Director, U.S. House Congressional Engagement Team

Full Job Description

This announcement is a recruitment for a Director of U.S. House Congressional Engagement Team, Legislative Affairs Service in the Office of Congressional and Legislative Affairs.

The office is responsible for maintaining critically important liaison activities between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the United States Congress.

The position requires a working knowledge of various programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, its goals, and mission.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 01/26/2026.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

For a GS-15 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-14. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service.

An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials.

If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement.

In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade.

Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

See the Required Document section below for more information regarding the SF-50s needed to verify time-in-grade.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-14 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization.

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Supervisory experience within a congressional entity in the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of government; experience that has equipped you with expert knowledge in the area of legislation and of the interests and concerns of Members of Congress and congressional committees and how these issues affect a Department's programs and policies; experience working with committee staff on a committee of jurisdiction (such as House or Senate Veterans Affairs, House or Senate Armed Services Committee); handling complex and sensitive congressional issues and providing legislative assistance to congressional staff offices and/or committees of jurisdiction; recommending strategies for communicating legislation to congress and monitoring movement of legislation key to a Department; demonstrated ability to operate as a trusted senior advisor, exercising sound judgment and discretion on sensitive or high-impact issues; advising senior leaders and key stakeholders on emerging trends and public perception of programs and policies.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communication Leadership Political Savvy Stakeholder Management 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; religions; 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week.

Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities.

Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required. Travel may be required.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced Federal/VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies.

To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy.

To be found well qualified, applicants must meet the following qualifications: Experience serving in a supervisory capacity within a congressional entity.

Extensive experience working on VA legislation directly with VA committees of jurisdiction and overall, both chambers of U.S. Congress.

Experience serving as a top advisor to an organization's executives on legislative and congressional matters and performing comprehensive analysis and policy recommendations of complex VA legislative initiatives.

Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Local Commuting Area: The local commuting area for this position is defined as a radius of 50 miles from Washington, DC.

This includes all locations that fall within a 50 mile driving distance from 810 Vermont Ave NW, Washington, DC 20420. Major Duties:

Directs the development, documentation, establishment and implementation of policies, guidelines and procedures followed in maintaining liaison activities between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the U.S.

House of Representatives.

Ensures proactive engagement with Members of Congress and their staffs to include but limited to providing clear and concise analyses and interpretations of new and revised programs administered by the VA.

Ensures that VA recommendations to Members of Congress and their staff take into account matters which are of critical importance because of their great sensitivity and impact on individuals, families, and communities.

Responsible for oversight of the VA constituent casework team.

Manages and cultivates relationships with VA Committees of Jurisdiction and personal offices whose actions have a direct bearing on Department programs and policies.

In such relationship building, the degree of initiative, tact, and effectiveness displayed by the incumbent and his/her staff directly reflects the general character and administrative efficiently of the Department itself.

Demonstrated leadership experience in a supervisory role.

Coordinates and manages substantive and complex administrative, management, and analytical functions in the Department and assists with both short and long range management activities for the House Engagement Team.

This includes personnel management, meeting and project coordination, scheduling, and other administrative support. Establishes performance standards and evaluates performance of subordinates.

Interviews, selects, or participates in the selection of employees for the office. Recommends personnel actions, i.e.

reassignment, promotion, training, performance-based awards, development, and training. Approves annual and sick leave requests.

Receives complaints and grievances, resolving most of those that can be informally resolved.

Effects minor, disciplinary measures such as warnings and reprimands; and, recommends action in more serious cases. Ensures that work conditions adhere to OSHA standards.

Takes necessary steps to eliminate actual and potential waste, fraud, and abuse of Government resources. Develops and implements internal management controls within functional areas of responsibility.

Responsible for planning, coordinating, tracking, reporting and communicating VA initiatives to the various stakeholders that are both external and internal to VA.

The incumbent must therefore have a clear working expert knowledge of the mission and objectives along with excellent communication/negotiation skills.

Participates with other key officials in the Office in planning, developing, and implementing strategies to deal with Members of Congress on major departmental initiatives.

This involves assessing past approaches and actions, coordinating with key officials with VA, attending meetings and planning session, and/or preparing critical documents/issue papers associated with this process.

Meets with Members of Congress and their staff, Committee Staffs and others to gain cooperation in the implementation process.

Assists the Assistant Secretary, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, and Deputy Assistant Secretary for OCLA in acting as a focal point for VA's interaction, management, and coordination of congressional liaison activities, interpreting all official statements, testimony, press releases, correspondence, and policies to Congress.

Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm Compressed/Flexible: Not authorized Telework: Ad-hoc as determined by agency policy Virtual: This is not a virtual or remote position.

Position Description/PD#: PD00001A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required