Employee Benefits Law Specialist

The position serves as an Employee Benefits Law Specialist responsible for the drafting major precedential interpretations variances opinions and advisory rulings; providing technical assistance to EBSA DOL and Federal agencies; conducting extensive research; recommending office policies and positions; participating in the revisions and development of regulations interpretations advisory opinion procedures and forms.

Duties include but are not limited to the following:

• Research and draft interpretations advisory opinions variances forms procedures and technical memoranda on ERISA and related laws affecting employer-sponsored group health plans.
• Identify analyze and resolve stakeholder issues by reviewing legislative history regulations and court/administrative rulings; evaluates the sufficiency of submissions; and conduct conferences to obtain necessary facts.
• Develop final guidance and recommend agency policy positions; participate in the development revision and promulgation of regulations and subregulatory guidance through intra- and interagency efforts.
• Provide authoritative technical assistance to EBSA components including assessing enforcement case materials and recommending interpretations policy positions and investigative strategies.
• Maintains liaison with federal and state agencies and industry stakeholders to exchange information interpret related laws address regulatory conflicts and persuade adoption of EBSA interpretations.
• Monitors legislative judicial and policy developments impacting group health plans and designs and delivers training and ad hoc reports to inform EBSA staff and stakeholders.

• Must be a U.S. Citizen.
• Must be at least 16 years old.
• Requires a probationary period if the requirement has not been met.
• Candidate required to obtain the necessary security/investigation level.

Basic Requirements: Education: Undergraduate AND graduate education: Major study in one or a combination of the following fields- finance banking business administration economics mathematics accounting or auditing pension plan administration law industrial relations public administration or other related fields.

OR

Specialized Experience: Progressively responsible experience that demonstrated the ability to perform work in the field of pension and welfare plans. Such experience may have been gained in (1) management administration development analysis audit financial management or termination of such plans or their funds; or (2) in closely related work such as taxation securities and investments.

Specialized experience may have been gained in government a welfare and pension plan administration or consulting firm law firm actuarial or accounting firm labor union welfare and pension association or research service banking trust department or investment firm. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include:

• Analysis and application of fiduciary reporting and disclosure bonding funding vesting administration and termination provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and related laws regulations court decisions and precedent rulings.
• Development of proposals for new or revised pension or welfare plans petitions for exemptions or requests for rulings under governing law.
• Legal work a substantial portion of which required interpretation of Federal laws and legal requirements concerning welfare and pension plans or in such related fields as taxation securities real estate corporations trusts bankruptcy and investments.
• Auditing or accounting work that involved determining compliance with Federal and State laws governing welfare and pension plans securities banking insurance or corporations.
• Analysis of Federal laws or regulations development of policy and drafting of proposed changes in an employee welfare and benefit plan or a related function.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement above you must also meet the specialized experience requirement listed below: Applicants must have 52 weeks of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level GS-12 in the Federal Service.

Specialized Experience is the experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge skills and abilities (KSAs) to perform the duties of the position successfully and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

Applicants must meet 3 out of the 4 examples of experience listed below. Qualifying specialized experience is defined as:

1. Experience providing authoritative written analyses and delivering technical guidance in meetings consultations or presentations to help employers plan sponsors or group health plans comply with statutory and regulatory requirements under ERISA the Affordable Care Act the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and the No Surprises Act.

2. Experience leading or serving as a senior contributor on the development review and evaluation of legislative regulatory and administrative proposals affecting group health plans including assessing legal policy operational and compliance impacts on plan sponsors fiduciaries participants beneficiaries insurers and service providers.

3. Experience representing an agency or organization in intra- or interagency meetings committees working groups or consultations with Federal or State officials congressional staff regulated entities industry groups or other stakeholders to resolve complex health plan policy or compliance issues and to develop coordinated positions or recommendations.

4. Experience conducting extensive legal research and analysis of Federal and State statutes regulations case law and policy guidance governing group health plans welfare plans or related health insurance matters and using that analysis to develop regulations policy interpretations compliance assistance materials testimony briefing papers or other authoritative documents.

Note: Specialized experience must be clearly documented in your resume; merely copying this statement into your application does not demonstrate that you possess the required experience.