Principal Civil Engineer

The Position

This is a continuous filing exam. Next filing cut-offs are at 5:00 pm on: 6/5/26, 7/29/26, 9/4/26, 12/4/26. Incumbents are responsible for a variety of general civil engineering work in connection with the design, surveying, testing of materials and construction of public works projects. Public works projects include, but are not limited to new building construction and remodels; and other structures and projects. Principal Civil Engineer is a management level class requiring a high degree of professional skill and knowledge in administering and evaluating complex engineering programs. The class of Principal Civil Engineer differs from the next lower class of Senior Civil Engineer, in that the Principal plans, organizes, coordinates, and directs the work of a major section involving several programs whereas the Senior is responsible for a specific program. The Principal has greater administrative responsibility in the area of long and short range planning and budget control and review and has more responsibility for the professional growth and development of assigned staff. The scope of responsibility and discretion allowed is great. Decisions are subject to review only when general policy is involved.

Examples of Knowledge and Abilities

Knowledge of principles and practices of civil engineering; methods and materials used in the design, construction, and inspection of varied civil engineering projects; budget preparation; principles and techniques of personnel management and supervision; laws and regulations pertaining to public works construction and design. Ability to plan, supervise, direct, and coordinate the work of a multiple disciplinary professional and technical staff; evaluate complex design and consulting work; direct the preparation of technical reports; direct the preparation of a complicated and comprehensive budget; analyze engineering and managerial problems and work out effective solutions; maintain effective working relationships with superiors, subordinates, consultants, and others; train and direct personnel; effectively present policy questions, alternatives and recommend solutions to department manager or elected officials.

Employment Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications: Current registration as a civil engineer issued by the California State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers. AND Four years of full-time experience as a registered engineer performing duties which have included difficult and complex civil engineering projects with responsibilities comparable to those of a project, resident, or operations engineer for public works projects. The projects must have provided significant involvement with budget preparation or monitoring of project expenditures; principles and techniques of human resources management and supervision; Federal, State, and local laws, ordinances, and regulations pertaining to the programs and their funding; and interface with other coordinating organizations and regulatory jurisdictions. Experience to be applied must be comparable to that of an Associate Civil Engineer or higher within County of Sacramento service. Two years of this experience shall be in the option being tested. A Masters Degree in the option being tested may be substituted for one year of the experience. Note: If the word "experience" is referenced in the minimum qualifications, it means full-time paid experience unless the minimum qualification states that volunteer experience is acceptable. Part-time paid experience may be accumulated and pro-rated to meet the total experience requirements. Note: If the minimum qualifications include an educational or certificate/license requirement, applicants must submit proof of requirements with the application. Failure to submit proof of requirements may result in disqualification from the examination. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable. For guidelines on submitting acceptable proof of educational requirements, please click here or speak to someone in our office before the final filing or cut-off date listed in this notice. General Qualifications: License Requirement: A valid California Driver's License, Class C or higher, is required prior to appointment to this class. Failure to maintain the appropriate California Driver's License, may constitute cause for termination from this class in accordance with Civil Service Rule 11.4. Individuals who do not meet this requirement due to disability will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Certification Requirements: Per Health and Safety Code, Sections 18949.25 – 18949.31, incumbents may be required to obtain a certification from a recognized state, national, or international association, as determined by the County, within two years of date of hire or assignment. Some positions in this class series require incumbents to complete one year of verifiable experience in the appropriate field and, within one year thereafter, to obtain certification from a recognized state, national, or international association, as determined by the County. Any person currently and continuously employed by the County as an inspector, plans examiner or building official, for not less than two years prior to January 1, 1996, is exempt from the certification requirements as outlined above. In addition, persons appointed to this class might be required to complete a minimum of 45 hours of continuing education every three years. The County may determine appropriate providers of continuing education such as community colleges or organizations affiliated with code enforcement. Note: Failure to meet the required certification requirements may constitute cause for termination from this class in accordance with Civil Service Rule 11.4. Physical Requirements: Sit for extended periods, frequently stand and walk; have manual dexterity and eye-hand coordination need to use a variety of office equipment such as computers, telephones, calculators, copiers, and drafting equipment; have corrected vision in order to review plans and specifications and perform other essential functions of the job; occasionally walk on uneven terrain at construction sites, etc. Individuals who are unable to pass some of the physical requirements due to physical disability will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. Working Conditions: May be required to work in excess of 40 hours a week and/or work irregular hours, particularly during emergency situations. Criminal History Check: The County may access criminal history information on candidates who have accepted a conditional offer of appointment within this class consistent with the provisions of Board of Supervisors Resolution No. 82-602, Personnel Policies and Procedure B-5 and applicable federal and state law. The County shall not consider for employment any applicant who has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor that relates to or impacts the applicant's ability to perform the job duties of this class unless it is determined that mitigating circumstances exist. For purposes of accessing criminal history information, the candidate will be fingerprinted. A subsequent arrest notification may be obtained. Special Access: Some incumbents in this class must acquire and maintain an airport security badge allowing access to secure County airport locations. Probationary Period: The probationary period for this classification is twelve (12) months

Application and Testing Information

Qualified applicants are encouraged to apply immediately. All applicants must complete and submit an online County of Sacramento employment application by 5:00 PM on the posted cut-off date. Employment applications and all documentation requested in this announcement must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. on the cut-off date. Your application should highlight all relevant education, training, and experience, and clearly indicate how you meet the minimum qualifications for the position as of the cut-off date. Application information must be current, concise and related to the requirements in this job announcement. You may only apply for this recruitment once. Duplicate and incomplete applications will be disqualified. A resume may be included with your application, however it will not substitute for the information requested on the application. Supplemental Questionnaires must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. on the cut-off date. The supplemental questions are designed to elicit specific information regarding a candidate's experience, education, and training. Responses should be consistent with the information on your application and are subject to verification. Please provide place of employment, pertinent dates, and concise, descriptive and detailed information for each question. If a job included responsibilities applicable to several questions, separate the different functions of the job to answer all the questions completely. Resumes or referral to the application or other questionnaire responses will not be accepted in lieu of completing each question. If you have no experience, write "no experience" for the appropriate question. For many individuals, it is more efficient to develop responses to the supplemental questions in a word processing document and then paste them into the final document to be submitted. Changes or corrections to your Supplemental Questionnaire cannot be made once your application packet has been submitted. If the Supplemental Questionnaire is used in the Formula Rate exam, failure to complete all of the questions or incomplete responses will result in a lower score. While scoring the Supplemental Questionnaire, the candidate's application and/or attachments will not be reviewed, therefore, a candidate's responses to the questions should be accurate, thorough, detailed, and complete. All candidates meeting the minimum qualifications by the cut-off date will have their Supplemental Questionnaire scored in the Formula Rate Examination. This examination will evaluate the relevance, level, recency, progression and quality of candidate's education, training and experience. The candidate's application or other materials will not be included in this examination. Therefore, the candidate's responses to the supplemental questionnaire should be thorough, detailed and complete. The score from the Formula Rate Examination will determine the ranking on the eligible/employment list for this job. All candidates competing in the testing process will receive written notice of their examination results by email. Notices can also be accessed in their governmentjobs.com inbox. Applicants achieving a passing score will be placed on the eligible list in rank order. The rank is determined by the test score attained from the examination.