This position is located Spokane Valley, WA within the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) The Realty Specialist provides support and expertise relating to real estate laws, principles, and concepts associated with easement program acquisition, administration, and enforcement. The position works on the Programs or Easement staff and is supervised by the respective Assistant State Conservationist for Programs (ASTC-P) or Assistant State Conservationist for Easements (ASTC-E).

Duties

Provide technical support and guidance to State Conservationist and ASTC-P or ASTC-E, including real estate laws, concepts, and principles relating to the easement acquisition, administration, and enforcement of conservation easements. Develop procedures to ensure compliance with a variety of Federal acquisition statutes, real estate principles, and guidelines to protect the Government's real property interests while ensuring fair and equitable treatment of the affected public. Review real property title documents, appraisals and Easement Warranty Deeds and subordinates, affidavits, organizational documents, title opinions, and other documents required to determine their correctness, adequacy, and completeness. Responsible for receiving/reviewing final deliverables such as surveys, title searches, final title policies, and vendor invoices and processing of vendor invoices with Invoice Processing Platform (IPP).

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 including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-07 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-09 level. One year at the GS-09 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-11 level. (Please submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. No Award or General Adjustment SF-50's will be accepted). Time-in-grade requirements also apply to VEOA applicants having held a GS position in the past year. See addition information. Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement. 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: GS-09 Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-09 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Reviewing modifications to easement deeds and other related legal documents, such as, sub-ordination agreements, easement violation letters, and state guidance on easement violations; Appling Farm Bill regulations, policies, and general practices and procedures to administer easements in accordance with the terms and conditions of the easement deeds and easement program regulations; and Provide support and guidance in real estate laws, concepts, and principles relating to the acquisition, administration, and enforcement of conservation easements. (Experience must be clearly stated in your resume.) OR Education: Master's or equivalent graduate degree or completed at least two full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or LL.B. or J.D., in a directly related field of study which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities required by this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be determined from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as equivalent to 1 year of full-time study. (Transcripts must be provided) OR Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. (To calculate, first determine your total number of graduate semester hours, and divide that number by 18. Next, divide the total number of months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, add your percentage of education and experience. The two percentages must total at least 100% for you to qualify based on your combination of education and experience.) Only graduate education in excess of one year (i.e., 18 semester hours at the master's level) may be combined with experience. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. (Transcripts must be provided) GS-11 Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-11 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Negotiating and resolving deed issues and deficiencies in real property documents, appraisals, and surveys; Performing research and analysis on complex property issues in order to provide support and guidance in real estate laws, concepts, and principles relating to the acquisition, administration, and enforcement of conservation easements; and Consulting orally and in writing in the area of real and personal property management to customers, managers, and interested parties. (Experience must be clearly stated in your resume.) OR Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or completed at least three full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or LL.M. , if related, in real estate law, business, or a directly related field of study which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities required by this position. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be determined from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as equivalent to 1 year of full-time study. (Transcripts must be provided) OR Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. (To calculate, first determine your total number of graduate semester hours, and divide that number by 18. Next, divide the total number of months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, add your percentage of education and experience. The two percentages must total at least 100% for you to qualify based on your combination of education and experience.) Only graduate education in excess of two years (i.e., 36 semester hours or above the master's level) may be combined with experience. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. (Transcripts must be provided) 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]