Field Examiner
What you'd do
This Field Examiner position is for the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefits Administration, located in the Fiduciary Hub. The Field Examiner (FE) determines the payee (fiduciary), best suited to the needs and situation of VA beneficiaries, who are incompetent due to legal disability, mental disability, physical disability or minority. The Field Examiner ensures that beneficiaries receive all the benefits they are entitled to, and takes necessary actions to protect their assets.
Major duties
Specific duties include: Performs visits to veterans and beneficiaries to evaluate physical and mental conditions or capacity; independently determine ability to handle or manage funds Conducts field examinations to determine who to appoint as fiduciaries for incompetent or minor beneficiaries Verify the welfare and adequate living conditions of veterans under fiduciary care and make arrangements for deficiencies Conduct background investigations on proposed fiduciaries Reviews and reports on fiduciary performance; conduct investigations involving the misuse of VA funds Explain laws and regulations governing fiduciary responsibilities to veteran, beneficiary and fiduciary Investigate and make determinations on identified misuse, complaints, allegations, contested claims for benefits, special apportionments, eligibility for VA compensation, etc. Work with representatives of other Federal, State, and local police, social and protective services agencies and courts regarding the safety, protection and living conditions of veterans Supervises veterans transitioning to financial independence under the direct pay program Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. The grade progression for this position is GS-11. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position. Travel Required: Mobile - Work that requires routine and regular travel to conduct work with customers or several worksites as opposed to a single authorized alternative worksite. Please note, all selectees must live within 50 miles of the location being announced. The employee is expected to perform official duties primarily at field locations within the assigned territory. When not conducting field work, work may be performed from an approved alternate worksite consistent with agency telework and mobile work policies. Regular reporting to an agency office is not required, except for official business, training, or other management-directed activities. Periodic overnight travel may be required based on mission needs; up to two to three weeks travel per month is possible. Commuting areas listed: Columbus, GA; Florence, SC; Hickory, NC; Punta Gorda/Ft. Myers, FL; Daytona Beach/Port Orange, FL; Miami, FL; Panama City, FL; St. Petersburg, FL; and Anderson, SC. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: GS-09: 36002A, GS-11: 35092A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized . Financial Disclosure Report: This position requires completion of a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE-450) under 5 C.F.R. § 2634.904(a). The selectee must submit the form before entering on duty and annually thereafter.
What you need to qualify
To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:07/31/2026. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: As a current Federal, GS employee you must meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07 level. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09 level. If you are a current VBA employee outside of the commuting area seeking reassignment or change to lower grade via this vacancy announcement, you must currently hold the GS- 09 (or higher) and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least GS-11. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-09 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 is defined as use of fact finding sources (i.e., conducting interviews, researching court records, etc.) to verify facts and obtain specific pieces of information; or, experience applying Federal, state and/or local laws and regulations to administer benefits programs or services; or, financial management experience for individuals or businesses. Examples of qualifying specialized experience would typically include but are not limited to: (1) Conducting investigations into allegations of misconduct, compiling findings, and composing reports of recommended action. (2) Determining an applicant's eligibility for welfare programs in accordance with state laws and program regulations. (3) Conducting professional interviews or investigations involving issues/cases such as benefit claims, workplace safety claims, employee/labor allegations, fraud, abuse, or embezzlement for the purpose of gathering factual information to make a determination (4) Interpretation and application of Federal, State and/or Local benefit programs (i.e. compensation/pension, healthcare, mortgage/lending, insurance, etc.) that comply with related laws, policy, regulations. (5) Establishing and reviewing budgets for expenditures, verifying or monitoring the use of funds, and balancing or reconciling finances for individual or business. Education Substitution: Education substitution of a master's or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in Social Work, Counseling Rehabilitation, Criminal Justice, or another degree specifically related to the duties of this position which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work (submit your transcripts). Combination: Equivalent combinations of Specialized Experience and Graduate level education. To compute, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond one year by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify GS-11 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 is defined as experience conducting interviews in a state and/or Federal benefit/services program capacity to obtain essential information and assess an individual's competency to make valid decisions; or, expertise in personal financial management for individuals in exceptionally unique or complex financial situations. Examples of qualifying specialized experience would typically include but are not limited to: (1) Conducting professional interviews or investigations involving issues/cases such as benefit claims, workplace safety claims, employee/labor allegations, fraud, abuse, or embezzlement for the purpose of gathering factual information to make a determination. (2) Establishing and reviewing budgets for expenditures, verifying or monitoring the use of funds, personal financial management, balancing or reconciling finances for disabled individuals or minors who are unable to legally manage their own accounts. (3)Interpretation and application of Federal, State and Local benefit programs (i.e. compensation/pension, healthcare, mortgage/lending, insurance, etc.) that comply with related laws, policy, regulations. Education Substitution: Education substitution of a PhD. or equivalent doctoral degree or three full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in Social Work, Counseling Rehabilitation, Criminal Justice, or another degree specifically related to the duties of this position which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. Combination: Equivalent combinations of Specialized Experience and more than two years, but less than three years of education, as described above. To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond two years by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information. Volunteer Experience: 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; religions; 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: This job requires driving a government owned vehicle (GOV), often very long distances, requiring overnight lodging. Some walking and climbing of stairs is required since interviews with VA beneficiaries are conducted at their private residences For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.
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