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Equipment Specialist (Direct Hire Authority)

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Explore a new career with the BLM - where our people are our greatest natural resource.

This position is located with the BLM Fire & Aviation Directorate, Division of Fire Operations and Safety located at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), in Boise, Idaho. Information about the surrounding area can be found at https://www.boisechamber.org.

We expect to fill 3 positions at this time; however, additional positions may be filled from this announcement if they become available.

Overview

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Reviewing applications
Open & closing dates
07/22/2025 to 08/14/2025
This job will close when we have received 50 applications which may be sooner than the closing date. Learn more
Salary
$72,111 to - $107,650 per year
Pay scale & grade
GW 9 - 11
Location
3 vacancies in the following location:
Boise, ID
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
11
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Financial disclosure
No
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
FADHA-25-12766049-HM
Control number
841359700

Duties

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  • Provides operational and administrative support to the National Fire Equipment Program’s (NFEP) Production Manager(s) in executing equipment production and delivery activities.
  • Serves as a national level technical expert in the design, development, contracting, procurement, delivery, and maintenance of mobile wildland fire equipment including engines, water tenders, heavy equipment and support vehicles.
  • Offers direct and indirect technical assistance to agency personnel to troubleshoot and resolve issues related to fire engines and other mobile fire equipment.
  • Maintains cost, labor, and materials records on assigned projects.
  • Assists in the preparation of technical documentation, including Equipment Bulletins and Equipment Alerts, to ensure timely and accurate communication of equipment issues, potential hazards, and recommended corrective actions.
  • Serves as a Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) or Project Inspector (PI) on mobile wildland fire equipment contracts, ensuring contract compliance, monitoring vendor performance and verifying fire readiness of equipment.
  • Serves as a subject matter expert and technical specialist for reviews and investigations to assess and improve the effectiveness and safety of organizational operations.
  • Supports various NFEP programs and activities, including the Improvement and Deficiency Reporting System, Rural Fire Readiness Program, Location Based Services Program and periodic updates to the Fire Equipment Maintenance Procedure and Record.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Be sure to read the How to Apply and Required Documents Sections.
  • You cannot hold an active real estate license: nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Lands.
  • Direct Deposit Required.
  • Appointment will be subject to a favorably adjudicated background/suitability investigation/determination.
  • Your resume must contain enough information to show that you meet the qualification requirements as defined in the announcement. In addition, your responses to the questions must adequately reflect in your resume.
  • You must pass a pre-employment physical.
  • You must possess a valid Commercial Driver's License (CDL) with Class A, B or C endorsement.
  • May require completion of a one year probationary period.

Qualifications

Selective Placement Factors (SPFs):
This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. Those who do not provide evidence they possess the following selective factor(s) will be rated not qualified: Commercial Drivers License - Required to possess and maintain a valid state Commercial Drivers License (CDL).

Specialized Experience:
In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the minimum qualification requirements - please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience.

For GW-09: You must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GW-07 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: Experience in the safe operation and maintenance of wildland fire equipment in a variety of wildland fire management areas; suppression and preparedness, mobilization and dispatch coordination, training, and logistics; providing troubleshooting and technical assistance, training and requested field support for interagency fire programs; consulting with management of vehicle replacement cycles, performing inspections on fire equipment, and maintenance and repair policies relating to various fire vehicle classes.
-OR-
Education: Completed 2 years of graduate education leading to a master`s degree in a directly related field OR Completed 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree
- OR-
Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

For GW-11: You must possess one (1) full year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GW-09 level that is equivalent in difficulty and complexity as indicated by the following examples: Experience in the safe operation and maintenance of wildland fire equipment in a variety of wildland fire management areas; suppression and preparedness, mobilization and dispatch coordination, training and logistics; monitoring vehicle replacement cycles, processes and procedures for ordering new or replacement fire equipment, equipment maintenance and repair policies and procedures; and contracting duties such as development of specifications, performing market research, evaluating contractor proposals, performing Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or Project Inspector (PI) duties.
-OR-
Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR 3 years of graduate education leading to such a degree in a directly related field
- OR-
Combination of Education and Experience: You may meet qualifications requirement for this position with an equivalent combination of specialized experience and appropriate graduate education. Graduate level education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position.

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.

You must meet all qualification requirements within the closing date of the announcement.

If selected at the lower grade, subsequent promotion to the next grade level will be processed without further competition dependent upon administrative approval and the continuing need for an actual assignment and performance of higher-level duties.

