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Criminal Investigator (Special Agent)

Department of the Interior
Bureau of Land Management
Office of Law Enforcement & Security, Region 1

Summary

Explore a new career with the BLM - where our people are our most precious resource.

You must be permanently assigned to the Bureau of Land Management Headquarters' Office of Law Enforcement & Security (HQ-120) to be eligible for this announcement.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Open & closing dates
08/20/2025 to 08/27/2025
Salary
$88,621 to - $137,000 per year

General Schedule Salary Table for "Law Enforcement Officer Locality Pay Tables" was used to indicate salary. Salaries may vary depending on location.

Pay scale & grade
GS 12 - 13
Locations
Arcata, CA
1 vacancy
Bakersfield South, CA
1 vacancy
El Centro, CA
1 vacancy
El Dorado Hills, CA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
25% or less - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
13 - If filled at a lower grade level, subsequent promotion to the next grade level will be processed without further competition dependent upon administrative approval and the continuing need and performance of higher-level duties.
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
No
Security clearance
Top Secret
Drug test
Yes
Position sensitivity and risk
Special-Sensitive (SS)/High Risk
Financial disclosure
Yes
Bargaining unit status
No
Announcement number
FAMP-25-12784928-BT
Control number
843890200

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

Current BLM employees with competitive eligibility assigned to Headquarters' Office of Law Enforcement & Security (HQ-120)

Duties

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  • Plans and conducts criminal investigations.
  • Examines records, reports, correspondence, and other data of consequence to the allegations under investigation.
  • Conducts interviews with suspects, witnesses, and informants to develop the case.
  • Plans and times the serving warrants and subpoenas, and the participation of other law enforcement agencies.
  • Studies cases to determine applicable laws and implement regulations.
  • Provides advice and assistance to DOJ and U.S. Attorneys in the preparation of cases for presentation to Federal Grand Juries.
  • Testifies before Grand Juries, trial courts, and administrative hearings, in matters involving violations of federal criminal statutes, and civil or administrative violations.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • U.S. Citizenship is required.
  • Be sure to read the HOW TO APPLY and REQUIRED DOCUMENTS Sections.
  • You cannot hold an active real estate license; nor can you have an interest or hold stocks in firms with interest in Federal Land.
  • Direct Deposit Required.
  • Security Clearance Required.
  • Appointment will be subject to a favorably adjudicated background/suitability investigation/determination. Failure to possess or obtain a favorable determination will result in the cancellation of the offer or will be grounds for termination.
  • Incumbent must maintain a delegation of law enforcement authority.
  • An applicant appointed to this position must possess and maintain a valid state driver’s license while employed in this position.
  • Applicant(s) tentatively selected for this position will be required to submit a urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use and to pass the test prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
  • If selected for this position, you will be required to complete a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report, OGE-450 within 30 days of reporting to duty. You will be required to provide this information annually.
  • May require completion of a one year probationary period.
  • Duties may require the incumbent to perform irregular or occasional overtime per week. The position may qualify for LE Availability Pay.
  • Candidates under consideration will be required to certify whether they have ever been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence. False or fraudulent information provided by candidates is criminally punishable by fine or imprisonment.
  • Must complete a Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP) or equivalent at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) within 12 months of appointment if one has not been completed.
  • Driver’s License required – GSA Form 3607 will be required to be completed during the onboarding process.

Qualifications

General Schedule Salary Table for "Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) Locality Pay Tables was used to indicate the salary in this announcement. Salaries may vary dependent upon location selected. Refer to the Salary Tables link for more information: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/2022/law-enforcement-officer/.

Specialized Experience Requirements:
In order to be rated as qualified for this position, we must be able to determine that you meet the specialized experience requirement(s); please be sure to include this information in your resume. No assumptions will be made about your experience. To be creditable, this experience must have been equivalent in difficulty and complexity to the next lower grade of the position to be filled.

To qualify for the GS-12 grade level, 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-11 is required. Examples of work experience include, but are not limited to: experience in using criminal investigative techniques and applying laws of evidence; testifying in a court of law; documentation of a criminal investigation in investigative reports; a knowledge of Federal and state laws; knowledge of administrative, civil and criminal proceedings; and experience coordinating criminal investigations.

To qualify for the GS-13 grade level, 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-12 is required. Examples of work experience include, but are not limited to: experience in working multi-jurisdictional and complex criminal investigations in a natural resources or public land setting; testifying in a court of law; documentation of a criminal investigation in investigative reports; a knowledge of Federal and state laws; knowledge of administrative, civil and criminal proceedings; and experience coordinating criminal investigations for natural resources or public lands.

