Land Management Law Enforcement Officer

Summary You will serve as a Land Management Law Enforcement Officer, within the Division of Refuge Law Enforcement, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. This is a temporary promotion not to exceed 1 year and can be extended up to 5 years. This temporary promotion may be made permanent without further competition. You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work. Responsibilities Serves as the senior advisor and technical expert for Refuge Law Enforcement, providing guidance to Headquarters leadership, coordinating national policy and operational planning, and ensuring alignment with legal and regulatory requirements. Acts as a liaison with the Service's Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) and other federal, state, and local agencies to exchange information and coordinate enforcement activities. Builds collaborative relationships across law enforcement partners and ensures consistent, Service-wide implementation of Refuge Law Enforcement policies and strategies. At the full-performance level GS-13, the duties include but are not limited to: Serves as a senior advisor and staff technical expert on the refuge law enforcement program and all law enforcement related issues for Headquarters Law Enforcement management. Serves as a senior level liaison between Headquarters management and other law enforcement entities including OLE, other land management bureaus/agencies. Reviews, edits, and assists in developing refuge law enforcement operational plans and implementation strategies at the national level. Ensures operational program is consistent with and conforms to all applicable policies, regulations, and legal guidelines. Develops working relationships, exchanges information, and coordinates law enforcement activities with other Service law enforcement staff along with other Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. Coordinates the implementation of policy with other National Wildlife Refuge System law enforcement staff. Ensures national program consistency and conformance with all applicable policies, regulations, and legal guidelines to advance and accomplish the Service's primary mission. Requirements Conditions of Employment Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication. Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service. Direct Deposit participation required. Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/. Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment. Pre-employment and random drug testing is required. You will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test is received. A physical examination will be required, or a statement regarding physical ability will need to be completed. You must maintain physical fitness standards throughout employment. You are required to wear a uniform and comply with uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided. You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority. A financial disclosure report will be required within 30 days of appointment. Firearm qualification and certification are required for the role, and ongoing proficiency must be maintained. You must be at least 21 years old. You must be free of any domestic violence convictions. Must maintain a delegation of law enforcement authority. You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 50% of the time. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes. Land Management Law Enforcement Officers must successfully complete Land Management Police Training (LMPT) - Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC), Federal Wildlife Officer Basic Training (FWOBT), and Refuge Law Enforcement Field Training and Evaluation Program (FWS-FTEP). You will also be required to complete 40 hours of additional law enforcement training annually. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a one-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest. Qualifications Requirements Continue: This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications: All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 11/12/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Selective Placement Factors: This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. If you do not provide evidence that you possess the following selective factor(s), you will be rated not qualified. Applicants must be at least 21 years of age. Must currently possess or previously held (within the past three years) a valid U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service commission. Law Enforcement Commission, or equivalent, by 11/12/2026. More information can be found in the 'Education' section of this job announcement. This is a covered secondary law enforcement position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S. C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 8412(d) (FERS). In addition to the qualifying experience and/or education described above, applicants for this position must possess experience gained by substantial service in a primary law enforcement position or equivalent. Must have a current, valid State Driver's License by 11/12/2026. -AND- Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:. To qualify for this position at the GS-13 grade level: Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: 1) Conducting investigations, apprehending, and/or detaining individuals suspected or convicted of violations of U.S. criminal laws; 2) Representing the refuge law enforcement program on interagency task forces or working groups focused on program planning, operations, or administrative initiatives; 3) Drafting briefing papers on law enforcement issues, critical incidents, operational activities, policy implementation, or data analysis and reporting; 4) Developing or implementing policy related to protection, conservation, and management of a law enforcement program; or 5) Analyzing cost-effectiveness of program approaches and recommending changes to improve efficiency. You must include hours per week worked. Volunteer 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. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Education Law Enforcement Commission: Must currently possess or previously held (within the past three years), a FLETC issued Land Management Police Training, full Type I Law Enforcement Commission or equivalent; or be qualified to receive a Commission upon appointment. This position does not allow substituting education for experience. Additional Information Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement. All Department of the Interior (DOI) employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here, DOI Ethics Prohibitions | U.S. Department of the Interior. The duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval. Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level.