Department of Transportation (DOT) DRUG TESTING REQUIRED FOR THIS POSITION. This position requires possession of a Commercials Driver's License (CDL). As such, it is a Drug and Alcohol Testing Designated Position (TDP) under the Omnibus Transportation Employee Testing Act of 1991. If the person selected for the position does not currently occupy a CDL Drug and Alcohol Testing Designated Position, he/she will be required to submit to and receive a negative test result prior to appointment. A positive drug or alcohol test result may be grounds for denying final placement into this position. In addition, the Act mandates that the incumbent will be subject to random drug and alcohol testing and that he/she may also undergo reasonable suspicion, post-accident, return-to-duty, and follow-up testing.

Education

Proof of Education:
All applicants who are using education or a combination of education and experience to qualify must submit copies of official or unofficial transcripts which include grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, institution name, and student name.
If any required coursework is not easily recognizable on transcripts, or if you believe a portion of a particular course can be credited toward meeting an educational requirement, you must also provide a memorandum on letterhead from the institution's registrar, dean, or other appropriate official stating the percentage of the course that should be considered to meet the requirement and the equivalent number of units. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable; however, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to produce the original official transcripts.

Pass/Fail Courses:
If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

Graduate Education:
One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

Foreign Education:
If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/

Additional information

Verify Employment Eligibility (E-Verify): DOI uses E-Verify to confirm 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.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/lnteragency Career Transition Assistance Program(ICTAP): CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. Information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility is available from OPM's Career Transition Resources website at CTAP or ICTAP. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration or that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) This vacancy is within your CTAP/ICTAP eligibility; 2) You apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) You are found well qualified for this vacancy. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, or a copy of your separation personnel action form.

CTAP and ICTAP eligibles will be considered well-qualified if they meet minimum qualifications for this position.

Permanent Change in Station (PCS): Travel and relocation expenses will be paid consistent with the Federal Travel Regulation, Chapter 302, and Departmental policy. Selectee will be responsible for tax obligations related to payments for moving expenses - 2017 Tax Cuts and Job Act, Public Law 115-97.

Telework: The official worksite for the selectee is the duty station identified in this vacancy announcement. The selectee will typically report to this duty location on a regular and recurring weekly basis. The selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

Incentives:
Certain incentives may be authorized to eligible selectees. If eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promised nor guaranteed. For information visit: Recruitment Incentive or Relocation Incentive or Student Loan Repayment.

Firefighter Special Retirement (Secondary Coverage): This is a secondary/administrative fire position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412(d) (FERS). While secondary positions are not subject to the maximum entry age policy, the selectee must have prior service in a primary position and meet the transfer requirement for movement from a primary to secondary position to be eligible for special retirement coverage. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure this office has enough information to determine your retirement status to ensure you do not lose benefits (normally through submission of your SF-50). YOU MUST LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN A PRIMARY POSITION.

This is a Direct-Hire advertisement. Veterans preference is not applicable to this advertisement. Learn more about this authority at:https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/direct-hire-authority/#url=Fact-Sheet

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.

Once the job opportunity announcement closes, your resume and all supporting documents will be reviewed by HR to determine your eligibility for Federal employment and your qualifications for this position specifically.

Because this vacancy will be filled through OPM's Direct Hire Authority, Veterans Preference and traditional rating and ranking of applicants do not apply to positions filled under this announcement. Applications received as a result of job fairs, recruitment events, and emergency hiring mechanisms in support of this hiring initiative will also be accepted during the duration of the announcement. All qualified candidates will be referred for consideration; the hiring office may conduct interviews at their discretion.

Your responses to the online questionnaire will be used to evaluate your competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics) in the following area(s):

  • Technical Competence: Uses knowledge that is acquired through formal training or extensive on-the-job experience to perform one's job; works with, understands, and evaluates technical information related to the job; advises others on technical issues.
  • Information Management: Identifies a need for and knows where or how to gather information; organizes and maintains information or information management systems.
  • Decision Making: Makes sound, well-informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change.

The critical competencies listed above are required to successfully perform the job. Therefore, an additional assessment will be conducted to ensure they are met; a resume review panel of subject matter experts will review your application package and determine if you are best qualified or not. The best qualified candidates will be identified for referral to the hiring manager and may be contacted for an interview.

Please limit your resume to no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications.

Your resume will be used to validate your responses to the assessment tool(s).

You are welcome to submit an optional cover letter.

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