Summary Incumbent serves as a senior technical expert and assesses the effectiveness of the fuels management programs by providing policy guidance, advisory opinions and recommendations on policy interpretation and implementation for wildland fire management units; also functions as regional subject matter expert in resources needs, forecasting and allocation. See "Position Information" for details. Please ensure you read the announcement fully prior to submitting application package. Responsibilities Serves as the assistant to the national fuels program manager providing specialized technical expertise in fuels program planning and implementation. Advises leadership and staff at the national, regional and field levels on fuels management policies and implementation procedures. Provides support to field units by analyzing and assessing the full range of treatment options and impacts. Works in cooperation with research and natural and cultural resource management staff to develop and refine fuels management prescription parameters to achieve management objectives. Implements and/or recommends changes in operating procedures or programs to increase the effectiveness of operations and/or to correct practices which are in violation of established regulations or procedures. Contributes to the development and updating of long-term strategies addressing wildfire risk through the NPS Fuels management program. Reviews existing agency and bureau policies and regulatory procedures to evaluate and determine overall effectiveness in meeting wildland fire and aviation management mission objectives. May serve as the national duty officer, coordinating NPS resource needs and communicating NPS wildfire status updates to NPS leadership. Develops accomplishment reports for distribution internally, to other Bureaus, Office of Wildland Fire (DOI), and the Secretary of the Interior. Conducts oversight and accountability review studies to evaluation for national/regional/field wildland fire and aviation programs in the bureau and interagency community. Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship required. Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution. Must be 18 years of age at time of close date of announcement. This is a Drug Test Designated Position. You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use. Prior primary/rigorous wildland firefighting experience is required. Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable). You will be required to operate a government motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service fire uniform standards. You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work. If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period. Incumbent will be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority. Subject to frequent extended travel up to 14 nights a month particularly during fire season, and you must obtain a government charge card for travel. Qualifications In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year - month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount qualified specialized experience. If an applicant's resume is incomplete or does not support the requirements for minimum qualifications or specialized experience a rating of "ineligible" or "not qualified" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted. **NOTE - Please limit your resume to no more than 2 pages. If more than 2 pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages will be reviewed to determine your eligibility/qualifications. You can only submit one resume; Only the resume submitted under the "Resume" "Document Type" will be used to determine your qualifications and for rating purposes. Basic Qualification Requirements: This is an administrative position in an organization having a firefighting mission, and is clearly in an established career path. Prior firefighting experience, as gained by substantial service in a primary firefighter position or equivalent experience outside the Federal government is a MANDATORY PREREQUISITE. Candidates must possess Primary/Rigorous wildland firefighting experience, gained through fire line work in containment, control, suppression or use of wildland fire. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered. AND In addition to the requirements described above, the following additional experience are required for the grade specified. For the GW-12 level: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS/GW-11 level, or higher in the Federal service, or equivalent; Examples of specialized experience include: Served as a senior advisor and technical expert for wildland fire and fuels management programs at the state or regional level, offering guidance on policies, planning, and implementation strategies. Provided input on long-term planning and budget development, oversees fuels program operations, and evaluates treatment effectiveness to inform improvements. Led coordination and compliance efforts for smoke management and air quality, working closely with federal, tribal, and state partners. Reviewed and updates policies to ensure alignment with agency goals, leads program and preparedness reviews, and develops training for staff. Developed and oversaw Fire Management Plans (FMPs), ensuring consistency with environmental laws and land management objectives. Represented the agency in interagency forums, resolving complex issues and building collaborative fire management strategies across jurisdictions. Secondary Firefighter Retirement Coverage - Applicants for this secondary administrative fire fighter position under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d), must possess knowledge of the principles, methods, and techniques of wildland firefighting as demonstrated by direct wildland firefighting experience. In order to receive credit, you must provide a written description of your experience in wildland firefighting. Education without hands-on wildland firefighting experience does not meet this requirement. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fireline experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience. 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, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. This is a secondary-administrative firefighter position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S. C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U. S. C. 8412 (d) (FERS). PLEASE NOTE: Applicants may meet qualification requirements, but may not be eligible for special retirement coverage. If such an applicant is selected, they will be placed in the regular retirement system. To be eligible for Secondary retirement coverage under CSRS, an employee must transfer directly (without a break in service exceeding 3 days) from a primary position to a secondary position. To be eligible for Secondary retirement coverage under FERS, an employee must: 1) transfer directly (without a break in service exceeding 3 days) from a primary position to a secondary position, AND 2) complete 3 years of service in a primary rigorous position including any such service during which no FERS deductions were withheld, AND 3) must be continuously employed in a secondary position(s) since moving from a primary rigorous position, except for any break in employment from a secondary position that began with involuntary separation (not for cause). It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure this office has enough information to determine your special retirement status to ensure you do not lose benefits (normally through submission of your work history or other documentation that demonstrates work history of approved covered positions). You must let this office know if you are in a Primary position. Education There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement. POSITION INFORMATION: **PLEASE NOTE - this position is covered under the new GW pay table specific to Wildland Firefighters. Please see this link for the pay tables: Wildland Firefighter. There is one position position being filled at one of the following locations - location will be determined at time of selection: Harrison, AR - This location is covered under the RUS Pay Table. Gary, IN - This location is covered under the Chicago Pay Table. Van Buren, MO - This location is covered under the RUS Pay Table. Omaha, NE - This location is covered under the Omaha Pay Table. Medora, ND - This location is covered under the RUS Pay Table. Hot Springs, SD - This location is covered under the RUS Pay Table. For questions regarding the duties of this position, please contact Rod Skalsky at Rod_Skalsky@nps.gov. In order to be considered for any, or all locations, please ensure desired locations are selected. Additional Information This notice is being issued to recruit personnel to occupations for which a critical hiring need has been identified. To assist in filling these positions, OPM has granted the Department of the Interior "Direct Hire Authority". This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate. A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay. A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR §575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive. A Relocation Incentive May Be Authorized for a Federal employee when the employee must move, as directed by the National Park Service (NPS) either through a management directed reassignment or selection for employment, to a different location at least 50 miles away from the one where his/her position of record held at time of selection is currently located, due to a need of the NPS. A relocation incentive is not the same as a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and, as such, may be granted in conjunction with one another. Physical Demands: The work is primarily sedentary, however, some physical exertion related to site visitations and fire line assignments is required. Walking on rough, uneven terrain, long periods of standing, and exposure to extreme heat, smoke, and temperatures is required. Working Environment: Work is normally performed in an office setting. During the wildland fire season, field work may involve high risk exposure to potentially dangerous situating or stress. The above work environment involves occasional exposure to moderate risks and discomforts which usually require protective equipment to be worn. A range of safety and other precautions are required. Exposure to risks such as wildfire, heat, smoke, falling rocks and trees, etc., are a part of the job during wildland fire season. Work may require flying in small fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. Incumbent will adhere to all safety rules and regulating as prescribed in manuals/supplements or by the designated Safety Officer.