National Wildfire Prevention Program Manager

Forest ServiceSalt Lake City, Utah, Seattle, Washington, Phoenix, Arizona, Los Angeles, California, San Francisco, California, Denver, Colorado, Washington, District of Columbia, Miami, Florida, Atlanta, Georgia, Chicago, Illinois, Indianapolis, Indiana, New Orleans, Louisiana, Boston, Massachusetts, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Kansas City, Missouri, Albuquerque, New Mexico, New York, New York, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Portland, Oregon, Austin, Texasusajobspublished 10/29/2026

About the company

This position is located within the National Office Fire and Safety, Fire and Aviation Management (FAM) organization. This position is responsible for developing wildfire prevention planning policies and procedures consistent with national level guidance and coordinating information between national, geographic area, fire planning units, and field units. For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Melissa Jenkins at melissa.l.jenkins@usda.gov.

Your tasks

  • Duties listed are at full performance grade GW-13 level.
  • Provides program leadership and consultation for strategic wildfire prevention planning, assessments (e.g., wildland fire risk, prevention, etc.), and interagency and/or unit wildfire prevention plan development.
  • Develops, plans, and advises on wildfire prevention actions in coordination with National Office and Geographic Area staff.
  • Provides program management direction and expertise for interagency and/or national forest and grasslands wildfire prevention planning efforts.
  • Provides guidance to the field units on wildfire prevention education, engineering, enforcement, and administration actions for robust wildfire prevention planning.

Requirements

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards. Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary. 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.

Specialized Experience Requirement: GW-13: Applicant must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GW-12 level. Examples of specialized experience may include: Provided program management direction and expertise for interagency and/or national forest and grasslands wildfire prevention planning efforts; Provided program leadership and consultation for short and long term strategic wildfire prevention planning, assessments, and interagency and/or unit wildfire prevention management plans; Utilized specialized software and modeling to evaluate the effectiveness of wildfire prevention strategies to meet land and resource management goals and objectives; and Developed annual program of work, including budget allocations, discretionary spending accounts, and severity requests.

Selective Placement Factors FIREFIGHTER RETIREMENT COVERAGE: This is a secondary firefighter position under 5 USC 8336 (CSRS) and 8412(d) (FERS). Prior wildland firefighting experience is required. There is no age limit for entry into secondary positions. Firefighter retirement coverage of the incumbent depends upon his or her individual work history. To receive consideration for this position, you must provide updated required documents and meet all qualification requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

There is no substitution of education for specialized experience for this position.

Conditions of Employment: Must be a U.S. Citizen or National. Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt. Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution. Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit E-Verify. Must be 18 years of age. This is a drug testing designated position. You will be subject to pre-employment and random drug testing. Appointment is based on a negative result. This announcement constitutes 30 days advance notice. Must pass the Work Capacity Test for certain Interagency Fire Program Management or Fire Program Management positions. Secondary Coverage: Prior wildland firefighting experience is required. Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable). Some Fire positions may have Conditions of Employment such as: a valid state driver's license; a commercial driver's license (CDL); pre-appointment and random drug testing; or a physical or medical examination. The U.S. Government utilizes Trusted Workforce 2.0 to implement Continuous Vetting (CV) as a-whole-of government approach to personnel security. If selected for this position, you will be subject to continuous automated record checks of criminal, financial, and public record databases throughout your period of eligibility or employment, replacing traditional periodic reinvestigations. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Contact person

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