This posting is only open to residents of the State of Colorado at the time of submitting your application.

This posting may fill two vacant EPS III positions.

Consider joining the dedicated people of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. It’s our mission to manage and conserve Colorado’s natural resources for the benefit of people today – and tomorrow. That means we have to balance development with conservation so the state we all love provides similar opportunities for our children and their children.

We invite you to explore our website at to find out more about the work we do to manage Colorado’s natural resources for today – and tomorrow.

The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply.

In addition to offering rewarding, meaningful work, we offer:

Medical and Dental plans
Strong, flexible retirement plans including PERA Defined Benefit Plan or PERA Defined Contribution Plan, plus pre-tax and Roth 401K and 457 plans
Paid life insurance
Short- and long-term disability coverage
Employee Wellness programs
Flexible Spending Accounts
Health Savings Accounts
11 paid holidays per year plus generous vacation and sick leave
Flexible work schedule options and remote-work options
Career advancement opportunities throughout the State system
Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program .

Some positions may qualify for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. For more information, go to:

About Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission (ECMC) :
The mission of the Colorado Energy & Carbon Management Commission (ECMC) is to regulate the development and production of the natural resources of oil and gas in the state of Colorado in a manner that protects public health, safety, welfare, the environment and wildlife resources. Our agency seeks to serve, solicit participation from, and maintain working relationships with all those having an interest in Colorado's oil and gas natural resources.

The Planning and Permitting (P&P) Unit is responsible for reviewing all permit applications for the construction of oil and gas locations and wells pursuant to current ECMC Rules, mission, and the Oil & Gas Conservation Act (the Act), as amended by SB 19-181. Additionally, this Unit is responsible for reviewing permit applications for emerging energy technologies, primarily in the areas of Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) Class VI wells, deep geothermal wells, and underground natural gas storage per SB 23-285 and SB 23-16, signed May 23, 2023. The Permit/Completions team reviews all mineral development and other energy technologies from a downhole perspective, including reviewing spacing and pooling applications (as part of or independently from Oil and Gas Development Plan (OGDP) applications) to ensure the protection of correlative rights and the legal completion of wellbores. Their review of hearing applications, in particular, ensures compliance with the 500-series Rules, and includes technical review of any submitted geologic testimony. Additionally the Permit/Completion team reviews the Drilling Completion reports, Completed Interval reports as well as the Well Abandon reports to ensure compliance with ECMC Rules, Regulations, Policies, and industry standards.

This posting is only open to residents of the State of Colorado at the time of submitting your application.

Position Summary:

The Senior LA Specialist will continue to identify efficiencies and improvements that will fine-tune internal processes and external guidance documentation, but will now have a primary focus as the senior technical specialist and SME in the review of Oil and Gas Development Plans (OGDPs), Comprehensive Area Plans (CAPs), and other surface-related permits and forms. This position will demonstrate a higher level of technical expertise, process awareness, decision-making, and support to the Director and the Commission than their EPS II colleagues. This position will have high visibility to the Director, the Commission, local governments, partner agencies, the public, other stakeholders, and the regulated community, and will be a primary point of contact and engagement on technical matters across all forms regularly processed within the LA team. The Senior LA Specialist will provide significant and advanced-level technical QA/QC on all OGDP applications, including the “final review” of the Form 2A and editorial oversight of the Director’s Recommendation, and will be expected to mentor their EPS II colleagues in both detail accuracy and overall proficiency. As an EPS III, this position will act as a leader within the LA team, providing mentoring and guidance to the rest of the team as needed and appropriate. Importantly, they will also have designated authority to approve Form 2s and Form 2As as proxy for the Director on an as-needed basis in support of the Unit Manager.

