Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

Take the lead in disclosure of vital natural resource data for an informed public, leading to better decision-making and transparent, accountable government. Leverage your creativity and innovation to discover and develop new and evolving methods to administer public records intake, production, and tracking in order to efficiently and defensibly further the Ecology mission of clean air, land, and water.

Develop new skills and boost your professional portfolio in a field that is growing exponentially with the growth of disjointed cloud data services and information silos. Create and manage bridges between the public, executive staff, and our program records staff so that public record productions are timely and accurate. Enjoy a modern work environment with an innovative and motivated team, focused on accountability, trust, integrity, and customer satisfaction.

Enjoy the flexibility of a hybrid schedule, empowering work from home and office, providing less time in traffic and shrinking your carbon footprint. After the first three months, you will be able to work up to 80% of your time in an approved remote work location.

Agency Mission: Ecology’s mission is to protect, preserve and enhance Washington’s environment and to promote the wise management of our air, land and water for the benefit of current and future generations. 

Program Mission: This position will report to the Information Governance Office (IGO) in the Administrative Services Division of Ecology. The Information Governance Office’s (IGO) mission is to administer records and information practices to mitigate risk, promote transparency, and provide excellent customer service to the public and our staff. 

Application Timeline: This position will remain open until filled, with an initial screening date of July 26, 2022. In order to be considered for initial screening, please submit an application on or before of July 25, 2022. The agency reserves the right to make an appointment any time after the initial screening date.

About the Department of Ecology

Protecting Washington State’s environment for current and future generations is what we do every day at Ecology. We are a culture that is invested in making a difference. Join a team that is highly effective and collaborative, with leadership that embraces the value of people.

Ecology cares deeply about employee wellness; we go beyond traditional benefits, proudly offering:

• A healthy life/work balance by offering flexible schedules and telework options for most positions.
• An Infants at Work Program that is based on the long-term health values of infant-parent bonding and breastfeeding newborns.
• Continuous growth and development opportunities. 
• A wellness program that offers education, fitness classes, and an agency-wide fondness for outdoor meetings.
• Opportunities to serve your community and make an impact through meaningful work.

Our commitment to DEIR

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect (DEIR) are core values central to Ecology’s work. We strive to be a workplace where we are esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations.

Diversity: We celebrate and appreciate diversity; our unique perspectives and abilities enrich us all and lead to innovative approaches and solutions.

Equity: We champion equity, recognizing that each of us need different things to thrive.

Inclusion: We intentionally create and hold space so that we all have meaningful opportunities to participate and contribute to Ecology’s work.

Respect: We treat each other with respect and dignity, acknowledging the inherent worth of our diverse perspectives and lived experiences, even in times of uncertainty and disagreement.

We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued. 

Duties

What makes this role unique?

This is a unique position developed specifically to address voluminous record requests that impact Executive staff. You will work closely with Executive staff members who often manage sensitive records and have challenging time constraints. The best candidate for this position will be detail-oriented, professional, discrete, and respectful.

What you will do: 

• Coordinate intake, assignment, and tracking of Public Records Act requests received at Ecology.
• Make complex decisions and provide recommendations to Ecology staff statewide using advanced expertise in the interpretation of statutes and regulations.
• Research and Consult with programs and divisions on the fulfilment of a variety of complex public records requests.
• Defend preservation and collection efforts to maximize compliance and reduce risk of Public Records Act legal action.
• Make complex decisions and provide recommendations to Ecology staff statewide using advanced expertise in the interpretation of statutes and regulations.
• Consult with program and regional office Public Disclosure Coordinators (PDC) regarding document sensitivity and confidentiality, and advise the Public Disclosure Officer (PDO) regarding the application of exemptions and privileged redaction questions.
• Long term strategic planning for electronic record preservation, collection, review and production for the Executive Office.
• Track, route and verify fulfillment of public records requests.
• Guide records management practices for the Administrative Services Division.
• Provide input to the Information Governance Office for strategic and long term planning.
• Serve the State of Washington with public transparency, and enable the critical mission of clean air, land, and water.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

A total of Seven years of experience and/or education as described below: 

Professional level Experience: Conducting research and analyzing policies, laws rules or regulations, formulating recommendations, and coordinating implementation and ongoing evaluations of programs and strategic and long-range planning activities. 

Education: Involving a major study in business administration, public administration, health administration, law, environmental law, finance, economics, statistics, environmental management, environmental or public policy, or related field.

All experience and education combinations that meet the requirements for this position:

Desired Qualifications:

We highly encourage you to apply even if you do not have some (or all) of the desired experience below. 

• Two years dedicated experience working with electronic records search and retrieval. Experience includes searching for electronic files in various digital media such as email, file servers, and portable storage. Experience includes a demonstrated working knowledge of the legal requirements relating to litigation discovery and public records disclosure.

Note: Having some (or all) of this desired experience may make your application more competitive in a highly competitive applicant pool.

Supplemental Information

Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified candidates from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

Need an Accommodation in the application and/or screening process or this job announcement in an alternative format?

• Please call: (360) 407-6186 or email: careers@ecy.wa.gov and we will be happy to assist.
• If you are deaf or hard of hearing you can reach the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.
• If you need assistance applying for this job, please e-mail careers@ecy.wa.gov. Please do not send an email to this address to follow-up on the status of your application. You can view the latest status of your application on your profile’s main page.
• If you are reading this announcement in print format, please enter the following URL to your search engine to apply: https://ecology.wa.gov/About-us/Get-to-know-us/Jobs-at-Ecology.  

Application Instructions:

It’s in the applicant’s best interest to submit all of the documents listed below. Applications without these documents may be declined.

• A cover letter describing why you are interested in this position.
• A resume outlining your experience and education (if applicable) as it relates to the minimum qualifications of this position.
• Three professional references.

Please do NOT include your salary history. Wage/salary depends on qualifications or rules of promotion, if applicable. 

For Your Privacy:

When attaching documents to your application (such as Resume, Cover Letter, Transcripts, DD-214, etc.):

• Please be sure to remove private information such as your social security number, date of birth, etc. 
• Do not attach documents that are password-protected, as these documents may not be reviewed and may cause errors within your application when downloaded. 

Additional Application Instructions for Current Ecology Employees: 

Please make sure to answer the agency-wide questions regarding permanent status as a classified employee within the Washington General Service or Washington Management Service. Do not forget to select Department of Ecology as a response to question 2, and type your personnel ID number for question 3. If you are not sure of your status or do not know your personnel ID number, please contact Human Resources.

Application Attestation: 

The act of submitting application materials electronically is considered affirmation that the information is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information and any untruthful or misleading answers are cause for rejection of your application or dismissal if employed. 

Other Information:

Why work for Ecology?

As an agency, our mission is to protect, preserve and enhance Washington’s environment for current and future generations. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Joining Ecology means becoming a part of a team committed to protecting and restoring Washington State’s environment. A career in public service allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance.

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following:

Student debt: how working for Ecology can help

Collective Bargaining: This is a position covered by a bargaining unit for which the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE) is the exclusive representative.  

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply. Persons needing accommodation in the application/testing process or this job announcement in an alternative format may call (360) 407-6186. Applicants who are deaf or hard of hearing may call the Washington Relay Service by dialing 7-1-1 or 1-800-833-6388.

Note: This recruitment may be used to fill other positions of the same job classification across the agency. Once all the position(s) from the recruitment announcement are filled, the recruitment may only be used to fill additional open positions for the next sixty (60) days.