Summary

You will serve as a Supervisory Repayment Specialist with the Bureau of Reclamation responsible for repayment of reimbursable costs of irrigation, recreation, municipal and industrial water features, including the administration and negotiation of water supply contracts, administration of Federal water rights, and administering Federal acreage limitations activities for the Region.

Duties

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Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Analyzing, understanding and summarizing complex technical and policy information covering a full range of administrative and water resource management programs and activities.
• Working with controversial water administration/water rights issues such as those that may have involved multiple agencies, litigation, or multiple river basins.
• Program direction and management as it relates to a water resources organization, writing technical water rights contracts, analyzing and determining inclusions and exclusions, and coordinating inquiries and problems involving water-rights matters.
• Writing water contracts by researching laws and directives to deliver water to farmers, irrigation or water districts, municipalities, or similar entitles.
• Developing and maintaining contacts with internal and external organizations and user and citizen groups to receive and provide information concerning water contracting, financial reimbursement, or water resource issues.
• Independently negotiating water contracts to deliver water to farmers, irrigation or water districts, municipalities, or similar entities.
• Negotiating and renegotiating long-term, short-term, temporary (interim), exchange agreements of water, water distribution system repayment contracts, and excess land recordable water contracts.
• Conducting negotiations in compliance with current applicable federal regulations and case law.
• Performing research of legal history, opinions, and precedent decisions for use in preparing, negotiating, and administering water contracts.
• Verbally communicating regulations and related administrative practices to convey, question, and obtain information on technical matters.
• Supervision of staff members implementing actions related to water rights and contract, repayment obligations and accounting, as well as administrative staff which may be assigned to the branch.
• Providing advice, counsel, or instruction to employees on both work and administrative matters.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• You are required to travel, complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority.
• A financial disclosure report will be required within 30 days of appointment.

This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest. This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will 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.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 09/03/2026-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:

Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sector). Specialized experience is defined as demonstrated experience: in the formation, administration, and/or negotiation of water services contracts, project repayment, or similar contracts; drafting and preparing these contracts in compliance with law and regulations and using negotiation strategies to deal with proposed and current contracts; development of technical reports and legal research for water service, distribution systems, and project repayment.

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.

Additional information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.

All DOI employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here, DOI Ethics Prohibitions | U.S. Department of the Interior.

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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.