SENIOR ATTORNEY - 31001829

Requisition No: 836362 

Agency: Division of Emergency Management

Working Title: SENIOR ATTORNEY - 31001829

 Pay Plan: SES

Position Number: 31001829 

Salary:  $78,000-$82,000 annually 

Posting Closing Date: 09/17/2024 

Total Compensation Estimator Tool

Senior Attorney

 Office of General Counsel

State of Florida Division of Emergency Management

This position is located in Tallahassee, Florida

The Florida Division of Emergency Management plans for and responds to both natural and man-made disasters. These range from floods and hurricanes to incidents involving hazardous materials or nuclear power. The Division of Emergency Management (FDEM or Division) is the liaison between federal, state, and local agencies. FDEM prepares and implements a statewide Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan, routinely conducts extensive exercises to test state and county emergency response capabilities, provides technical assistance to local governments as they prepare emergency plans and procedures, as well as conducts emergency operations trainings for state and local government agencies.

The Division serves as the lead agency for the State Emergency Response Team (SERT), whose primary goal is the coordination of the state’s efforts during disaster response and recovery. This coordination is conducted within the State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) in Tallahassee. Additionally, the Division manages the State Watch Office; the 24-hours a day operation tasked with providing situational awareness to stakeholders statewide. After a disaster, FDEM conducts damage assessment surveys and advises the Governor of the state of Florida on whether to declare an emergency and seek federal relief funds. It is against this backdrop that FDEM strives to demonstrate its mission of, “Coordinate, collaborate and communicate with our community stakeholders for a resilient Florida” along with our vision of, “Leading the Profession in building prepared and resilient communities”.

Position Overview and Responsibilities:

As a Senior Attorney, you will be in charge of providing effective and comprehensive legal counsel to all four Bureaus as and when needed: Recovery, Mitigation, Response, and Preparedness. This includes reviewing, revising, and/or drafting contracts, procurement documents, Federal/State grant and subgrant agreements, Memorandums of Understanding/Association (MOUs/MOAs), etc. for these bureaus.

• Oversee any and all rulemaking for the Division; by performing all tasks related to rulemaking including statutory research, drafting the rules, tracking the rule making process, attending all rule making related hearings, etc., as assigned by the General Counsel or Deputy General Counsel.

• Handle matters related to procurement, bid protests, and grants management. Provide legal counsel and advice to the Division regarding matters related to procurement, bid protests, and grants management. The Division is responsible for assisting subrecipients (local governments, private nonprofits, houses of worship) in complying with federal procurement standards located in 2 CFR Part 200 and including all required federal contract terms located in Appendix II to Part 200 of the CFR.  The Senior Attorney must be able to determine whether all solicitation and contract documents comply with all applicable state and/or federal procurement rules.

• Coordinate the processing of public records requests for the Division. It is the responsibility of the Senior Attorney to conduct the legal review for all records prior to production, including marking for redaction all exempt or confidential information and ensuring all exempt or confidential information has been redacted along with an identification of the statute containing the exemption.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities:

• Working knowledge of Chapter 112, Florida Statutes, (PART III CODE OF ETHICS FOR PUBLIC OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES), as applicable to the Employees of the Division.
• Knowledge of legal terminology, Florida laws, legal procedure, Chapter 120, Florida Statutes, etc.
• Skill in reading comprehension, analysis, research, and organization.
• Ability to provide legal counsel.
• Ability to interpret state and federal legislation, laws, and rules.
• Ability to employ legal reasoning and to foresee possible legal problems.
• Ability to communicate effectively and concisely, both orally and in writing.
• Ability to take action in situations which lack clear direction.
• Ability to take initiative on independent research projects.
• Ability to plan, organize, and coordinate work assignments.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with others.
• Ability to use independent judgment when releasing information to the public.
• Ability to collect and analyze data.
• Ability to conduct meetings and to make presentations.
• Ability to perform legal writing and prepare various legal documents. Ability to conduct effective legal research on Westlaw and/or LexisNexis.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Member of the Florida Bar in good standing.

Special Notes:

The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.

The Division of Emergency Management is committed to successfully recruiting and onboarding talented and skilled individuals into its workforce. The Division appreciates the service and sacrifices made by veterans and their family members. Further, FDEM recognizes the immeasurable value veterans bring to the workplace and is committed to increasing the number of veterans that serve in its workforce.

The Division of Emergency Management is committed to increasing recruitment and hiring of individuals with disabilities and improving employment outcomes. An individual with a disability is qualified if he or she satisfies the skills, experience, and other job-related requirements for a position and can perform the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodation. Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must contact the FDEM Human Resources Office at (850) 815-4177. FDEM requests applicants notify HR in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.

Successful completion of background screening will be required for this position.

The State of Florida and the Division of Emergency Management participate in E-Verify. This federal law requires all employers to verify the identity and employment eligibility of all persons hired to work in the United States.

In response to emergency events, Division of Emergency Management employees may be required to work irregular hours, to work more than 8 hours per day, to work extended periods (including weekends and holidays), to work at locations other than their official headquarters, and to perform duties in addition to those outlined in the employee’s position description. Employees must be able to deploy to emergency sites with limited advance notice.

The State of Florida is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Affirmative Action Employer, and does not tolerate discrimination or violence in the workplace.

Candidates requiring a reasonable accommodation, as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act, must notify the agency hiring authority and/or People First Service Center (1-866-663-4735). Notification to the hiring authority must be made in advance to allow sufficient time to provide the accommodation.

The State of Florida supports a Drug-Free workplace. All employees are subject to reasonable suspicion drug testing in accordance with Section 112.0455, F.S., Drug-Free Workplace Act.