Government Information Specialist

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Montrose (NY); On-site; USD 65,000 - 82,000; Full time

Job summary

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in Montrose/Castle Point requires a Government Information Specialist to support Privacy Act, FOIA, HIPAA, and Records Management across the VA Hudson Valley Health Care System. Travel between campuses is required as needed.

The role emphasizes reviewing requests, identifying sensitive information, and ensuring compliant disclosure. Applicants must meet all standards by 10/26/2026, with time-in-grade considerations for current federal employees.

Qualifications

• Experience with FOIA, Privacy Act and HIPAA programs or similar records programs.
• Ability to review and process requests and identify sensitive information.
• Familiarity with PII exemptions and FOIA reporting requirements.

Responsibilities

• Review and process incoming FOIA and Privacy Act requests.
• Identify sensitive records and determine disclosure in accordance with policy.
• Assist in researching FOIA developments and compiling data for reporting.

Skills

Analytical Reasoning

Attention to Detail

Communication

Reading Comprehension

Data Management

Job description

VA Hudson Valley is looking to fill the position of a Government Information Specialist at it's Montrose or Castle Point and must travel to both campuses as needed. The position provides comprehensive support in the execution, oversight, and continuous advancement of Privacy Act, Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability ACT (HIPAA), Privacy, and Records Management operations across VA Hudson Valley Health Care System (VAHVHCS).

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/26/2026. 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-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to:

• Experience in reviewing and processing incoming Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and Privacy requests, identifying sensitive records, and responding to requests for which disclosure policy is established.
• Experience in screening materials prior to release to ensure compliance with FOIA, Privacy Act, and Personally Identifiable Information (PII) exemptions, and completing certifications for "no records" findings.
• Experience in researching FOIA developments, court decisions, legislative activity, and compiling data in support of FOIA reporting.

You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position:

• Analytical Reasoning
• Attention to Detail
• Communication
• Compliance
• Inspection
• Data Management
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Interpersonal Skills
• Reading Comprehension
• Risk Management
• Stress Tolerance

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: Sitting, walking, bending and carrying light items such as books, papers and files.

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/.