Government Information Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Palo Alto VA Medical Center in Palo Alto, CA. The facility Privacy/FOIA Officer has oversight for the data governance program and initiatives in the VHA Medical Center or Healthcare System and its supporting catchment area.

Duties

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***THIS IS NOT A VIRTUAL POSITION, YOU MUST LIVE WITHIN OR BE WILLING TO RELOCATE WITHIN A COMMUTABLE DISTANCE OF THE DUTY LOCATION***

Major duties include but are not limited to:

• Implements unique policies and procedures to manage agency information, providing assistance and services to the general public and an organization, agency or facility staff members;
• Supports developing a local level strategy for data governance, which includes leading from the executive office and creating a unique program that includes diverse processes and specific policies which are independent of other facilities;
• Monitors and covers all aspects of the collection, use, dissemination, disclosure and destruction of information within an organization, agency or facility;
• Develops and integrates policy based processes, roles and controls that influences how data is created, collected, used, stored and destroyed throughout the organization;
• Adjudicates complex privacy and FOIA decisions that affect employees, customers and commercial businesses in the absence of supervision;
• Performs in-depth legal research that pertains to both federal and state statutes to render expertise, provide solutions and facilitate corrective action;
• Safeguards information while supporting accountability and transparency initiatives;
• Analyzes all of the interrelated issues that affect the privacy/FOIA program and plans and conducts monitoring activities which measure the overall level of operational compliance by the facility;
• Teaches and trains employees on general data protection procedures and detailed service specific practices for daily operations and uses technology to provide required privacy/FOIA training and supplemental education;
• Performs assessment of privacy-related risks associated with business activities that involve processing of personal and sensitive data;
• Investigates non-compliance of privacy related issues at all levels of an organization, agency or facility and outside of these entities when information is involved;
• Strengthens and sustains the operational life cycle of the privacy/FOIA program by developing a communication strategy that fosters awareness for both internal and external partners to improve compliance, provide training and engage the public;
• Ensures that organization, agency or facility correspondence for data governance is transparent, timely, accurate and complete in response to requests for information from the general-public, Congressional representatives, law enforcement, courts and commercial business;
• Creates a communications process and tools that are flexible, customizable and interactive to address unique compliance challenges and educational/training needs.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Full-Time; Monday through Friday; 8:00 am to 4:30 pm

Recruitment & Relocation Incentives: Recruitment incentive may be authorized for highly qualified candidates.

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not approved.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Subject to background/security investigation
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Required Documents" below for details.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your probationary, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE (GS-12): One (1) year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade (GS-12) in the Federal service, that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled. Specialized experience includes: experience as a Privacy/FOIA officer working independently with little supervision, formulating policy, ensuring compliance with federal and state laws and conducts thorough research of implementing regulations and policies and procedures to manage agency/organization information; providing assistance and services to the general public, staff members and communicated information to the Executive leadership, facility staff and outside stakeholders.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS: The work is primarily sedentary. There will be episodes of moderate lifting or prolonged periods of standing and bending in searching various files. There is lifting and carrying of such items as record boxes and bulky files. The work involves considerable walking, standing and bending conducting rounds, auditing and providing training to both on-site and off-site personnel. There is also occasional lifting and carrying of such items as boxes and files, weighing up to 30 pounds. The work may be performed in an office setting with adequate light, heat, air conditioning and ventilation. Traveling off-station to VA outpatient clinics, contracted community-based clinics, business associate offices and between campuses to provide training and attend/conduct meetings is necessary. May require occasional travel.

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/.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

NOTE: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

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

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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.

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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.