Supervisory Park Ranger Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Summary
You will serve as a Supervisory Park Ranger (Protection) (Chief Ranger) of Redwood National and State Parks.
Duty location is either Crescent City, CA or Orick, CA.
Government housing is NOT available.
You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 5 nights per month. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.
First time hires to the Federal government normally start at the step 1 rate.
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Duties
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This position serves as the Chief Ranger in the Division of Visitor and Resource Protection at Redwood National and State Parks, with responsibility for managing protection programs and a variety of visitor uses throughout Redwood National and State Parks.
Based on an agreement executed between the National Park Service (NPS) and the California Department of Parks and Recreation (CDPR), the two agencies manage the National Park and three State Parks jointly, integrating programs and operations to the degree practicable to provide efficient, cost-effective management of resources and service to the public. This innovative approach is viewed as a model of federal/state cooperation but presents many complex issues and challenges to resolve. Incumbent takes a leadership role in implementing this agreement within the program areas for which they are responsible and coordinates the efforts of protection staff of both agencies to develop innovative and cost-effective solutions to issues that arise.
Some of the major duties you will perform include but are not limited to the following:

• Plan, direct, and manage a visitor and resource protection program, while serving as the park's senior law enforcement official.
• Perform the full range of supervisory duties to include performing overall work planning, work schedules and priorities, work assignments, safety and health of all employees.
• Develop, negotiate and amend cooperative agreements, MOU's, memorandum of agreements, and annual operating plans.
• Engage in extensive public and interagency relations to carry out the complicated divisional and park programs.
• Represent the park on several multi-agency and multi-discipline teams and workgroups.

For additional area information, please visit: NPS.GOV/REDW , Crescent City Travel Guide and Visit Humboldt County
For additional information about this position, please contact:
Patrick Taylor, Acting Deputy Superintendent
Patrick_Taylor@nps.gov
Requirements
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Conditions of employment

• Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• Pre-employment and random drug testing is required. You will not be appointed to the position if a verified positive drug test is received.
• A physical examination will be required, or a statement regarding physical ability will need to be completed. You must maintain physical fitness standards throughout employment.
• You are required to wear a uniform and comply with uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority.
• A financial disclosure report will be required within 30 days of appointment.
• Firearm qualification and certification are required for the role, and ongoing proficiency must be maintained
• You must at least 21 years old. You must be free of any domestic violence convictions.
• Prior to appointment, you must be determined physically fit by an authorized physician to perform strenuous and physically demanding duties, pass a medical examination, and pass the Physical Efficiency Battery (PEB). The PEB is a fitness test consisting of five different components: 1) agility run - measures the ability to get up from the ground and sprint while changing directions; 2) bench press - measures upper body strength for one repetition; 3) 1.5 mile run - measures cardio/respiratory fitness; 4) sit and reach - measures flexibility in the lower back, legs and shoulders; and 5) body composition - measures body fat. Prior to appointment, selectees will be tested in all five components, and must pass the agility run, bench press and 1.5 mile run in the 25th percentile.

*Additional Requirements located under Qualifications*
Qualifications
Requirements Continued...
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.
This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will 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.
Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated. 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.
This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period.
Qualifications:
All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 08/14/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.
For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.
Selective Placement Factors: This position requires a special qualification that has been determined to be essential to perform the duties and will be used as a screen out element. If you do not provide evidence that you possess the following selective factor(s), you will be rated not qualified.

• Applicants must be at least 21 years of age.
• Must currently possess or previously held (within the past three years) a valid Type I NPS Law Enforcement Commission, or equivalent, by 08/14/2026. More information can be found in the 'Education' section of this job announcement.
• This is a covered secondary law enforcement position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S. C. 8336(c) (CSRS) and 8412(d) (FERS). In addition to the qualifying experience and/or education described above, applicants for this position must possess experience gained by substantial service in a primary law enforcement position or equivalent.

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Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:
Experience: To qualify at the GS-13 grade level, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to successfully perform the duties of this position.
Examples of specialized experience may include:

• Investigating alleged violations of laws or regulations.
• Collecting and maintaining evidence according to established procedures and professional standards
• Collaborating with other law enforcement or emergency response agencies on investigations or emergency incidents
• Leading and/or supervising law enforcement or resource protection employees
• Serving as Incident Commander or Operations Chief on all-hazard operations (e.g., emergency services, search and rescue, special security events, etc.).

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; 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.
Education
Type I Law Enforcement Commission: Must currently possess or previously held (within the past three years), a FLETC issued Land Management Police Training, full Type I Law Enforcement Commission or equivalent; or be qualified to receive a Type I Commission upon appointment.
This position does not allow substituting education for experience.
Additional information
Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.
If otherwise eligible and qualified, you may be offered a recruitment or relocation incentive. The decision to offer an incentive will be made on a case-by-case basis and is neither promised nor guaranteed. For information visit: Recruitment Incentive or Relocation Incentive. A continued service agreement may be required if it is determined you are eligible for a permanent change in duty station (PCS), recruitment, or relocation incentive.
Related Non-Federal experience or related experience as retired members of the uniformed services may be credited towards computing entitlement to leave accrual, at managerial discretion, providing that experience meets certain criteria. This provision allows new employees to earn annual leave at a higher rate than would otherwise be allowed. (5 Code of Federal Regulations, 630).
All Department of the Interior (DOI) employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here, DOI Ethics Prohibitions | U.S. Department of the Interior.
Physical Demands: This position involves a combination of office and field work that entails walking, driving, or riding, bending, sitting, and standing. In addition, field work requires hiking. Office work is done at a desk with little physical exertion.
The incumbent is sometimes required to work under unusual and highly stressful conditions requiring emotional stability and the ability to think clearly under pressure. Emergency operator may involve arduous work under hazardous conditions. As a Commissioned National Park Ranger, incumbent must meet applicable NPS medical and fitness requirements.
Work Environment: The incumbent's work environment varies from an office setting to an outdoors work environment. Field work may expose incumbent to adverse weather conditions and natural hazards commonly found in a park setting, including potentially dangerous flora, fauna, or physical resources. Incumbent's duties will frequently require the incumbent to work in communities in Northern California and periodically to travel by vehicle or air to locations elsewhere in California on in the country. Incumbent is periodically required to wear protective clothing or equipment while working in the field.
The duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.
Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.
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Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.
Benefits
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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.
This is a secondary-administrative law enforcement position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S. C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U. S. C. 8412 (d) (FERS). Applicants may meet qualification requirements, but may not be eligible for special retirement coverage. If such an applicant is selected, they will be placed in the regular retireme