OPS Compliance Specialist - 31902487

State of Florida

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Florida Division of Emergency Management (FDEM) plans for and responds to both natural and man-made disasters. These range from floods and hurricanes to incidents involving hazardous materials or nuclear power. FDEM is the liaison between federal, state, and local agencies. FDEM prepares and implements a statewide Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, routinely conducts extensive exercises to test state and county emergency response capabilities, provides technical assistance to local governments as they prepare emergency plans and procedures, as well as conducts emergency operations trainings for state and local government agencies. FDEM serves as the lead agency for the State Emergency Response Team (SERT), whose primary goal is the coordination of the state’s efforts during disaster response and recovery. This coordination is conducted within the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Tallahassee. Additionally, FDEM manages the State Watch Office; the 24-hour a day operation tasked with providing situational awareness to stakeholders statewide. After a disaster, FDEM conducts damage assessment surveys and advises the Governor of the State of Florida on whether to declare an emergency and seek federal relief funds. It is against this backdrop that FDEM strives to demonstrate its mission of, “Coordinate, collaborate, and communicate with our community stakeholders for a resilient Florida”, along with our vision of “Leading the Profession in building prepared and resilient communities”. Position Overview and Responsibilities: This is a professional position in the Bureau of Recovery’s Compliance Unit responsible for providing general compliance support to the Bureau of Recovery and its subrecipients of federal and/or state disaster recovery grants, including, but not limited to, the FEMA Public Assistance (PA) Program and the FEMA Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG This position may also provide compliance support as it relates to the bureau’s contracts and the development and delivery of disaster recovery programs. In response to emergency events, FDEM employees may be required to work irregular hours, to work more than 8 hours per day, to work extended periods (including weekends and holidays), to work at locations other than their official headquarters, and to perform duties in addition to those outlined in the employee’s position description. Employees must be able to deploy to emergency sites with limited advance notice.

Requirements

Ability to monitor contractor/recipient/sub-recipient compliance with program requirements through review, analysis and processing of financial and program deliverables, including expenditure, budgeting, staffing and progress reports, audits, and if applicable, requests for payment.
Ability to conduct risk assessments.
Ability to utilize problem-solving techniques.
Ability to plan, organize, coordinate, and complete work assignments.
Ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing, and to provide technical assistance to local governments and other entities.
Knowledge of the roles and responsibilities of federal, state and local government entities in response to public emergencies and disasters.
Ability to perform and complete quality research.
Ability to work effectively in a team environment and/or individually, whether with internal or external stakeholders, on programmatic issues and/or principles.
Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with others.
Skilled in the use of personal computers, Microsoft Office products (PowerPoint, Excel and Word), and web-based applications.
A minimum of four years’ experience in Emergency Management, Public Administration, Urban/Regional Planning, Geography, or a related field. A post-secondary degree from an accredited institution in any of the above-mentioned fields may substitute for the required experience on a year-for-year basis.
Experience using Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, Outlook) with the ability to learn and navigate FDEM enterprise business systems.
Valid driver’s license.
Ability and willingness to travel to perform on-site monitoring visits.

Responsibilities

Conduct subrecipient risk assessments: identifying the population for assessments, evaluating risk for programmatic non-compliance, identifying methods for mitigating risks, and maintaining an accurate record of all activity related to the risk assessment process.
Conduct compliance monitoring of subrecipients; developing and/or modifying a monitoring plan that ensures adequate coverage to targeted risk factors; developing and/or modifying monitoring tools to ensure consistent and accurate methods or recording monitoring activities and outcomes. Subrecipient monitoring may include desk reviews or thorough onsite monitoring.
Provide technical assistance relating to the receipt and use of federal and state emergency management grant funds in compliance with program requirements.
Track and review state and federal single audits submitted by subrecipients as necessary for respective grant programs.
Prepare, route, and track correspondence to subrecipients when required (e.g. management decision letters).
Participate in tracking and responding to external audits, including from the Florida Auditor General, the Office of the Inspector General, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security; works with program areas to compile necessary information to respond to the audit; participates in entrance and exit conferences.
Track and report to management concerning the Bureau of Recovery’s compliance with rules and regulations and identifying methods for mitigating compliance issues.
Conduct internal audits at the direction of bureau leadership to identify potential weaknesses and noncompliance situations.
When requested by management, review contracts, legislation, policies, procedures, plans, and other programmatic or technical documents for compliance with state and federal rules and laws and propose modifications or mitigating activities to ensure compliance and/or reduce risk.
Communicate with Bureau of Recovery staff to increase awareness and understanding regarding state and federal rules and regulations, and provide assistance as needed.
Keep abreast of changes to state and federal statutes, the Florida Administrative Code (FAC), and the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) as it relates to Recovery Bureau programs to ensure continued compliance.
Perform other duties and travel as required, to include assisting in disaster duties as a result of disaster events.