Forestry Technician (Dispatch - Assistance Intelligence Officer) - Direct Hire Authority

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/GW-08 grade level, 1 year (12 months) of specialized experience equivalent to GS/GW-07 is required. Examples of work experience included but are not limited to: On the line wildland fire experience with a module in fire control, prevention or suppression work; and dispatching and tracking of resources in an Initial attack fire center, tracking and reporting of large fires and support of Fire Intelligence at the local or GACC level. This involves reporting fire indices, weather and spot weather occurrence. Identify shortages of critical resources and providing information for determining allocation and priority setting for these critical resources relating to personnel, aircraft, crews, equipment and supplies. Utilizes and maintains various computer programs and files: fire danger rating system, fire and aviation web applications, weather management system, automated dispatch system, and provides appropriate information and assistance to users.

To qualify for the GS/GW-09 grade level, 1 year or 12 months of specialized experience to GS/GW-08 is required. Examples of work experience include, but not limited to; on the line wildland fire experience in a leadership or supervision role on a module in fire control, prevention or suppression work; and Monitoring and analyzing fire behavior; and ordering, tracking and evaluating needs for suppression resources and preparedness readiness to respond to wildland fires; and assisting in the development of incident priorities and strategies. Utilizes and maintains various computer programs and files: fire danger rating system, fire and aviation web applications, weather management system, automated dispatch system, and provides appropriate information and assistance to users.

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.

Substitution of Education for Experience:
For GS/GW-08/09: Two full years (36 semester hours) of GRADUATE level college education or received a master's degree in a field related to range work such as a major study in forestry, range management, agriculture or a field directly related to this position.


**You must meet all qualification and selective placement factor requirements by the closing date of the announcement.**


Physical Demands: Work is primarily performed in an office setting. Long hours of sitting, intense concentration, and working at peak proficiency level with irregular breaks/mealtimes are frequent, prolonged demands of the job Employee is subject to work shifts of 12-14 hours per day for extensive periods. Vehicle and aircraft travel associated with field visits and other administrative travel may be required.

Work Environment: The work environment involves everyday risks or discomforts which require normal safety precautions typical of such places as offices, meeting and training rooms, libraries, and residences or commercial/government vehicles, (e.g, use of sage work practices with office equipment, avoidance of trips and falls, observance of Fire regulations and traffic signals. The work area is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated.

This is a secondary/administrative firefighter position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412(d) (FERS). While secondary positions are not subject to the maximum entry age policy, the selectee must have prior service in a primary position (3 years of service in primary/rigorous position(s)) and meet the transfer requirement for movement from a primary to secondary position to be eligible for special retirement coverage. It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure this office has enough information to determine your retirement status to ensure you do not lose benefits (normally through submission of your SF-50). YOU MUST LET US KNOW IF YOU ARE CURRENTLY IN A PRIMARY POSITION.

FACT SHEET for Fire Positions:

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 .

The new Special Base Rate (SBR) Salary Table for Federal wildland firefighters, General Wildland Firefighter (GW) pay plan effective March 23, 2025 was used to indicate the salary in this announcement. Salaries may vary dependent upon location selected. Once released, you will be able to access the new pay schedule through this link:

This position is considered a career ladder opportunity, with a full performance level of GS-09. If selected at a lower grade level, you may be non-competitively promoted to the next grade level at the discretion of your supervisor and is contingent upon meeting regulatory and legal requirements for promotion, satisfactory performance, and the availability of higher-level work. Promotion is not guaranteed, and no promise of promotion is implied.

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

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.

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP): CTAP provides eligible surplus and displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. Information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility is available from OPM's Career Transition Resources website at or . If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration or that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) This vacancy is within your CTAP/ICTAP eligibility; 2) You apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) You are found well-qualified for this vacancy. You must provide proof of eligibility with your application to receive selection priority. Such proof may include a copy of your written notification of CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, or a copy of your separation personnel action form.

CTAP and ICTAP eligibles will be considered well qualified if they exceed minimum qualifications for this position.

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.

Certain incentives, such as, Recruitment, Relocation, or Student Loan Repayment, may be authorized to eligible selectees. If eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis, and is neither promised nor guaranteed. For information visit: , or , or

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