Legislative Operations Lead

State of Washington; Lacey (WA); On-site; USD 79,000 - 103,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible work schedules

Wellness programs

Medical, dental, vision insurance

State retirement programs

Vacation, holidays, and personal leave

Job summary

Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) seeks a Legislative Operations Lead MA5 to own the agency’s legislative operations and deliver cross-functional, implementation-ready solutions. You will design systems, standards, and processes supporting the full lifecycle from intake to statutory deliverables, collaborating with multiple divisions and external partners.

You will guide senior leaders on complex policy issues, manage high-stakes projects, and drive continuous improvement

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree and five years of progressively responsible professional experience in management, policy, or legislative analysis.
• Experience substituting education year for experience and graduate education substituting for part of the experience may apply.
• Requires independent judgment to develop policy options and implementation approaches.

Responsibilities

• Plan, design, and manage agency-wide legislative operations and implementation projects.
• Lead cross-functional and interagency work and provide expert consultation to executive leadership.

Skills

Legislative analysis

Process design

Stakeholder engagement

Accountability

Education

Bachelor’s degree in public administration, business administration, economics, political science, law, public policy, or closely related field

Job description

WASHINGTON UTILITIES AND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION

Respect. Professionalism. Integrity. Accountability.

Legislative Operations Lead

Management Analyst 5

Salary Consideration: Range 64, Step A ($78,504) – Step L ($102,996) annually.

The starting employment offer will be determined based on the successful candidates’ qualifications. Typically Step M of the pay range is a longevity step.

This recruitment is open until October 28, 2026, at 11:59pm. UTC reserves the right to make a hiring decision and/or choose to close or extend this recruitment at any given time.

Persons needing accommodation in the application process may contact the recruiter via telephone at [phone] or email the UTC HR office at [e-mail]. For TTY service, please call the Washington Relay Services at 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6384.

The Opportunity

The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) is seeking to fill the role of one (1) Legislative Operations Lead Management Analyst 5 (MA5) in the Policy and Legislative Affairs division. The Legislative Operations Lead serves as the Commission’s expert-level lead for agency-wide legislative operations. This position owns the institutional systems that support the Commission’s legislative work across the full lifecycle—from legislative intake, assignment, analysis, fiscal-note coordination, and decision support through implementation tracking and statutory deliverables. The successful incumbent provides expert analysis, consultation, process design, and continuous improvement, on highly complex, multidimensional issues affecting agency-wide programs and policies.

Hybrid

Although this is a hybrid opportunity, the successful incumbent must reside within Washington state and must be available to report to the Lacey, Washington headquarters building when needed.

Travel

Moderate travel may be required, typically within the state and to conduct business at a utility headquarters. Occasionally, travel outside of the state may be required. Travel may occur outside of normal work hours.

Who We Are

Our Mission is to protect the people of Washington by ensuring that investor-owned utility and transportation services are safe, equitable, available, reliable, and fairly priced.

Our Vision is to strive to achieve equitable and fair outcomes as a regulator of utility and transportation services and prioritize inclusion and belonging in the workplace.

The UTC is continually recognized for its excellence and integrity as a regulatory agency, as we challenge the status quo and ourselves to ensure equitable outcomes for our customers and the people of Washington State.

We recognize that our employees are the key to the agency’s success. We are committed to our work but value balance with our personal lives. We demonstrate our commitment to employees by providing an environment that stimulates professional growth, and offers continuing learning opportunities, meaningful work, and a comprehensive benefits package. For more information about our benefits or working at UTC, please visit our website.

What We Offer Our Employees

• UTC fosters an environment of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, while striving to hire and retain a workforce from the communities we serve.
• We place importance on a healthy balance between personal and professional lives; offering flexible work schedules, wellness programs, and mobile/telework opportunities.
• Through the state, our employees (and their families) are offered options for medical, dental, vision and basic life insurance.
• We offer enrollment into the state retirement programs and a deferred compensation plan.
• Throughout a calendar year, employees receive a minimum of 14 days of vacation leave per year and 11 paid holidays and 1 personal holiday in addition to accruing sick leave.

Our Values

• Respect - We treat every person and interaction with consideration and goodwill.
• Professionalism - We are committed to excellence in our work and conduct.
• Integrity - We do the right things for the right reasons - trusting others to do the same.
• Accountability - With courage, we hold ourselves and each other accountable for exhibiting respect, professionalism, and integrity.

What you’ll do

Under administrative direction of the Deputy Director of Legislative Affairs, the Legislative Operations Lead independently establishes the methods, management systems, standards, analytical approaches, work objectives, and procedures necessary to accomplish the commission’s legislative objectives and ensure the success of the legislative programs. In this role, the incumbent independently plans, designs, and carries out agency-wide legislative operations and implementation projects and represents executive management on assigned interagency and external initiatives. The Legislative Operations Lead establishes analytical and coordination methods and leads cross-functional and cross-agency work involving multiple divisions (Policy & Legislative, Regulatory Services, Administrative Law), agency leadership, other state agencies, the Governor’s Office, regulated companies, and external stakeholders. This role exercises substantial independent judgment in the agency process to develop policy options, recommendations, implementation approaches, workflow standards, and analytical products for decisions reserved to the Policy Director, Executive Director, Commissioners, or other authorized decision-makers.