Primary duties include but not limited to the following:

Final Review of OGDPs and Director’s Recommendation:

Determine if the Form 2A technical review (performed by EPS II colleagues) was adequate or if additional corrections or clarification are needed prior to finalizing the 2A.
Assess the efficacy of BMPs and COAs the EPS II has applied to the Form 2A, and determine if any additional BMPs are necessary to protect and minimize adverse impacts to public health, safety, welfare, the environment and wildlife resources.
Evaluate whether or not the OGDP application should be recommended for approval or denial, and communicate that suggested decision to the Director prior to the finalization of the Director’s Recommendation.

Local Government & External Consultation:

Provide an expert opinion on a topic that may be very politically or otherwise controversial as a representative of the Agency to the public.
Determine how much information to disclose that will be meaningful technical feedback without implying any potential outcome of a permit disposition or decision.
Determine how to measure the local government’s preferences against ECMC’s mandate to protect public health, safety, welfare, the environment, and wildlife resources.
Interpret ECMC Rules that may be complex or confusing. In some cases the Senior OGLA will determine when and how rules apply to a proposed oil and gas operation or location with only a minimum of technical information available to make the determination.

Team Leadership and Mentoring:

Determine the level of response necessary to correct the issue, generally on a scale of “no correction required” (ex: an insignificant typo), to “EPS II should make this small but important correction”, to “EPS II should request additional corrections from the applicant”, to “this error is a rule-based conflict that needs to be resolved at a higher level than just within the Form 2A”.
Take a very pragmatic approach to this determination, considering the ability for the error to impact the outcome of the application, the time needed to make the correction, and the effort or resources necessary.
Approach decisions as potential learning opportunities for their EPS II colleagues, and present them in a such a way that provides helpful guidance.
Determine if additional support is needed for one or more EPS IIs in any area of the technical review process, such as individual or group training, onsite experience, or other things they determine is a general and ongoing deficiency in staff’s knowledge base.
Communicate this determination to the OGLA Supervisor and Unit Manager, and offer potential solutions to remedy these deficiencies.

Other duties assigned.

This posting is only open to residents of the State of Colorado at the time of submitting your application.

Minimum Qualifications:

Eight (8) years professional work experience with oil and gas location analysis, oil and gas regulatory experience, environmental assessment experience or closely related direct work experience.
OR
Graduation from an accredited college or university with a bachelor's degree in Geology, Geological Engineering, Hydrogeology, Environmental Sciences or a closely related field,
AND
Four (4) years of professional work experience with oil and gas location analysis, oil and gas regulatory experience, environmental assessment experience or closely related direct work experience.

Please note: The required experience must be substantiated within the work experience section of your application. Your resume will not be reviewed to determine if you meet the minimum qualifications; only the work experience section of your application will be reviewed to determine this. “See Resume” statements on the application will not be accepted. In addition, part-time work will be prorated.

Substitutions:
Additional experience related to one of the specified fields of study or in another field of study directly related to the assignment will substitute for the education on a year-for-year basis. A master's or doctorate degree in one of the specified fields of study or in another field of study directly related to the assignment will substitute for the degree and one or two years of experience respectively.

Preferred Qualifications:

Current or former State experience relevant to this position.
Prior experience utilizing ECMC’s eForms system.
Public speaking or stakeholder engagement
Prior experience with Oil and Gas Location Assessments.
Familiarity of ECMC rules and regulations.
Familiarity with COGIS (Colorado Oil and Gas Information System) database, and COGIS tools/reports.
Experience writing regulatory guidance documents and/or Environmental Assessment reports.
Solid experience and faculty with the use of computers and a variety of computer programs including but not limited to Google Suite, Word, Excel, PowerPoint.
Comfortable navigating web base programs and the use of interactive GIS maps and a database.

Conditions of Employment:

Colorado residency is required at the time of application.
A current & valid Driver's license is required for operating a state vehicle and occasional travel is anticipated.
Must be willing and able to travel with some overnight stays to meet with stakeholders and visit proposed or existing oil and gas locations
Must be willing and able to occasionally exert up to 20 lbs. of force to move objects
Must be willing and able to tolerate exposure to weather, wet and/or humid conditions, noise, and/or exposure to atmospheric conditions such as fumes, gases, etc.
DNR does not provide visa sponsorship.

