Summary This position serves as a Government Information Specialist in the Office of the Assistant Administrator for Finance and Management, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Program Management Division. The FOIA Program Management Division administers policies, programs, and procedures to ensure agency-wide compliance with the FOIA and Privacy Act. Responsibilities Performs multiple, varying and complex assignments under the minimal direction of a manager or higher graded professional. Provides agency-wide technical advice and guidance to Line of Business (LOB)/Staff Office (SO) managers and FOIA coordinators in interpreting statutory and regulatory guidelines, regulations, rules, policies, procedures, orders and recent judicial opinions pertaining to the FOIA and Privacy Act. Collaborates with LOB/SO managers and regional administrators throughout the Agency to accomplish FOIA and Privacy Act activities. Serves as a liaison to internal and external stakeholders to receive, respond, clarify, and resolve complex issues. Interacts with LOBs/SOs, DOT Operating Administrations (OAs), and the public regarding matters related to disclosure of information within the purview of the FOIA and Privacy Act. Receives, reviews and enters FOIA requests into the FOIA case management system; determines the legitimacy, scope and subject matter of the request; assigns cases to the appropriate FAA LOB/SO in the services areas; conducts effective record searches; applies appropriate FOIA exemptions; ensures, tracks and monitors compliance with requirements, rules, and regulations issued by the FAA and established completion dates. Computes or verifies the computation of FOIA related fees and monitors payment collection. Conducts technical review of complex FOIA cases involving the interpretation of directives or past precedents. Reviews FOIA appeal documentation for legal, regulatory, and procedural compliance. Provides recommendations to management regarding the administration of the FOIA program. Reviews policies, guidelines, and standard operating procedures to identify the need for updates, revisions or supplement training. Assists in the development and implementation of new or revised agency policies and procedures. Leads or participates on work groups or teams to ensure continuous improvement of the FOIA program. Leads or coordinates workshops and training sessions on the FOIA program for all regions in the Service Areas. Gathers and analyzes data related to the FOIA program, including the number of FOIA requests received. Identifies and monitors trends; prepares reports; and distributes to AFN-400 management and FOIA coordinators throughout the Service Area. Assignments frequently require knowledge and experience working across functional and/or organizational lines. Work is reviewed though status reports and at project completion to ensure alignment with project requirements. Provides guidance to lower graded staff on complex issues. Contacts are internal and external to the organization. Independently plans time and organizes available resources to accomplish work activities. Established policies/procedures provide guidance for most assignments but allows employee to select the most appropriate approach. Assignments often require reviews of policies and precedents under limited guidance of a manager or other employee. Resolves most problems and work issues without assistance. Develops and recommends approaches to address current and anticipated problems/issues. Work is rarely reviewed typically through status reports and at project completion. Work activities typically impact directly on the objectives of one or more organizational units, and/or LOBs/SOs. Requirements Conditions of Employment We are not accepting applications from noncitizens. Qualifications To qualify for this position, you must demonstrate in your application that you possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the FV-H, FG/GS-12/13 level. This experience is typically related to the line of work of the position to be filled and which has equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been at least equivalent to the next lower level in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE IS DEFINED AS: Experience utilizing knowledge of FOIA laws, rules and regulations to provide technical guidance to management and staff; AND Experience extracting and analyzing data to produce various standardized and ad hoc reports for use by targeted audiences; AND Experience tracking and reporting key performance metrics to ensure assigned program activities are accomplished within established timeframes. You should include relevant examples of the specialized experience in your work history. Errors or omissions may impact your rating or may result in you not being considered. Answer all questions to the best of your ability. DO NOT ASSUME THAT BECAUSE YOU HOLD, OR HAVE HELD THIS POSITION, YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE FOUND ELIGIBLE. You may be asked to provide evidence or documentation that you have this type of experience later in the selection process. Your responses are subject to verification through job interviews, or any other information obtained during the application process. Any exaggeration of your experience or any attempt to conceal information can result in disqualification. Applicants who fail to demonstrate possession of any of the above criteria AND who do not provide the required documentation will receive no further consideration for this position. Applicants may be asked to verify information on your application for employment with the FAA. All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this vacancy announcement. Eligible applicants meeting the minimum qualification requirements and/or selective placement factor(s) (SPF) may be further evaluated on the Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA) and/or Quality Ranking Factor (QRF) listed in the announcement. Based on this evaluation, applicants will be placed in one of the following categories: (1) score order; (2) category grouping; (3) alphabetical; or (4) priority grouping, and referred to the selecting official for selection consideration. NATCA Multi-unit Interview Criteria: Article 42, Section 5 states: If the Agency decides to interview any qualified employee on the selection list, then all on the list who are qualified must be interviewed. If the selection list is shortened to a best qualified list through a comparative process, then the best qualified list shall be considered to be the selection list. If it is determined that interviews are required and telephone interviews are not utilized, travel expenses incidental to these interviews will be paid in accordance with the Agency’s travel regulations and this Agreement. Education Education cannot be substituted for experience. Additional Information We may use this vacancy to fill other similar vacant positions. Position may be subject to a background investigation. A one-year probationary period may be required. The person selected for this position may be required to file a financial disclosure statement within 30 days of entry on duty. FAA policy limits certain outside employment and financial investments in aviation-related companies. www.faa.gov/jobs/workinghere/financialdisclosure_requirements The U.S. Department of Transportation strives to ensure that equity, transparency, accountability, collaboration, and communication permeate all that we do for the betterment of the Department, the traveling public, and our nation. As such, DOT values a highly diverse workforce of persons who promote a culture of belonging by respecting the personal dignity and worth of each individual and fostering a positive environment where all feel safe and welcome. If these commitments coincide with your personal ideals and professional aspirations, please consider joining the DOT family. NOTES: 1. This position is covered by the FAA Core Compensation plan. Additional information about Core Compensation is available at: https://www.faa.gov/jobs/working_here/benefits. 2. As a part of the Federal-Wide Hiring Reform Initiative (streamlining the hiring process), the FAA is committed to eliminating the use of Knowledge, Skills and Ability (KSA) narratives from the initial application in the hiring process for all announcements. Therefore, as an applicant, you are NOT required to provide a narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA. In lieu of providing a KSA narrative response in the text box listed below each KSA section, in your work history, please include information that provides specific examples of how you meet the response level or answer you chose for each KSA. Your work history examples should be specific and clearly reflect the highest level of ability. Your KSA answers will be evaluated further to validate whether the level that you selected is appropriate based on the work history and experience you provided. Your answers may be adjusted by a human resource specialist as appropriate. 3. This announcement is also being advertised under VA #AWA-AFN-24-1558JC-87982. Please review both vacancy announcements before making an application to determine your eligibility to apply. 4. This Level 5 (Moderate Risk; Public Trust) position requires favorable adjudication of a Minimum Background Investigation (MBI) background investigation prior to appointment, unless a waiver is obtained. This is a bargaining unit position. This position is represented by NATCA: Multi-Unit. Links to Important Information: Locality Pay , COLA