Legal Administrative Specialist (Water Rights)

Bureau of Land Management; Billings (MT); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking a Legal Administrative Specialist (Water Rights) GS-0901-12 for vacancies in Billings, MT; Butte, MT; Dillon, MT; Lewistown, MT; Miles City, MT.

The ideal candidate will bring knowledge of state water rights and federal water reserves, experience with GIS data management and spreadsheets, and the ability to communicate effectively with executives, agency staff, and the public.

Qualifications

• At least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-11 level.
• Experience or understanding of state-based water rights and federal water reserves, including water rights applications and water right claims.
• Ability to manage data using GIS information systems and spreadsheets and communicate with a wide audience.

Skills

Water rights knowledge

GIS data management

Data analysis

Effective communication

Tools

GIS information management systems

Spreadsheets

Job description

This position is a Legal Administrative Specialist (Water Rights) GS-0901-12 at the Bureau of Land Management MT930-DIV OF RESOURCES AND PLANNING located in one of the following locations: Billings, MT Butte, MT Dillon, MT Lewistown, MT Miles City, MT This position is also open to public under announcement CBUI-26-13062273-DE-AWF. You must apply to each announcement separately if you wish to be considered under both recruitment methods.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 10/01/2026-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.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Minimum Qualification GS-0901-12:

• A. Specialized Experience Requirement: To qualify for this position at the GS-12 level you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors).
• Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: Experience or understanding of state based water rights and federal water reserves to include water rights applications, land claims, or water right claims; ability to maintain a variety of data using GIS information management systems and spreadsheets; ability to communicate effectively with a wide audience including internal and external parties, such as, senior level executives, field office specialists, state and local government officials and members of the general public. You must include hours per week worked.-OR-
• B. Education: There is no substitution for education in lieu of experience at this grade level.

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.