APPEAL RIGHTS:

It is recommended that you contact the Human Resources Specialist listed below to resolve issues related to your possession of minimum qualifications. However, if you receive notice that you have been eliminated from consideration for this position, you may file an appeal with the State Personnel Board or request a review by the State Personnel Director.

An appeal or review must be submitted on the official appeal form, signed by you or your representative. This form must be delivered to the State Personnel Board by email (dpa_state.personnelboard@state.co.us), postmarked in US Mail or hand delivered (1525 Sherman Street, 4th Floor, Denver CO 80203), or faxed (303.866.5038) within ten (10) calendar days from your receipt of notice or acknowledgement of the department’s action.

For more information about the appeals process, the official appeal form, and how to deliver it to the State Personnel Board; go to spb.colorado.gov; contact the State Personnel Board for assistance at (303) 866-3300; or refer to 4 Colorado Code of Regulations (CCR) 801-1, State Personnel Board Rules and Personnel Director's Administrative Procedures, Chapter 8, Resolution of Appeals and Disputes, at spb.colorado.gov under Rules.

Supplemental Information

The Assessment Process

All applications received by the closing of this announcement will be reviewed by an HR Specialist against the Minimum Qualifications in this announcement.
Colorado Revised Statutes require that state employees are hired and promoted based on merit and fitness through a comparative analysis process. Part of, or all of, the comparative analysis for this position will be a structured application review by Subject Matter Experts.
Cover letter Requested - uploaded as an attachment to your online application.
Resume or CV Required - uploaded as an attachment to your online application.
CVs/Resumes, cover letters and other attachments are not considered as part of initial reviews, therefore, it is important to document in your application your education, experience, minimum qualifications, and preferred qualifications as outlined in the job announcement .
Please thoroughly answer all supplemental questions (if listed) since question responses may be evaluated for content, writing ability, spelling, grammar, and effective communication.
This recruitment may involve additional testing and/or exams to arrive at the top group for interviews.

Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
The State of Colorado believes that equity, diversity, and inclusion drive our success, and we encourage candidates from all identities, backgrounds, and abilities to apply. The State of Colorado is an equal opportunity employer committed to building inclusive, innovative work environments with employees who reflect our communities and enthusiastically serve them. Therefore, in all aspects of the employment process, we provide employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, medical condition related to pregnancy, creed, ancestry, national origin, marital status, genetic information, or military status (with preference given to military veterans), or any other protected status in accordance with applicable law.

The Department of Natural Resources is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, our agency will assist individuals who have a disability with any reasonable accommodation requests related to employment, including completing the application process, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, participating in the employee selection process, and/or to perform essential job functions where the requested accommodation does not impose an undue hardship. If you have a disability and require reasonable accommodation to ensure you have a positive experience applying or interviewing for this position, please direct your inquiries to our ADAAA Coordinator, at dnr_hr_employeebenefits@state.co.us

ADAAA Accommodations
Any person with a disability as defined by the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADAAA) may be provided a reasonable accommodation upon request to enable the person to complete an employment assessment. To request accommodation, please contact our Benefits Specialist at dnr_hr_employeebenefits@state.co.us at least five business days before the date that any accommodation will be required to allow us to evaluate your request and prepare for the accommodation. You may be asked to provide additional information, including medical documentation, regarding functional limitations and type of accommodation needed. Please ensure that you have this information available well in advance of the assessment date.

E-Verify

DNR uses e-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify , including your rights and responsibilities.

Toll–Free Applicant Support - Technical Help

If you experience technical difficulty with the NEOGOV system (e.g. uploading or attaching documents to your online application) call NEOGOV at 855-524-5627, Mon-Fri between 6 am and 6 pm (Pacific Time). The Human Resources Office will be unable to assist with technical issues.