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Supervisory Paralegal Specialist (FOIA/PA)

Department of Homeland Security
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)/Privacy Act (PA) Office

Summary

This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)/Privacy Act (PA) Office, Washington, District of Columbia.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
03/24/2026 to 03/30/2026
Salary
$143,913 to - $187,093 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 14
Location
2 vacancies in the following location:
Washington, DC
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—situational only, as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
14 - The full performance level of this position is GS-14.
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Secret
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Critical-Sensitive (CS)/High Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
MNA-12857327-IMP-JS
Control number
862112900

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Current permanent employees of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the competitive service who reside or work within the local commuting area on a permanent basis; and CTAP Eligibles.

Duties

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As a Supervisory Paralegal Specialist (FOIA/PA), you will perform the following duties:

  • Act as the Deputy FOIA Officer or the FOIA Officer in their absence.
  • Maintain awareness of FOIA/PA issues affecting ICE.
  • Designate authority to grant or deny requests submitted pursuant to the FOIA/PA program.
  • Participate with agency attorneys in any litigation which challenges the initial or appeal determination with respect to FOIA/PA requests.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.
  • You must successfully pass a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
  • Selective Service: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see http://www.sss.gov/).
  • One-year probationary period may be required.
  • Must meet Time-In-Grade requirements.
  • A pre-employment drug test will be required.
  • 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.
  • DHS uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States.
  • All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • Incentives may be authorized; however, this is contingent upon funds availability.

Qualifications

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational assessment questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

You must demonstrate you meet the Specialized Experience Qualification requirements as noted below.

Specialized Experience, GS-14:
You must have at least one year of specialized experience equivalent in difficulty and responsibility to the GS-13 level in the Federal service that included at least 3 of the 4 duties such as:

  • Assisting with formalizing program objectives to meet the goals and requirements of the FOIA/PA program.
  • Reviewing FOIA/PA record requests to determine whether they should be released in full, in part, or withheld.
  • Developing (or revising) methods and approaches in planning, integrating or evaluating the overall FOIA/PA program.
  • Formulating drafts for consideration by the supervisor regarding the development of policies, procedures, and rules.

Time-in-Grade Requirements: Under competitive merit promotion procedures, any individual who is currently holding, or who has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under a non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet "time-in-grade" requirements (have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade of the grade for which you are applying). Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to current employees applying for a Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. NOTE: All current or former Federal employees must provide a copy of their SF-50 (you may need to submit more than one), "Notice of Personnel Action" that indicates proof of status and time-in-grade eligibility. The SF-50 must include your position, title, series, grade, step, tenure (1 or 2), and type of service (Competitive or Excepted).

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement. Qualification claims will be subject to verification.

NOTE: 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

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Additional information

This position is at the full performance level.

This is a supervisory position. Under provisions of the Civil Service Reform Act, first time supervisors and/or managers will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period. You may also be required to complete an appropriate supervisory training course within one year of assignment to this position.

Background Investigation: To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet these standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully obtain and maintain a background investigation for SECRET as a condition of placement into this position. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.

Local Commuting Restriction: This announcement is subject to Local Commuting Restrictions as defined in 5 CFR §330.101. For this announcement, the Local Commuting area is 50 miles from your home of record or duty station location. The home of record listed on your application or the duty station location listed on your most recent SF-50 will be used to determine if you reside or work within the Local Commuting area.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. (https://appsupport.usastaffing.gov/hc/en-us/sections/28980686389652-Reasonable-Accommodation-Information)

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.

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position.

You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

  • Accountability
  • Customer Service
  • Decisiveness
  • Flexibility
  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Problem Solving
  • Resilience

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

Consideration will be given to performance appraisals and incentive awards as an indicator of quality of prior experience; no points will be assigned.

For Competitive Merit Promotion Applicants: The highest rated candidates will be referred to the hiring agency.

For Noncompetitive Appointment Eligibles: All qualified candidates will be referred to the hiring agency.

Current or Former Political Appointees: 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.

Career Transition Assistance Program: This program applies to Federal service employees whose positions have been deemed surplus or no longer needed, or employees who have been involuntarily separated from a Federal service position within the competitive service. To receive selection priority for this position, you must: 1) meet eligibility criteria for CTAP or ICTAP; 2) be rated well-qualified for the position; and 3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your CTAP or ICTAP eligibility. Well-Qualified includes those applicants whose knowledge, skills, and abilities clearly exceed the minimum qualification requirements for the position. For information on eligibility criteria and required documentation, go to: http://www.opm.gov/rif/employee_guides/career_transition.asp

To preview the assessment questionnaire, click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12857327

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