Duties

Summary

The position is assigned to the FHWA Office of Transportation Policy Studies, Economic Investment Strategies Team and is responsible for formulating and conducting economic studies of legislative and policy issues of major importance to FHWA and DOT; leading the development and application of benefit-cost analysis tools to prepare Congressional reports and research papers. A principal focus area is the projection of future investment needs for our nation's transportation infrastructure assets.

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Responsibilities

As a Economist, you will:

• Develop and manages a program of applied research and systems analysis projects to evaluate the relationships between Federal, State, and local highway and bridge capital investments and national highway system performance.
• Provide advice and guidance on the application of benefit-cost analysis and other economic analysis tools to the evaluation of public policy issues, including the evaluation of legislative initiatives and regulations.
• Provide expert policy analysis that can be relied upon by top-level policy makers in the FHWA, DOT and other Federal agencies for use in national policy formulation. Coordinates and conducts research on key transportation issues, themes, policies, and latest technologies.
• Develop and implement new theoretical approaches to the assessment of highway and bridge financing and performance management options. Provide guidance on the application of economic analysis tools to analyzing investment tradeoffs among competing performance objectives, and to setting performance targets at both the Federal and State levels.
• Provide leadership in promoting the objectives of the FHWA economic research program. Serve as an expert on transportation advisory groups, such as the Transportation Research Board, and presents papers at technical and policy conferences.
• Represent FHWA at meetings related to the application of economic principles to infrastructure investment decision making, and serve as FHWA's point of contact with high-level staff working on cost-benefit analysis procedures in the Office of the Secretary of Transportation.

The ideal candidate for this position is a seasoned professional with expert knowledge of economic principles and their application in the analysis of transportation policy issues. The ideal candidate should have strong writing skills, and the ability to formulate, guide, and conduct in-depth economic studies of legislative and policy issues. The incumbent leads the development of economic modeling tools and should be skilled in the application of such tools in developing materials for a variety of audiences.

Travel Required

Occasional travel - Some travel is required for this position.

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
14

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen & meet specialized experience to qualify
• Submit application and resume online by 11:59 PM EST on the closing date
• Required documents must be submitted by the closing date.
• Direct Hire Authority will be used to fill this position

CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

• SELECTIVE SERVICE: Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for the Selective Service.
• GOVERNMENT TRAVEL CARD: This position involves travel. A government contractor-issued travel card will be issued and must be retained for official business only.
• PCS/RELOCATION/RECRUITMENT: Permanent Change of Station (PCS), Relocation, and Recruitment Incentive authorization varies by position/selection.
• PROBATIONARY PERIOD: Applicants may be required to successfully complete a one-year probationary period (unless already completed).

Qualifications

To meet the minimum qualifications for this position, you must (1) meet the Education Requirement for the series, (2) provide a copy of transcripts for verification, AND (3) meet either the education or experience qualifications for the grade at which you are requesting consideration.

To qualify for the GS-14, you must have at least one year of experience equal or equivalent to the GS-13, it must include:

• Experience developing and applying economic analysis tools.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas:

1. Economics (General and Transportation-Related)

2. Economic Research, including Technical Contract Management

3. Strategic Planning, Policy Analysis, & Program Evaluation

4. Ability to effectively communicate

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.

For additional information about applying to Federal positions, please click on the following link: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-policies/#url=e4

Students enrolled in a qualifying degree program can apply if the anticipated graduation date is within six months of closing date of the announcement. Graduation transcript must be received before start date.

Other applicants must meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Education

In order to qualify for this series, you must meet the following:

Degree in economics, that included at least 21 semester hours in economics and 3 semester hours in statistics, accounting, or calculus.

OR

Combination of education and experience -- courses equivalent to a major in economics, as indicated above, plus appropriate experience or additional education.

Additional information

*PLEASE NOTE: This is an open continuous, not to exceed one-year, vacancy. We will review applications as neede d and refer the top candidates for potential interviews during the open period of the announcement.

Multiple vacancies will be filled from this announcement

If you are hired for this position; you will not receive additional consideration from this announcement.

COVID VACCINATION: As required by Executive Order 14043 , Federal employees are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 regardless of the employee's duty location or work arrangement (e.g., telework, remote work, etc.), subject to such exceptions as required by law. If selected, you will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination by November 22, 2021 or before appointment or onboarding with the agency, if after November 22. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request of the agency a legally required exception from this requirement.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if similar vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

For this announcement, all applicants will be reviewed to determine if they meet the basic qualifications for this position, specifically the educational and specialized experience requirements.

Applicants will not be rated or ranked. Veteran's Preference does NOT apply.

All applications that are verified to meet the basic qualifications will be referred to the selecting official.

DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE: PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. All answers provided in the on-line process must be substantiated by a resume. If, upon review, it is determined that your resume and/or supporting documents do not support your answer choices, your application may be removed from consideration.

Ultimately, the Automated Staffing Office is responsible for determining an applicant's eligibility. Please ensure that your resume provides enough detail to support your answers to the Vacancy Specific Questions.

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Other

Drug test required
No

Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

Trust determination process
Suitability/Fitness

Required Documents

A USAJobs built resume is required to apply

ALL Applicants must provide a resume that fully supports the required specialized experience and was created within USA Jobs Resume Builder and respond to the vacancy questions by the closing date of the vacancy. Formatted resumes can be uploaded when you arrive at the DOT application system. For assistance with the resume builder, please visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/account/documents/resume/build/

The following is a list of documents that are only required based on the type of position and consideration for which you are applying.

RESUME - Needs to be created within USA Jobs Resume Builder. It must show relevant experience, education and fully support the required specialized experience.

TRANSCRIPTS - Transcripts are REQUIRED if there is a stated education requirement for the series OR if you are substituting education for experience . The transcripts need not be official, but must show that you meet the stated education requirements, including specific major or class requirements. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

• If you are applying to an engineering position and are qualifying based on possessing a current Professional Engineer (PE) license, or passing the Engineer in Training (EIT) exam, please provide a copy of PE license or written documented proof of passing the EIT.
• If you have previously held a government position in the same series as this position, you may be able to provide an SF-50 showing that you have already qualified and worked in the federal service in this series.

NON COMPETITIVE APPLICANTS: If requesting concurrent consideration for Non-competitive (NC) appointment eligibility, you must provide the appropriate SPECIAL APPOINTING AUTHORITY DOCUMENTS, such as PCS orders (military spouse) describing move & marriage certificate; letter from VA or DD214 describing 100% disability of spouse; letter from State Vocational Office certifying disability (schedule A), etc. For more information, visit military spouse NC appointments or Persons with Disabilities NC appointments.

Failure to submit any of the required documents by the closing date of the vacancy will result in your removal from consideration for this position. Please review your application prior to final submission and ensure you have submitted all appropriate documents. Uploading documents to USAJobs does NOT ensure inclusion with your application to our system. You must verify that the documents are in the system with your application prior to final submission.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.