score for this job, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your online assessment responses and utilized to determine whether you meet the job qualifications listed in this announcement.  If your selections are not supported by your 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.

There are several parts of the application process that affect the overall evaluation of your application:

  • Your resume, which is part of your USAJOBS profile;
  • Your responses to the eligibility questions;
  • Your responses to the online assessment;
  • Your supporting documentation, if required.

Time-in-Grade: Federal employees must meet time-in-grade requirements for consideration. You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

What Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities are Required for this Position?

The following Competencies/Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA's) are required:

  • Ability to interpret and apply procurement regulations.
  • Ability to communicate in writing.
  • Ability to communicate orally.
  • Ability to make decisions regarding contracts.
  • Knowledge in developing and administering contract policies and procedures.
  • Ability to supervise and develop the potential of subordinates.

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