Contracting Officer

United States Attorneys' Offices; Baltimore (MD); On-site; USD 90,000 - 115,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Telework

Paid vacation

Health benefits

Job summary

United States Attorneys' Offices seeks a Contracting Officer to manage the full spectrum of pre-award and post-award contracting activities for complex services and programs. You will craft acquisition strategies, evaluate proposals, and negotiate terms under Direct-Hire Authority.

The role requires valid qualifications, including a bachelor’s degree or equivalent with specialized federal contracting knowledge.

Qualifications

• All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university.
• Completion of a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree or higher with a major in a related field.
• OR 24 semester hours in accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, or related fields.

Responsibilities

• Develops and documents acquisition strategy for supplies and services with specialized terms.
• Serves as senior review for actions within delegated procurement authority.
• Reviews and prepares complex technical documents including SOWs or statements of objectives.
• Performs post-award functions such as resolving protests and contract disputes.
• Monitors contractor performance and approves invoices for payment.
• Coordinates with USAO contact on waivers or deviations from contract terms.

Skills

Contracting knowledge

Education

Bachelor's degree (or higher) in related field

Job description

Summary

Direct-Hire Authority (DHA) is a hiring authority granted by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to address critical hiring needs or severe candidate shortages.

For more information on the Department of Justice and the United States Attorneys' Offices, visit www.justice.gov/usao/.

As needed, additional positions may be filled using this announcement.

Responsibilities

If selected for this position, you will join a well-respected team that is responsible for the full range of pre-award and post-award activities encompassing issuance of solicitations, evaluation of proposals, negotiation, executions, and administration contracts for complex and technical services and/or special assigned programs which support of the districts mission. Typical work assignments will include:

• Develops and documents the acquisition strategy for procuring supplies and services that require a variety of specialized handling provisions, terms and conditions such as determining and justifying high-risk contract types (i.e., not approved via class deviation), determining use of small business set-aside (including executing bundling/consolidation determinations), resolving late offers, evaluating offers with non-standard terms (i.e., commercial supplier agreements) and negotiating price including discounts and payment terms.
• Serves as the senior, and final, level review for all actions within delegated procurement authority associated with pre-award negotiation objectives, price reasonableness determinations, and contract dispute resolutions.
• Reviews, prepares, and makes recommendations for revisions to, both simple and highly complex technical documents including statements of work, performance work statements or statements of objectives.
• Performs complex post-award functions such as resolving protests, processing a name change or novation; negotiating and resolving claims; issuing Contracting Officer final decisions; monitoring, resolving and documenting performance issues.
• Monitors contractor and ensures delivery of requirements; documents inspection and acceptance of deliverables; reviews and approves or rejects invoices for payment.
• Provides subject matter expertise and recommendations regarding contract administration functions, handling a variety of actions and often complex and unique problems relating to assigned contracts.
• Coordinates with the United States Attorney's Office (USAO) point of contact on contractor requests for waivers or deviations from contract terms; approves related changes to contract requirements and prepares documentation for the contract file as necessary. Resolves delivery schedule problems and negotiates delivery schedule changes.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• You must be a United States Citizen or National.
• Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation
• You must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable.
• If selected, you may be required to complete a one year probationary period.
• You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.

Qualifications

Basic Requirement:

A. Completion of a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree or higher with a major in a related field.

OR

B. Completed at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

You must submit your transcripts (unofficial or official) to verify basic qualifications for this position or you will be disqualified.

GS-12: To qualify for the GS-12 Contracting Officer, you must have one year of specialized experience at the GS-11 level.

Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. Examples of specialized experience are: Coordinating pre-award and post-award functions, including price/cost analysis, negotiation, and administration for services, materials, and equipment, using solicitation methods or a combination of methods identified in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement regulations, processes and procedures; developing, preparing and overseeing Statements of Work (SOW) or typically involving specialized equipment, professional or technical services; determining sole source and other required document; preparing solicitation documents and incorporating specific provisions; analyzing proposals for conformance with the solicitation; awarding contracts within delegated contracting officer authority.

Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP)-

The ICTAP provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found eligible and qualified for this vacancy. To be eligible and qualified, you must satisfy all eligibility and qualification requirements for the vacant position as outlined in this announcement. You must provide proof of eligibility to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of ICTAP eligibility or a copy of your separation personnel action form. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)-

The CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees in the Department of Justice with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your Department of Justice component has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility, 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement, and 3) you are found eligible and qualified for this vacancy. To be eligible and qualified, you must satisfy all eligibility and qualification requirements for the vacant position as outlined in this announcement. You must provide a copy of your written notification of CTAP eligibility with your application. Additional information about CTAP eligibility is at: http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.

Education

All academic degrees and coursework must be completed at a college or university that has obtained accreditation or pre-accreditation status from an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools that meet this criteria, see www.ed.gov.

OR

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the above education requirements if you can show that the foreign education is comparable to that received in an accredited educational institution in the United States. It is your responsibility to timely provide such evidence by submitting proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency with your application materials. More information may be found at www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html. All documentation must be in English or include an English translation.

Additional information

Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized.

The Department of Justice offers a comprehensive benefits package that includes, in part, paid vacation; sick leave; holidays; telework; life insurance; health benefits; and participation in the Federal Employees Retirement System.

Veterans' Preference

Since Direct Hire Recruitment Authority is being used, traditional Veterans' Preference rules do not apply. Qualified preference eligibles will be given full consideration for this position. While veterans' preference does not apply in Direct Hire Authority, preference eligibles can submit their supporting documentation listed as Optional in the Required Documentation section of this vacancy announcement.

Selective Service

If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See www.sss.gov.

Political Appointees (Current and Former)

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C or Non-Career SES employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the HR Office. Failure to disclose this information could result in disciplinary action including removal from Federal Service.

Reasonable Accommodation Statement

Federal Agencies must provide reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities, where appropriate. Applicants requiring reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process should contact the hiring agency directly. Determinations on requests for reasonable accommodation will be made on a case-by-case basis.

EEO Statement/Policy

The United States government does not discriminate in employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service or other non-merit factor. More information can be found here: https://www.justice.gov/jmd/media/1425556/dl?inline.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.