Government Information Specialist

Full Job Description

This position is located in the Department of Health and Human Services, Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, headquartered in Washington, District of Columbia.

This announcement has an applicant limit of 100 and will close on the day that 100 applications have been received, at 11:59 PM.

Please read the "How You'll be Evaluated" section for specific details regarding the evaluation process for this job.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR GS-11 Specialized Experience You must have one year specialized experience to perform successfully the duties of the position.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service performing ALL of the following: Reviewing and processing FOIA and Privacy Act requests to determine responsiveness and applicability of exemptions.

Researching and applying relevant statutes, regulations, agency policy, and pertinent case law to support disclosure determinations.

Serving as a junior analyst under the supervision of a senior analyst in identifying issues, analyzing alternatives, and preparing written recommendations regarding release determinations OR Have successfully completed a Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree (e.g.,LL.M) or three (3) full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D.

or equivalent degree at an accredited college or university in a field that provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work for this position.

NOTE: You must submit a copy of your college transcripts (official or unofficial) to support your claim.

GS-12 Specialized Experience: You must have one year specialized experience to perform successfully the duties of the position.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-11 grade level in the Federal service performing ALL of the following: Independently analyzing and processing complex and sensitive FOIA and Privacy Act requests involving multiple program offices, high-visibility subject matter, or significant policy implications.

Interpreting and applying FOIA exemptions, Privacy Act provisions, Departmental regulations, and evolving case law to develop legally sufficient and defensible disclosure determinations.

Advising senior program officials and leadership on disclosure risks, policy interpretation, and compliance requirements.

Identifying procedural deficiencies and recommending process improvements to enhance compliance and efficiency.

GS-13 Specialized Experience: You must have one year specialized experience to perform successfully the duties of the position.

To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service performing ALL of the following: Serving as a senior technical authority responsible for resolving sensitive, or high-visibility FOIA and Privacy Act matters with significant legal, operational, or reputational impact.

Interpreting and applying 5 U.S.C. § 552, 5 U.S.C.

§ 552a, implementing regulations, Departmental policy, and evolving federal court decisions to develop legally defensible, precedent-setting disclosure determinations.

Providing authoritative guidance to OpDiv/StaffDiv FOIA offices, senior leadership, and program officials on disclosure risk, exemption interpretation, harm analyses, discretionary release considerations, and compliance requirements.

Drafting and revising Department-level policies, standard operating procedures, templates, and guidance to strengthen compliance, improve transparency, and mitigate litigation risk.

Advising senior executives and Office of General Counsel on appeal responses, litigation strategy, Vaughn indices, declarations, and settlement considerations.

Documenting experience: IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Qualifications are based on breadth/level of experience.

In addition to describing duties performed, applicants must provide the exact dates of each period of employment (from MM/YY to MM/YY) and the number of hours worked per week if part time.

As qualification determinations cannot be made when resumes do not include the required information, failure to provide this information may result in disqualification.

Applicants are encouraged to use the USAJOBS Resume Builder to develop their federal resume.

Do not copy and paste the duties, specialized experience, or occupational application questionnaire from this announcement into your resume as that will not be considered a demonstration of your qualifications for this position.

In accordance with Office of Personnel Management policy, federal employees are assumed to have gained experience by performing duties and responsibilities appropriate for their official series and grade level as described in their position description.

Experience that would not normally be part of the employee's position is creditable, however, when documented by satisfactory evidence, such as a signed memorandum from the employee's supervisor or an SF-50 or SF-52 documenting an official detail or other official assignment.

The documentation must indicate whether the duties were performed full time or, if part time, the "percentage of times" the other duties were performed.

It is expected that this documentation is included in the employee's official personnel record.

In order to receive credit for experience in your resume that is not within the official series and grade level of your official position, you must provide a copy of the appropriate documentation of such experience as indicated above.

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; community; student; social).

Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to gain employment.

You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

If such experience is on a part-time basis, you must provide the average number of hours worked per week as well as the beginning and ending dates of the experience so it can be fully credited.

OPM Qualification General Policies Website Major Duties:

WHAT YOU'LL BE DOING DAY TO DAY As a Government Information Specialist, you will use your knowledge and experience to optimize business results and customer experience by: Incumbent serves as a Government Information Specialist, with responsibility for administering and implementing the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) for all offices in the ASPA FOIA portfolio.

Performs research analysis and evaluation of data submitted for inclusion or exclusion in response to highly complex, sensitive, and controversial request for information.

Serves as an expert consultant and resource person for problems encountered by HHS. Interprets office policies and procedures as requested.

Represents the office in meetings and discussions with representatives of the various components of HHS, PSC, OASH and OGC.