Public Affairs Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration, VA Pacific Islands Health Care System. The position serves as the Legislative Liaison, reports to the Director via the Chief, Public Affairs Office, and has overall responsibility for all executive level Congressional correspondence.

Duties

The duties of this position include but are not limited to the following: The incumbent serves as the Congressional Liaison for the VAPIHCS and works with the facility leadership to respond to congressional complaints/inquiries/appeals on both clinical and administrative problems/issues brought to the Director by Veterans, members of the staff, VISN, VBA, NCA, VACO, state and local legislative and executive government officials, other Federal Agencies, and Congressional staff members which may require conflict mediation. Coordinates Congressional/Veteran Service Organization (VSO) briefings, to include development of agenda and presentation materials, invitation of congressional and VSO staff, arranging for conferencing facilities and catering activities. The incumbent serves as the central reception, dissemination, coordination, and monitor point for all correspondence and tasks from internal and external stakeholders. Participates in both long and short-range planning by coordinating the administrative needs of various healthcare segments within the Medical Center. Develops recommendations and plans of action by adapting principles, practices and procedures to meet the specialized needs of the assigned program and/or healthcare group. The incumbent serves as the back-up VAPIHCS Public Affairs Officer. The Public Affairs Officer applies solid public relations, media and health administration skills to ensure that resources are utilized effectively and efficiently to market, provide information and promote VA's high-quality care that exceeds community and national standards and industry best practices. Additional duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday to Friday, 7:30am to 4:00pm Telework: Ad-Hoc may be authorized at Supervisory discretion Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Public Affairs Specialist/PD008280 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may 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. Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/15/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-9 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: responding to congressional complaints/inquiries, coordination of congressional briefings, developing information briefings, reviewing proposals, receiving and coordinating correspondence with internal and external stakeholders, coordination of administrative needs of various healthcare segments within the Medical Center, and direct coordination and assistance of public affairs matters. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed a Ph.D., have an equivalent doctoral degree, have 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree, or have a LL.M., if related. OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level of GS9 (master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.B. or J.D., if related). You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Data Management Organizational Awareness Analysis and Problem Solving Systems Thinking 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; religions; 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The incumbent's work is generally carried out in an office setting. On a daily basis, the incumbent travels with the medical center to attend meetings and to observe patient care and activities. The work is primarily sedentary, although some slight physical effort may be required, such as walking through the entire facility or carrying folders or manuals up to 5 lbs. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. How You Will Be Evaluated

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment. The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position. For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. Other Information

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.