Supervisory Employee Benefits Law Specialist

Summary

This position is located in the Office of Regulations and Interpretations (ORI), in the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA). ORI has primary responsibility to facilitate compliance with and enforcement of ERISA through the development and implementation of advisory opinions, interpretive materials, and regulations.

Major duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Represent and speak for the Office Director and EBSA leadership at interagency and congressional committees, conferences, and seminars to explain EBSA policies, interpretations, and regulatory initiatives and to promote voluntary compliance.
• Brief EBSA/DOL leadership and external agencies by presenting authoritative options and recommendations on major regulatory and interpretive initiatives and resolving cross-agency issues.
• Engage plan representatives, industry groups, and congressional staff to gather, interpret, and discuss information on ERISA, FERSA, COBRA, HIPAA, and related policy impacts.
• Direct and coordinate the drafting and issuance of regulations, advisory opinions, interpretations, rulings, forms, and other guidance under Title I of ERISA and FERSA.
• Prepare multi-year work plans, milestones, budget estimates and justifications, performance measures, and policy/procedural proposals for Office operations.
• Review and analyze legislative and regulatory proposals from other components/agencies and develop joint position papers or comments addressing impacts on ERISA/FERSA and plan operations.
• Apply in-depth knowledge of ERISA and FERSA, and related laws (e.g., COBRA, HIPAA, Internal Revenue Code) to develop, review, and interpret regulations and guidance.
• Provide expert technical advice to EBSA and other Federal/State regulators and serve as an expert witness in ERISA-related civil and criminal litigation.
• Assess financial institution practices and investment procedures and their implications for employee benefit plans to inform regulatory policy and guidance.

Requirements

Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Must be at least 16 years old.
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
• Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.
• Subject to financial disclosure requirements.
• Requires a supervisory probationary period if the requirement has not been met.

Qualifications

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Position titles alone cannot be used to determine if you are qualified. Please list dates in MM/DD/YY format. This is imperative in determining if whether you have at least one year of creditable specialized experience. Dates will not be assumed.

You must meet the Basic Requirements and the Specialized Experience to qualify for , Supervisory Employee Benefits Law Specialist as described below.

Basic Requirements: Education: Undergraduate and graduate education: Major study in one or a combination of the following fields- finance, banking, business administration, economics, mathematics, accounting or auditing, pension plan administration, law, industrial relations, public administration, or other related fields.

OR

Specialized Experience: Progressively responsible experience that demonstrated the ability to perform work in the field of pension and welfare plans. Such experience may have been gained in (1) management, administration, development, analysis, audit, financial management, or termination of such plans or their funds; or (2) in closely related work such as taxation, securities, and investments. Specialized experience may have been gained in government, a welfare and pension plan administration or consulting firm, law firm, actuarial or accounting firm, labor union, welfare and pension association or research service, banking trust department, or investment firm. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include:

Specialized experience may have been gained in government, a welfare and pension plan administration or consulting firm, law firm, actuarial or accounting firm, labor union, welfare and pension association or research service, banking trust department, or investment firm. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include:

• Analysis and application of fiduciary, reporting and disclosure, bonding, funding, vesting, administration, and termination provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and related laws, regulations, court decisions, and precedent rulings.
• Development of proposals for new or revised pension or welfare plans, petitions for exemptions, or requests for rulings under governing law.
• Legal work, a substantial portion of which required interpretation of Federal laws and legal requirements concerning welfare and pension plans, or in such related fields as taxation, securities, real estate, corporations, trusts, bankruptcy, and investments.
• Auditing or accounting work that involved determining compliance with Federal and State laws governing welfare and pension plans, securities, banking, insurance, or corporations.
• Analysis of Federal laws or regulations, development of policy, and drafting of proposed changes in an employee welfare and benefit plan or a related function.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, applicants must meet 3 out of the 5 examples of specialized experience listed below for this grade level:

For GS-15: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level GS-14 in the Federal Service.

Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform the duties of the position successfully, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

Qualifying specialized experience for GS-15 includes:

• Leading the coordinated development, drafting, issuance, review, and analysis of regulations, advisory opinions, interpretations, forms, and other guidance implementing Title I of ERISA and FERSA (including fiduciary responsibility, reporting and disclosure, coverage, and preemption), and coordinating these efforts with EBSA components, DOL, and other Federal agencies (e.g., PBGC, IRS, SEC).
• Managing program planning and resources for a regulatory/interpretive office, including developing multi-year work plans and budgets, setting milestones and performance measures, allocating staff and resources, directing subordinate supervisors and professional legal/economic staff, and conducting performance appraisals.
• Representing Government-industry committees; establishing and maintaining liaison with congressional committees/staff, Federal and State regulators, and industry groups; presenting authoritative policy options and recommendations; and committing to courses of action.
• Evaluating program effectiveness to identify deficiencies and implement corrective actions to improve efficiency and outcomes; and reviewing and analyzing legislative, regulatory, and policy proposals for their impact on ERISA/FERSA and employee benefit plan operations.
• Providing expert technical advice on ERISA, FERSA, and related laws (e.g., COBRA, HIPAA, Internal Revenue Code), employee benefit plan operations, and financial institution practices; serving as an expert witness in ERISA litigation; and developing or overseeing internal training and public education materials/programs to promote voluntary compliance.

Note: Specialized experience must be clearly documented in your resume; merely copying this statement into your application does not demonstrate that you possess the required experience.

Education

Any applicant falsely claiming an academic degree from an accredited school will be subject to actions ranging from disqualification from federal employment to removal from federal service.

If your education was completed at a foreign college or university, you must show comparability to education received in accredited educational institutions in the United States and comparability to applicable minimum coursework requirements for this position. Click Evaluation of Foreign Education for more information.

Additional information

For more information, click Telework Position Information. This is not a remote work position. The selectee will report to an assigned DOL office location on a regular basis and is eligible for participation in telework as determined by management in accordance with DOL policy.

Based on agency needs, additional positions may be filled using this vacancy.

The Department of Labor may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government to attract highly qualified candidates. Click for more information on Pay, Leave, and Workforce Flexibilities.


Benefits

Help

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.

Review our benefits

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.