Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer

Summary

The Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer position is in the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO), Office of Legislative Affairs (OLA). OLA provides legislative counsel to the AO and the Judicial Conference; supports Judicial Conference committees; develops and promotes legislative initiatives; and promotes communication with and prepares and coordinates responses to inquiries from Congress, the executive branch, and other entities.

Duties

The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts (AO), Office of Legislative Affairs (OLA) is seeking an exceptional leader to serve as Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer. The Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer serves as the primary advisor to the Legislative Affairs Officer who serves as the senior legislative advisor to the AO Director. Together, the Legislative Affairs Officer and the Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer ensure OLA's mission, objectives, and goals are met. OLA carries out the judiciary's legislative liaison activities with Congress, other governmental entities, and private sector organizations. OLA works with the Judicial Conference of the United States (JCUS) and its committees to develop policy positions on legislative issues, promotes legislative initiatives, identifies and monitors congressional activity impacting the judiciary, and develops and coordinates responses to policy and legislative inquiries from Congress. The Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer serves as an expert on a wide range of legislative subject-matter areas of interest to the federal judiciary; serves as Acting Legislative Affairs Officer during the absence of the Legislative Affairs Officer; and represents the Legislative Affairs Officer at senior-level agency meetings and committee meetings. The incumbent must have excellent legal research and analytical skills and should possess strong professional management, problem-solving, and written and verbal communication skills. The ideal candidate must have experience in providing analysis of complex legal and legislative issues for executive-level decision-makers and exercising sound judgment to negotiate solutions and execute decisions on behalf of executive-level officials. The duties of the Deputy Legislative Affairs Officer include, but are not limited to: Assisting the Legislative Affairs Officer in planning, developing, coordinating, advising, and directing the activities of the office. Advising the Legislative Affairs Officer and OLA team on strategic decisions and oversight activities of the Judicial Conference Committees on the Judicial Branch and Federal-State Jurisdiction. Providing legal and legislative advice and recommendations to office and agency officials on legislative matters of importance to the judiciary. Identifying and developing sound strategies to resolve legislative issues of importance to the judiciary. Building relationships and coordinating regularly with Hill staff, judiciary stakeholders, and AO leadership. Providing leadership, management, supervision, and coordination to attorneys, paralegals, and support staff. Responding to legislative inquiries from the Congress, the AO Director, judges, court officers, and others. Attending congressional meetings, hearings, briefings on behalf of the judiciary.

Requirements

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT All information is subject to verification. Applicants are advised that false answers or omissions of information on application materials or inability to meet the following conditions may be grounds for non-selection, withdrawal of an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed. Selection for this position is contingent upon completion of OF-306, Declaration of Federal Employment during the pre-employment process and proof of U.S. citizenship for competitive status positions or conversion to a competitive status position with the AO. If non-citizens are considered for hire into a temporary or any other position with non-competitive status or when it is confirmed by the AO Human Resources Office there are no qualified U.S. citizens for a competitive status position (unless prohibited by a law or statue), non-citizens must provide proof of authorization to work in the U.S. and proof of entitlement to receive compensation. Additional information on the employment of non-citizens can be found at USAJOBS Help Center | Employment of non-citizens/. For a list of documents that may be used to provide proof of citizenship or authorization to work in the United States, please refer to Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification. All new AO employees will be required to complete an FBI fingerprint-based national criminal database and records check and pass a public trust suitability check. New employees to the AO will be required to successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights/responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/. All new AO employees are required to identify a financial institution for direct deposit of pay before appointment. You will be required to serve a trial period if selected for a first-time appointment to the Federal government, transferring from another Federal agency, or serving as a first-time supervisor. Failure to successfully complete the trial period may result in termination of employment. If appointed to a temporary position, management may have the discretion of converting the position to permanent depending upon funding and staffing allocation.

Qualifications and evaluation

We will review your resume and supporting documentation and compare this information to your responses on the occupational questionnaire to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications for this job. If you meet the minimum qualifications for this job, we will evaluate your application package, to assess the quality, depth, and complexity of your accomplishments, experience, and education as they relate to the requirements listed in this vacancy announcement. You should be aware that your ratings are subject to evaluation and verification. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume and/or narrative responses, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Failure to submit the mandatory narrative responses will result in not receiving full consideration and/or rating credit. Deliberate attempts to falsify information may be grounds for not selecting you, withdrawing an offer of employment, or dismissal after being employed.

Education

Applicants must possess a law degree (J.D.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA). Qualifying education must have been obtained from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on OPM's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/.

How to apply

To apply for this position, you must complete the online application and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 08/12/2027 to receive consideration. To begin: Apply Online to access an online application. Follow the prompts to select your USAJOBS resume and/or other supporting documents. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account or you may need to create a new account. You will be taken to an online application. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation, and submit the application. You will receive an email notification when your application has been received for the announcement. To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account, https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login, select the Application Status link and then select the More Information link for this position. The Application Status page will display the status of your application, the documentation received and processed, and your responses submitted to the online application. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process. Click the following link to view and print the occupational questionnaire https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13018151.

Required documents

For this job announcement the following documents and/or information are required: Resume - Any written format you choose to describe your job-related qualifications. MTQ Narrative - Statement addressing the MTQs Current or former career AOES/SES members - Provide a copy of your AOES/SES appointment SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action), and an SF-50 showing current career AOES/SES status or reinstatement eligibility. Applicants who have successfully completed an OPM approved SES Candidate Development Program (CDP) - Submit a copy of your CDP certification. ECQ Narrative - A narrative response as part of the application package for each of the following ECQs is mandatory for all applicants who are not current or former career AOES/SES members, and/or completed an OPM approved CDP. Citizenship - Include country of citizenship on resume. Current or former Federal Civilian employees - All applicants outside of the AO must submit a copy of your latest SF-50 (Notification of Personnel Action)to verify current or former Federal employment status. Veterans Preference documentation - Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty (DD Form 214), if applicable Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference (SF-15) and an official statement, dated 1991 or later, from the Department of Veterans Affairs or from a branch of the Armed Forces, certifying to the veteran's present receipt of compensation.

Additional information

The AO is an Equal Opportunity Employer.