There are four positions located separately within an California State Office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The incumbent serves as the Easement Program Specialist and works under the supervision of the Assistant State Conservationist (Programs) and will provide statewide guidance and support in the development & implementation of technical provisions of soil and water conservation programs.

Duties

Assist the Assistant State Conservationist (Programs) and the state Easement Programs Coordinator with financial management, fund accountability, oversight, quality assurance and monitoring of program effectiveness. Assist with completing all investigations and documentation required for successful easement enrollment in a timely fashion. Assist with developing contracts for cultural resource investigations and wetland restoration construction. Assist with acquiring environmental permits for restoration work. Provide technical expertise, program management, training, and quality control for the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program. Work with legacy easement programs including the Wetland Reserve Program (WRP), the Grassland Reserve Program (GRP) and the Farm and ranchland Protection Program (FRPP).

Requirements

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected you will be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are not able to reimburse any fees incurred for fingerprints.
• Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify at https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid state motor vehicle operator's license for the type of vehicle(s) operated to perform the duties of this position.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Degree: Bachelor's or higher degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (You must submit transcripts.); OR Combination of Education and Experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. The quality of the combination of education and experience must be sufficient to demonstrate that the applicant possesses the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to perform work in the occupation, and is comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of a full 4-year course of study with a major in the appropriate field. In addition to courses in the major and related fields, a typical college degree would have included courses that involved analysis, writing, critical thinking, research, etc. These courses would have provided an applicant with skills and abilities sufficient to perform progressively more responsible work in the occupation. Therefore, creditable experience should have demonstrated similarly appropriate skills or abilities needed to perform the work of the occupation. (You must submit transcripts.) In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level(s) in which you are applying: Specialized Experience at the GS-09: One or more full-time years (12-months) of specialized work experience, equivalent to at least the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service, performing the following duties: Utilizing writing and oral communication skills to clearly explain and describe easement or other conservation policies and procedures. Providing guidance, assistance, and evaluation to easement management or other conservation management plans; AND Implementing wetland or grassland restoration techniques. (Your resume must CLEARLY demonstrate this experience) OR Substitution of Education in Lieu of Specialized Experience: Must have 2 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Master's degree or equivalent in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (You MUST submit supporting academic transcripts.) OR Combination of Education and Experience: Combination of the above-described education and specialized experience such that they total 100% when combined. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. (Only graduate level education in excess of 1 year (18 semester hours) may be combined with specialized experience. You MUST submit supporting academic transcripts.) Specialized Experience at the GS-11: One or more full-time years (12-months) of specialized work experience, equivalent to at least the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service, performing the following duties: Providing guidance, assistance, and evaluation to easement management or other conservation management plans; Coordinating outreach that support Farm Bill easements or other conservation programs; Implementing wetland or grassland restoration techniques; Assisting with easement acquisition and related realty procedures including title and description reviews; AND Utilizing writing and oral communication skills to clearly explain and describe easement or other conservation policies and procedures. (Your resume must CLEARLY demonstrate this experience) OR Substitution of Education in Lieu of Specialized Experience: Must have a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or 3 full years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (You MUST submit supporting academic transcripts.) OR Combination of Education and Experience: Combination of the above-described education and specialized experience such that they total 100% when combined. To determine your combination, first compute your experience as a percentage of the experience listed above; then determine your education as a percentage of the education listed above; then add the two percentages. The total percentages must equal at least 100 percent. (Only graduate level education in excess of two years (36 semester hours) may be combined with specialized experience. You MUST submit supporting academic transcripts.) IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). 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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The OPM Qualification Standards for this position can be found at: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=List-by-Occupational-Series

Education

You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications.

Foreign Education: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show that the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. For further information, visit: Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov)

Contacts

• Address Natural Resources Conservation Service 1400 Independence Ave SW Washington, DC 20250 US
• Name: Midwest Services Branch
• Phone: 8164265706
• Email: [email protected]