Government Relations Policy Advisor

Government Relations Policy Advisor

The City of Auburn, a thriving municipality in the Puget Sound area, is seeking a Government Relations Policy Advisor. This position performs professional work managing the City's external relationships with other governmental agencies and legislative bodies whose deliberations and actions impact the City and its citizens. Duties include, but are not limited to, advising the Mayor, Chief Administrative Officer, Council, and staff (directors and professional staff at all levels within the organization) on a broad range of intergovernmental and regional policy issues affecting the City and region; providing leadership in strategic planning, policy development, and advocacy on a broad array of City and regional issues; developing and coordinating City positions on legislative issues; and advancing the City's interests in regional and inter-jurisdictional forums, working in cooperation with staff and elected officials.

The ideal candidate is someone who can step in and contribute immediately. They will partner closely with the Mayor, City leadership, and the City Council to advance the City's legislative priorities and will bring an effective system for tracking, analyzing, and sharing legislative developments. They will also establish a consistent, ongoing process for managing legislative priorities and conduct regular check-ins on regional policy issues. Staying well-informed on federal, state, and regional politics is essential, as are exceptional organization and strong communication skills.

The City of Auburn is a dynamic and growing city in the South Puget Sound with a vibrant city core and diverse population of engaged residents. The Government Relations Policy Advisor has the unique position of representing and championing the City to the various legislative bodies across the state while working closely with government partners to further the City of Auburn's agenda and policies. The position will work under the discretion of the mayor alongside the executive leadership team to develop wide-ranging policy and advocating on the behalf of the city on regional issues.

In this role, you will :

• Represent the City of Auburn during the Washington State Legislative Session, track, monitor, analyze, and coordinate the City's interests with lawmakers across the state.
• Advise City leadership on a broad range of intergovernmental and regional policy issues affecting the City and region via regular meetings and check-ins.
• Develop strategic initiatives and approaches around policy creation and implementation.
• Create and maintain an annual legislative agenda with staff alongside City leadership and lobbyists, with materials that will evolve and change throughout the months and years. Keep this living document in a publicly-accessible area such as the City website, with concerted, deliberate, and timely updates.
• Manage and monitor the work of contracted consultants as it relates to government relations and policy advisement.

While these duties will be the primary focus of the job, the full job description includes a more comprehensive list of responsibilities.

What we're looking for...

Certifications / licenses required :

Note : This position will be required to be fingerprinted and complete the CJIS (Criminal Justice Information Services) Security Certification Test to be allowed to view sensitive information and have unescorted access while at the Police Department (per Washington State Patrol ACCESS unit).

Why choose the City of Auburn?

Team Auburn values diverse perspectives, life experiences, and welcomes applications from people who will help us consistently demonstrate the values of equity, respect, and partnership. The department encourages people of all backgrounds to apply, including Black, Indigenous, and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ, people with disabilities, and veterans. Individuals interested in joining our team must be committed to racial, social, and economic equality for all people in our community. The City of Auburn is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer. No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

If you are interested in pursuing this position, please follow the application instructions carefully. The City of Auburn is dedicated to building an inclusive, informed city, with opportunities for all. In alignment with that goal, the City has adopted an anonymous application process that prevents hiring managers from seeing personal identifiers, including names, addresses, and other similar information. This eliminates the possibility of unintentional or implicit bias during the initial screening of applications. Please make sure to submit a complete, detailed, and updated job application, and thoroughly answer the supplemental questions prior to the submission deadline! You must meet the minimum qualifications to move forward in the screening process. Please note that if you are selected to move forward after an interview, a background check, driving abstract review, and reference check will be completed before an official job offer will be made. We primarily communicate via email during the recruitment process. E-mails from auburnwa.gov and / or governmentjobs.com should be placed on your safe domain list to ensure you receive notifications in a timely manner. As a precaution, you may also want to check your junk email folders.

Contact Information : If you have any questions, please contact Chardae Gillespie, HR Coordinator, at cgillespie@auburnwa.gov.