Senior Benefits Specialist

Senior Benefits Specialist

The Office of the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) provides operations support services and business solutions to the community of 10,000 House Members, Officers and staff. The CAO organization comprises more than 700 technical and administrative staff working in a variety of areas, including information technology, finance, budget management, human resources, payroll, child care, food and vending, procurement, logistics and administrative counsel.

This position is located in the Payroll and Benefits Department, Office of Finance, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), U.S. House of Representatives (House). The purpose of the Office of Finance is to provide financial management services to Leadership, Members, Committees, Officers, and Offices of the House. The Payroll and Benefits Department is responsible for the administration of staff payroll and benefits in accordance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations. This position serves as the Senior Benefits Specialist.

Key responsibilities include advising and assisting employees on federal retirement and benefits issues and counseling employees on retirement, Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB), Federal Employees Group Life Insurance (FEGLI), Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), creditability of sick leave toward length of service, benefits of buying back redeposit services, civilian and/or military deposit service, and related benefits information.

Grade level at time of appointment is determined by professional experience and designated level of responsibility. The position does not have day-to-day supervisory/managerial responsibilities.

This position has access to Personally Identifiable Information (PII).

Primary Duties/Responsibilities:

• Advises and assists employees on federal retirement and benefits issues; serves as a subject matter expert (SME) and provides authoritative guidance when needed.
• Counsels employees on retirement, FEHB, FEGLI, TSP, creditability of sick leave toward length of service, benefits of buying back redeposit services, civilian and/or military deposit service, and related benefits information.
• Creates, distributes, and/or presents training, communications, and briefings; effectively translates complex information to educate and inform.
• Prepares annuity estimate, determines creditable civilian and military service, verifies service computation dates for retirement, responds to inquiries regarding death claims, and works with employees or beneficiaries to process claims for death benefits.
• Calculates and verifies retirement estimates, including complex and/or unique estimates as needed.
• Develops, recommends, and implements changes to processes and/or procedures to ensure they meet standards and requirements.
• Maintains current knowledge of requirements, policies, procedures, and applicable laws, rules, and regulations; analyzes, interprets, and provides expert advice and guidance as needed.
• Ensures internal controls are appropriately documented, reviewed, and certified.
• Accepts applications for retirement and disability benefits from employees; reviews the applications to ensure completeness, performs document searches and related administrative work as needed to ensure completeness of applications, and assists employees with the completion of forms.
• Ensures follow-up on pending items to ensure timely resolution of cases; ensures customers receive necessary information/data in a timely manner.
• Analyzes employee service histories and corresponding retirement codes, processes retirement cards, and identifies and resolve Federal Erroneous Retirement Coverage Corrections Act (FERCCA) cases.
• Fields general retirement questions from employees and contacts the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), FEHB carriers, or other third parties as appropriate to resolve cases.
• Codes appointment paperwork for retirement purposes and works with payroll operations as needed to correct coding, establish payroll changes, and complete other actions related to retirement actions; troubleshoots complex problems as needed.
• Conducts complex data analyses, recommends appropriate actions based on findings, and provides guidance to others as needed.
• Prepares records, reports, and/or statements in accordance with relevant laws, rules, and regulations.
• Maintains current knowledge of retirement and death benefits.
• Guides and mentors junior-level employees.
• Ensures accurate information and/or transactions are recorded and/or maintained in Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS) and/or financial systems/software as needed.
• Performs other official duties and special projects as assigned. May be responsible for supervising contracted staff or leading project teams (for a discrete period of time) comprised of permanent and/or contracted staff.