Additional duties include, but aren’t limited to the following

• Serves as the expert-level owner of the Commission’s agency-wide legislative operating framework and independently design, establish, and continuously improve the systems, standards, controls, workflows, and accountability mechanisms used to execute legislative work and implementation.
• Provides agency-wide expert analysis and consultation on highly complex, multidimensional, and unprecedented legislative implementation, organizational, regulatory, and business-process issues.
• Represents executive management on assigned legislative-operations and implementation initiatives and provide expert consultation and complex reporting to executive leadership, Commissioners, governmental entities, and external organizations.
• Performs other advanced management, policy, regulatory, legislative, and special-project assignments consistent with the level and purpose of the position.

Required Qualifications

The commission values diverse career paths and recognizes that competencies may be acquired through a combination of education, training, certifications, research, volunteer service, lived experience, military service, professional practice, or other demonstrated accomplishments.

• Bachelor’s degree in public administration, business administration, economics, political science, law, public policy, or a closely related field AND five years of progressively responsible professional experience conducting complex management, policy, legislative, regulatory, program, or organizational business process implementation and analysis. Qualifying experience must demonstrate extensive knowledge gained through research and experience sufficient to independently resolve highly complex, critical, or novel issues and provide specialized technical guidance. Additional qualifying professional experience may substitute for education year for year; relevant graduate education may substitute for a portion of the required experience consistent with agency classification practice.

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities in

• Legislative Analysis & Consultation - Demonstrated advanced ability to analyze, interpret, and provide recommendations on complex legislative, regulatory, and organizational issues. Applies expert judgment to resolve precedent-setting challenges and support executive decision-making.
• Process Design & Continuous Improvement - Designs, establishes, and continuously improves agency-wide management systems, workflows, and accountability mechanisms for legislative operations. Proactively identifies and addresses process gaps, risks, and inefficiencies, driving organizational change and improvement.
• Strategic Stakeholder Engagement & Communication - Builds and maintains credible relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including executive leadership, Commissioners, legislative staff, and partner agencies. Communicates complex information clearly and effectively, facilitates workshops, and represents executive management in sensitive or adversarial environments.
• Results Orientation & Accountability - Manages workload, prioritizes tasks, and ensures timely delivery of statutory, regulatory, and organizational requirements. Accepts personal accountability for outcomes, maintains performance visibility, and recommends corrective or preventive actions as needed.

Demonstration of Equity Competencies

• The ability to take action to learn and grow: Takes responsibility for knowing their own strengths and weaknesses and uses their learning to make government programs and processes more efficient and effective to serve all in Washington.
• The ability to take action to meet the needs of others: Flexible, adaptable, customer-service focused, and willing and able to empathetically respond to the unique needs of the people they work with and serve.

UTC Core Competencies

• Accountability
• DEI Knowledge, Understanding, & Commitment
• Self-Awareness and Commitment to Growth
• Cultivating Mutually Beneficial and Trusting Strategic Partnerships
• Inclusive Excellence & Allyship
• Measuring Success and Improvement
• Customer Focus
• Results Focus
• Communication Skills
• Adaptability/Flexibility
• Self-Development
• Continuous Process Improvement

Desired Experience, Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

One or a combination of the following:

• Demonstrated experience with Washington state or other legislature environments.
• Demonstrated experience leading complex cross-functional initiatives or agency-wide process improvement.
• A graduate degree in public administration, economics, public policy, law, business administration, or a closely related discipline.

READ THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION COMPLETELY

• This position is included in a bargaining unit represented by the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE).
• RCW 80.01.020 limits the UTC’s ability to employ any person who owns stock in any company the UTC regulates or is otherwise financially interested in such company. Such interests include those of an employee's spouse.
• UTC does not use E‑Verify; therefore, we are not eligible to extend STEM‑Optional Practice Training (OPT). For information, please visit www.uscis.gov.

The UTC is an equal opportunity employer. We want to make sure you have an equal opportunity to join our team. Our commitment is making sure current and future employees are treated fairly and equally without regard to age, sex (including gender identity), race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, veteran status, marital status, or religious or political affiliation.

Veterans Preference

For information about YesVets click here.

Applicants wishing to claim Veterans Preference should attach to their application a copy of their redacted DD‑214 (Member 4 copy), NGB 22, or signed verification of service letter from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. Please blackout any personally identifiable data such as Social Security numbers. For further information, contact UTC Human Resources at [e-mail].

For more information about the UTC, please visit: www.utc.wa.gov, www.twitter.com/wautc and www.facebook.com/wautc

The State of Washington: http://access.wa.gov