Senior Regulatory Analyst and Writer

Connexus Hub

5d•$95,000•Remote

About The Position

This role serves as the analytical core of the contract and the primary point of contact for the client. Key responsibilities include analyzing public comments on proposed rules, managing contract deliverables, and leading client interactions. The position requires the ability to process thousands of pages of public input into usable information for agency policy staff within tight deadlines. Between rulemakings, the role involves managing contract operations such as deliverable tracking, monthly reporting, client meetings, and preparing for future project phases. The Senior Regulatory Analyst and Writer will also direct other analysts during comment periods, establishing coding schemes and reviewing their work. The role demands efficient and accurate work, with a turnaround time of fifteen calendar days from comment period close for substantive analysis and key issues matrix, with the potential for faster turnaround requested by the client. This job is ideal for someone who can perform detailed work quickly and manage their own deadlines.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree.
Thorough working understanding of the federal notice-and-comment rulemaking process and the Administrative Procedure Act.
Direct experience analyzing or responding to public comments on a federal rulemaking (agency, contractor, law firm, or trade association).
Demonstrable knowledge of federal regulatory and stylistic requirements for public comment processing and rulemaking.
Strong analytical writing skills (writing sample required).
Familiarity with the Federal Document Management System and regulations.gov.
Experience producing Section 508 compliant documents.
Comfortable owning a client relationship, including writing status reports for federal review.
Working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel, Teams, Zoom, and Adobe Acrobat Pro.

Nice To Haves

Advanced degree in public policy, law, economics, agricultural economics, or a related field.
USDA experience, particularly with AMS, or familiarity with the Packers and Stockyards Act and livestock and poultry markets.
Experience with high-volume comment dockets and mass-comment campaigns.
Prior work directing junior analysts on deadline.
Working knowledge of qualitative coding or text analysis tooling.

Responsibilities

Analyze public comments submitted on proposed rules, identifying themes, high-risk issues, quantitative metrics, public recommendations, and distinguishing substantive from non-substantive submissions.
Differentiate between organized form-letter campaigns and unique substantive comments, accounting for both in the analysis.
Identify all issues raised through public comment and construct a key issues matrix, categorizing comments by issue for policy discussion and response drafting.
Write summaries that withstand legal and policy review and support the agency's response obligations under the Administrative Procedure Act.
Produce written material that adheres to federal, and preferably USDA, style guidance and Section 508 accessibility requirements.
Establish the coding scheme for each rulemaking and review the output of the analyst bench against it.
Maintain a weekly updated deliverable tracking sheet for electronic submission to the client.
Lead the kick-off meeting within ten business days of award and develop the subsequent project plan.
Write and submit monthly progress reports to the Contracting Officer's Representative, detailing technical progress, schedule status, and any concerns or recommendations.
Conduct weekly virtual status meetings with the client regarding comment volume, processing progress, schedule risk, and emerging themes, documenting decisions in internal meeting notes.
Forecast comment volume as it accumulates and inform Connexus management of the required bench support for each comment close.
Escalate potential scope creep to Connexus management instead of absorbing it.