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.

There is no substitution of education for experience at the GS-12 and above grade levels.

Federal employees in the competitive service are also subject to the Time-In-Grade requirement in accordance with 5 CFR 300.604. If you are a current Federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled.

You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of the announcement.

An applicant appointed to this position must successfully complete or have previously completed the Land Management Police Training Program (LMPT) (Rangers), Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP) (Criminal Investigators) at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) or an approved equivalent training program, and must successfully complete 40-hours of law enforcement in-service training annually thereafter. (Note: The BLM does not consider Land Management Police Training (LMPT) equivalent to CITP. While both are considered basic academy curricula and share some common elements, they have distinct differences. The CITP focuses on criminal investigative activities through the continuing case investigation curriculum, whereas LMPT and its sister programs (UPTP, etc.) focus on uniformed police / patrol functions.)

An applicant tentatively selected for this position will be required to complete and receive a favorably adjudicated background investigation clearable for access to Top Secret classified information prior to his/her appointment.

Physical Demands: Majority of work is field oriented in nature and requires frequent travel to any part of the United States for meetings, law enforcement operations, investigations or other program activities.

Work Environment: Work is performed both in an office setting and outdoors with exposure to hazardous and environmentally adverse conditions.

This is a primary law enforcement position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412(d) (FERS). The position is subject to maximum entry age (MEA) requirements.

The MEA for this position shall not exceed age 37; unless you have sufficient prior Federal civilian firefighter/law enforcement experience, or you are a preference eligible veteran. If you are a preference eligible veteran, you may be eligible for this position after your 37th birthday. You must supply a copy of your Defense Department Form 214 (DD-214) along with Standard Form 15 (if applicable) and any associated documentation in accordance with the instructions in this vacancy announcement. Failure to provide this documentation with your application may result in loss of consideration.

If over the MEA and you are not a Veteran, proof of prior covered service must be submitted prior to employment. Acceptable proof consists of SF-50s showing beginning and ending dates of covered/creditable appointments and copies of approved letters based on individual claims.

Law Enforcement Retirement: The incumbent of this position performs primary law enforcement work and is eligible for coverage under the law enforcement retirement provisions of Title 5 U.S.C. Part 841 or 842.

FACT SHEET for Fire & Law Enforcement Positions: Information on Special Retirement.

Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Additional information

DOI uses E-Verify to confirm employment eligibility of all newly hired employees. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, please visit www.dhs.gov/e-verify.

Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered for Selective Service.

Travel and relocation expenses will not be paid by the Department of the Interior. Any travel, transportation and relocation expenses associated with reporting for duty in this position will be the responsibility of the selected employee.

Reemployment Priority List (RPL): The RPL is the mechanism agencies use to give reemployment consideration to their former competitive service employees separated by a RIF or who have fully recovered from a compensable injury after more than one year. If you are currently on a RPL, you may be given priority consideration.

The BLM has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster.

Government facilities are required to provide a smoke free environment for their employees. Smoking will be permitted only in designated areas.

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.

How you will be evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

PLEASE LIMIT YOUR RESUME TO NO MORE THAN 2 PAGES. IF MORE THAN 2 PAGES ARE SUBMITTED, ONLY THE FIRST 2 PAGES WILL BE REVIEWED TO DETERMINE YOUR ELIGIBILITY/QUALIFICATIONS.

You will be evaluated based on how your application materials reflect the qualification requirements of this position. Once the application process is complete, HR will review your application to ensure you meet eligibility and minimum qualifications. To determine if you are minimally qualified for this position, HR will complete a review of your resume, supporting documentation and responses to the online questionnaire.

In addition to meeting the minimum qualifications requirement(s), this position requires successful completion of the following additional assessment: Subject Matter Expert Review. This assessment will measure the critical competencies and/or job elements listed below that are required to successfully perform in the position.

  • Criminal Investigation - Knowledge of the guidelines, regulations, and procedures associated with criminal investigation, including evidence detection and handling and drawing appropriate factual inferences and conclusions.
  • Criminal Law - Knowledge of state and federal criminal laws, including procedures, regulations, guidelines, and precedents related to admissibility of evidence and prosecution.

In the evaluation process, due weight will be given to job related experience, education, training, incentive awards and performance appraisals. Applicants must have a performance rating of at least the equivalent of fully successful to be eligible for promotion or placement. Applicants may provide a copy of a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months. If the applicant is unable to provide a performance appraisal of record dated within the last 18 months, the applicant may provide a written explanation as to why.

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