Congressional Affairs Advisor

Department of State Headquarters • Washington, DC

3d

About The Position

This position is located in the Bureau of Legislative Affairs, Deputy Assistant Secretary for House Affairs (H/HA). The Bureau serves as a liaison between the Department of State and Congress and leads the development and advancement of the President’s and the Department’s legislative agenda on foreign policy, national security, and strategy.

The Congressional Affairs Advisor serves as the primary liaison with Congress and interagency partners on Department investigations and inquiries. The advisor prepares briefing materials and congressional testimony, ensuring materials accurately reflect Department positions and are appropriate for their intended audiences. The role independently prioritizes and manages multiple concurrent congressional inquiries and investigations involving changing deadlines, sensitive issues, and competing demands; reviews classified, sensitive, and unclassified information for congressional responses; and recommends strategies to address complex or sensitive congressional concerns.

Requirements

• U.S. citizenship.
• Must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret security clearance.
• Must obtain and maintain eligibility to access Sensitive Compartmented Information.
• Must meet applicable time-in-grade and time-after-competitive-appointment requirements by the announcement closing date; federal applicants must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade to satisfy time-in-grade restrictions.
• At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 level in the Federal service.
• Experience serving as a principal point of contact between a federal agency and congressional committees, Members, or staff on oversight inquiries or investigations, including coordinating agency responses to investigative requests.
• Experience developing or critically reviewing congressional materials for senior officials and preparing senior officials or witnesses for hearings, briefings, transcribed interviews, or depositions.
• Experience analyzing complex, politically sensitive oversight or investigative matters to develop response strategies and recommendations for senior leadership, including assessing risks, likely congressional reaction, and long-term effects on agency programs.
• Experience developing or improving processes for intake, tasking, clearance, and production of responses.
• Experience working with legal counsel and interagency counterparts on classified, privileged, or otherwise protected information, including preparing accurate classified and unclassified products.
• No education substitution is available for specialized experience for the GS-14 position.
• Must be subject to random drug testing.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the primary liaison with Congress and interagency partners on Department investigations and inquiries.
• Prepare briefing materials and congressional testimony, ensuring they accurately reflect Department positions and suit the intended audience.
• Independently prioritize and manage concurrent congressional inquiries and investigations amid changing deadlines, sensitive issues, and competing demands.
• Review classified, sensitive, and unclassified information for congressional responses.
• Recommend strategies to address complex or sensitive congressional concerns.
• Coordinate agency responses to requests for documents or information, letters, subpoenas, and other investigative demands.
• Develop or critically review congressional testimony, briefing memoranda, talking points, chronologies, and options papers for senior officials.
• Prepare senior officials or witnesses for hearings, briefings, transcribed interviews, or depositions.
• Analyze sensitive oversight or investigative matters and develop response strategies and recommendations for senior leadership, including assessments of risks, likely congressional reaction, and effects on agency programs.
• Develop or improve processes for intake, tasking, clearance, and production of responses.
• Work with legal counsel and interagency counterparts on matters involving classified, privileged, or otherwise protected information.
• Prepare classified and unclassified products that remain accurate and complete without disclosing protected information.

Benefits

• Comprehensive federal employee benefits package; employees and their families have access to a range of benefits. Specific benefits depend on position type and should be confirmed with the hiring agency.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed