Senior Application Developer (Legislative)

Pennsylvania Legislative Data Processing Center; Harrisburg (Dauphin County); Hybrid; USD 85,000 - 110,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous paid leave

Comprehensive benefits package

Hybrid telework eligibility

Job summary

The Pennsylvania Legislative Data Processing Center seeks a Senior Applications Developer to lead the technical design of enterprise web applications. This role, based in Harrisburg, PA, offers a hybrid work schedule and requires strong .NET architecture skills and significant software development experience.

The ideal candidate will possess excellent technical abilities and leadership skills, acting as a mentor to team members while ensuring code quality and adherence to best practices. Additional responsibilities include collaborating with stakeholders and guiding the team in project management.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of hands-on software development experience.
• 5+ years experience with advanced .NET architecture.
• Ability to communicate technical specifications effectively.

Responsibilities

• Lead technical design and architecture of web applications.
• Ensure quality assurance on code developed by team members.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior developers.

Skills

Software development experience

SQL and data analysis

Advanced .NET architecture

QA/Code Review/Testing practices

Technical project plans and architecture

Leadership and team accountability

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Jira

Azure DevOps

Job description

Senior Applications Developer (Legis)

Reports to: Supervisor, Legislative Applications

Location: B-48 Main Capitol, 411 North Street, Harrisburg, PA

Office Hours: Monday – Friday, 8:30am – 5:00pm (hybrid-telework eligible)

Job Overview

The Legislative Data Processing Center (LDPC) provides bi-partisan operational and technical support for the Pennsylvania General Assembly (PGA). LDPC is seeking candidates for the role of Senior Applications Developer for the Legislative Applications team. In this role, you will serve as a key technical resource supporting a web development team currently working within a ColdFusion and .NET environment. You will play a central role in architecting solutions, assisting developers with technical issues, ensuring code quality, tracking incoming requests, and helping the team stay organized and focused on high-priority work.

This is an excellent opportunity for a developer who enjoys both hands‑on technical work and cross‑functional collaboration, and who is ready to take on a leadership role without leaving the technical trenches.

Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the technical design and architecture of enterprise web applications and services that support day‑to‑day legislative operations of the General Assembly.
• Review and perform quality assurance (QA) on code developed by team members, ensuring adherence to standards, best practices, and functional requirements.
• Work closely with business analysts, project managers, and technical teams to deliver high‑quality solutions.
• Work closely with the Application Support Analyst on projects to ensure thorough quality assurance and comprehensive user‑facing documentation.
• Provide technical guidance and mentorship to junior and mid‑level developers.
• Identify and communicate technical risks, code deficiencies, and areas for improvement.
• Participate in and lead code reviews to maintain a high standard of deliverables.
• Work closely with DBAs to ensure code changes are successfully deployed to Staging and Production environments; serve as the point of contact with DBAs for successful upgrades of the database, operating systems, and developer tools.
• Provide recommendations to the Supervisor regarding prioritizing the development team’s workload based on business impact, urgency, and technical dependencies.
• Collaborate with stakeholders and management to clarify requirements and set realistic expectations for delivery timelines.
• Coordinate with Supervisor to maintain and groom the team’s task backlog, ensuring work is well‑defined and ready for development.
• Assist the Legislative Applications Supervisor in tracking the progress of development tasks assigned to individual developers.
• Serve as a primary point of contact for incoming troubleshooting requests and enhancement submissions.
• Evaluate and triage incoming requests, gather necessary information, and route them appropriately.
• Document issues and enhancement requests clearly to facilitate efficient resolution by the development team.
• Following a production implementation, coordinate with developers to ensure that all subsequent tasks are addressed, including comprehensive documentation, user and staff training, and the preparation of troubleshooting resources.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or a related field, with 8–10 years of demonstrated experience.

Required Skills

• Follow hybrid remote work schedule (3 days in the office, 2 days at home).
• 8+ years of hands‑on software development experience, — contributing to the codebase, troubleshooting issues, and reviewing others’ code meaningfully.
• 5+ years of hands‑on software development experience with advanced .NET architecture, including cloud‑native design, distributed systems, performance optimization, and modern DevOps practices.
• Must be highly skilled with SQL and data analysis.
• Strong QA/Code Review/Testing practices including evaluating code quality, test planning, defect tracking, and release readiness validation.
• Ability to create complex technical project plans, architect solutions, estimate timelines and milestones, and communicate them effectively to development teams.
• Communicates technical specifications with the development team but can discuss the same subject in simple, clear terms with non‑technical stakeholders.
• Ability to multitask and juggle competing interests and prioritize accordingly.
• Proactively anticipates problems and develops solutions before they escalate.
• Demonstrates leadership presence; able to hold the team accountable and enforce deadlines.
• Ability to focus on projects and lead responsibilities. This role may occasionally be involved in writing code as needed but will spend 50–75% of time focused on team and project needs.
• Familiarity with issue‑tracking tools such as Jira, Azure DevOps, or similar.
• Knowledge of software development lifecycle (SDLC) best practices.
• Technical aptitude with the ability to understand legacy and modern codebases.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.
• Organized and detail‑oriented, with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.
• Collaborative team player with a proactive attitude.
• Comfortable operating in a hybrid technical/coordination role.

Preferred Skills

• Prior experience in a lead, senior, or mentoring capacity preferred.
• Familiarity with Legislative processes and workflows.

Working Conditions/Environment

Expected to report to the office during normal business hours (8:30am-5:00pm). May be required to work beyond normal working hours as defined by the needs of the Center and General Assembly. Regular and punctual on‑site attendance is an essential function of this position. This position is eligible for hybrid teleworking (2 days a week, remote).

Compensation

Compensation commensurate with the candidate’s qualifications, experience, and demonstrated expertise. Compensation includes a full package of benefits and generous paid leave.

This position description is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications associated with this position. All employees are expected to contribute to the overall mission of the Center by performing other duties as required.

The Legislative Data Processing Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.