Congressional Liaison Representative.

Veterans Benefits Administration; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 60,000 - 75,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Situational telework

Full-time work schedule

Job summary

The Veterans Benefits Administration in Houston, TX seeks a Congressional Liaison Representative to handle inquiries from Congress and other offices, respond by phone or letter, and research cases to advise the proper actions. You will coordinate with management and provide information on veterans' services and benefits.

This role includes training congressional staff and new employees, sharing trends and feedback, and contributing to accurate, timely responses while maintaining compliance with

Qualifications

• GS-09 requires 1 year of specialized experience at GS-07 or higher.
• Education substitution allowed: master's or higher or 2 years grad study.
• Combining Education & Experience is permissible.

Responsibilities

• Reviews congressional inquiries by letter/phone.
• Responds to inquiries by phone or in writing.
• Researches and analyzes inquiries to determine actions.
• Discusses with management to determine actions.
• Provides information on veteran services and benefits.
• Develops and processes claims to assist in inquiry completion.
• Provides training to congressional staff and new employees.
• Provides feedback on trends and issues from Congressional Staff.

Skills

Specialized Experience

Communication skills

Research and analysis

Policy interpretation

Education

Master's degree or higher

LL.M./J.D. related field

Job description

• Reviews all Congressional, White House, Secretary, and other special inquiries received by letter and telephone.
• Responds to all inquiries by telephone or in writing.
• Researches and analyzes inquiries to determine the correct course of action.
• Discusses with management to determine the correct course of action.
• Provides information pertaining to services and benefits available to Veterans.
• Provides training for congressional staffers.
• Provides training to new employees regarding communication with Congressional Offices and special inquiries.
• Provides feedback and training on trends and issues which are presented by the Congressional Staff.
• Develops and processes claims to assist in the completion of the inquiry.

Duties

Specific Duties Include

• Reviews all Congressional, White House, Secretary, and other special inquiries received by letter and telephone.
• Responds to all inquiries by telephone or in writing.
• Researches and analyzes inquiries to determine the correct course of action.
• Discusses with management to determine the correct course of action.
• Provides information pertaining to services and benefits available to Veterans.
• Provides training for congressional staffers.
• Provides training to new employees regarding communication with Congressional Offices and special inquiries.
• Provides feedback and training on trends and issues which are presented by the Congressional Staff.
• Develops and processes claims to assist in the completion of the inquiry.

Promotion Potential:

None.

Work Schedule

Full time, Monday through Friday: 8:00a.m. - 4:30p.m.

Compressed/Flexible:

Available

Telework

Yes - This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position.

Virtual:

This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#

Congressional Liaison Representative; PD39706A

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives

Not authorized

Financial Disclosure Report:

Not required

Requirements

Conditions of employment

Required

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary 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 Federal service.

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.

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• You may be required to serve a probationary period
• 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
• 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.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:10/27/2026.

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.

• For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level.
• If you are a current VBA employee seeking reassignment or change to lower grade via this vacancy announcement, you must currently hold the GS-09 (or higher) and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least GS-09

MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT:

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:GS-09 Grade Level:

• Specialized Experience: Applicants must have One year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-07) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is experience in:
• (1) explaining decision made by the VA and communicates the reasons to the claimant for these decisions;
• (2) prepares technical correspondence to veterans and their dependents providing benefit information, representation rights and response to miscellaneous inquiries; AND
• (3) analyzes inquiries, researches issues involved, consults with other federal, state and local agencies as necessary and prepares written replies or furnishes replies by telephone or other medium to stakeholders.
• Education Substitution: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 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

Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement.

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; 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.

Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.

Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary, with periods of standing, walking, and minimal lifting (under 20 pounds).