Contract Specialist

Summary

GPO employees possess a diverse array of talent in many administrative fields and trades. We provide other agencies with innovative services for the printing, publishing, storage, and distribution of digital content. If you are an energetic, inventive individual looking for a challenging, yet rewarding career opportunity, GPO may be the place for you.

This position is part of the Agency Acquisitions, Government Publishing Office in Washington,

District of Columbia.

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Duties

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• Determine contract type, set milestones, develop procurement strategies, prepare documentation, promote competition, solicit quotes/proposals, identify sources, and negotiate for better technical responses or more reasonable pricing.
• Process and negotiate a variety of complex acquisitions for paper, envelopes, cartons, supplies, equipment, construction, IT, and services from initiation of procurement to recommendations for the award of contract.
• Evaluate bids, perform cost/price analysis, obtain audits and pricing reports, negotiate price and/or technical issues, ensure contractor is eligible for award, and prepare documentation.
• Serve as Team Lead in direct support of the PG-14 Contract Specialist team supervisor.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a current Career or Career Conditional GPO employee to apply.
• Selectee may be required to pass preemployment requirements prior to appointment.
• Selectee must be able to obtain and maintain a Public Trust clearance level.
• Selectee must undergo a background investigations for a Public Trust clearance level.
• Selectee may be required to serve a one year probationary period.
• TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Applicants must meet time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. Applicants must have served 1 year at the next lower grade level, PG-12, or equivalent grade level of federal service to qualify.
• You must have an FAC-C Professional or FAC-C level III level certifications in contracting.
• This position requires Drug Testing.

Qualifications

To qualify for the Contract Specialist, PG - 1102 - 13 , you must meet the following requirements:

This is an internal-merit position. You must be a current career or career-conditional employee at the Government Publishing Office (GPO) to apply.

Basic Requirements:

1. Completion of all mandatory training prescribed by the head of the agency for progression to GS-13 or higher level contracting positions, including at least 4-years experience in contracting or related positions. At least 1 year of that experience must have been specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the next lower level of the position, and must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the work of the position.
   and
2. A 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree, that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.
3. Exceptions: Employees in GS-1102 positions will be considered to have met the standard for positions they occupy on January 1, 2000. This also applies to positions at the same grade in the same agency or other agencies if the specialized experience requirements are met. However, they will have to meet the basic requirements and specialized experience requirements in order to qualify for promotion to a higher grade, unless granted a waiver under Paragraph D.
4. Waiver: When filling a specific vacant position, the senior procurement executive of the selecting agency, at his or her discretion, may waive any or all of the requirements of Paragraphs A and B above if the senior procurement executive certifies that the applicant possesses significant potential for advancement to levels of greater responsibility and authority, based on demonstrated analytical and decision making capabilities, job performance, and qualifying experience. With respect to each waiver granted under this Paragraph D, the senior procurement executive must document for the record the basis of the waiver. If an individual is placed in a position in an agency on the basis of a waiver, the agency may later reassign that individual to another position at the same grade within that agency without additional waiver action.

To qualify for the Contract Specialist, PG-13 position, applicants must possess one year of specialized experience equivalent to the PG-12 grade level in the Federal Service which includes the following:

1) overseeing the best methods to regulate policy and regulations while determining contract types, procurement strategies, and negotiating complex acquisitions

and

2) evaluating bids and cost price analysis.

You must also meet the requirements in A or B below:

A. (1). The incumbent must meet the Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) (Professional) Requirement through one of the options listed below:

a. Already possess the FAC-C (Professional) Certification

b. Legacy program Federal Acquisition in Certification in Contracting (FAC-C). For the functionality of this position, must already have earned FAC-C Level II or III Certification from the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI) or Defense Acquisition University (DAU).

NOTE: To keep FAC-C (Professional) Certification, once achieved, contracting professionals are required to earn 100 Continuous Learning Points every two years. All CLP classes shall be approved by the first line supervisor. For those who are already certified, the two-year period begins on issue date of the established training policy for contracting professionals in Acquisition Services.

(2) At least 4 years of experience in contracting or related positions including 1 year of specialized experience at or equivalent to work at the level described above;

and

(3) Completion of a 4-year course of study leading to a bachelor's degree that included or was supplemented by at least 24 semester hours in any combination of the following fields: accounting, business, finance, law, contracts, purchasing, economics, industrial management, marketing, quantitative methods, or organization and management.

B. Exception: If you were in a GS/PG-1102 position on January 1, 2000, you will be exempt from meeting the educational requirements for the grade level of that position. However, to be promoted you will have to meet Option 1 or Option 3 under A.

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.

All qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of this announcement (07/21/2026) to be considered.

Education

Substitution of education in lieu of specialized experience may not be used for this grade level.

Additional information

Employment of Relatives

Section 3110 of Title 5, U.S. Code, prohibits a Federal official from appointing, promoting, or advocating the appointment or promotion of a relative in the agency where the official is serving or exercises jurisdiction. In addition, Section 2302(b)(7) of Title 5, U.S. Code, makes it a "prohibited personnel practice" for a person in authority to "appoint, employ, promote, advance, or advocate for the appointment, employment, promotion, or advancement of a relative." For further information visit: and

Work/Life Balance

This position is telework eligible.

Background Investigation:

For a Public Trust:

To ensure the accomplishment of its mission, the GPO requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy; this position requires a Moderate Risk Public Trust background investigation. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully complete a background for a Moderate Risk Public Trust. This review could include financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs; this process may take 6 weeks or longer. The Agency may rescind the tentative offer, if the candidate is unable to pass the background investigation.

The selectee will work shift 1.

The GPO offers Transit subsidy for commuters using public transportation (Metro Bus/Rail, MARC, VRE, etc.).

Additional vacancies may be filled by this announcement.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.