Federal Position Descriptions
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Assistant Attorney General Justice Programs

Assistant Attorney General (Justice Programs), Department of Justice
Responsibility
Management Scope

The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) had a fiscal 2016 budget for $197 million and 666 employees.3

Primary Responsibilities

• Provides federal leadership in developing the nation’s capacity to prevent and control crime, administer justice and assist crime victims
• Works to make the nation’s criminal and juvenile justice systems more responsive to the needs of state, local and tribal governments and their citizens
• Partners with federal, state and local agencies, as well as national and community-based organizations (including faith organizations) to develop, operate and evaluate a wide range of criminal and juvenile justice programs
• Sets policy for OJP; ensures OJP policies and programs reflect the priorities of the president, the attorney general and Congress; and promotes coordination among the OJP office and its bureaus, including the Bureau of Justice Assistance; Bureau of Justice Statistics; Community Capacity Development Office; National Institute of Justice; Office for Victims of Crime; Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention; and Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering and Tracking
• Administers a mix of formula and discretionary grant programs and provides targeted training and technical assistance, often through federal financial assistance, to scholars, practitioners, experts, and state and local governments and agencies
• Oversees formula grant awards to state agencies, which sub-grant funds to units of state and local government, and discretionary grant funds, which are awarded competitively to a variety of state, local, private and non-profit organizations4

Strategic Goals and Priorities
[Depends on the policy priorities of the administration.]
Requirements

• Subject matter expertise in criminal justice in order to understand the issues and establish credibility

Competencies

• Strong management and coordination skills to oversee bureau heads and work with a wide array of constituent groups
• Strong public-speaking skills
• Ability to remain nonpartisan and work across party lines, given the office handles important grant programs and issues that cross partisan lines
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills, for both within the department and externally
• Ability to work well across the Department of Justice, with other agencies and with the White House
• Excellent leadership skills, for both within OJP and across the different external constituencies

Past Appointments
  • Karol Virginia Mason (2013 to 2017): Deputy Associate Attorney General, Department of Justice; Member, National Finance Committee, Obama Presidential Campaign; Partner, Alston & Bird5
  • Laurie O. Robinson (2009 to 2012; 1993 to 2000): Member, Obama Transition Team for the Department of Justice (2008 to 2009); Director, Master of Science Program, Department of Criminology, University of Pennsylvania (2003 to 2009); Distinguished Senior Scholar for the Program on Crime Policy, University of Pennsylvania’s Jerry Lee Center of Criminology (2001 to 2009); Director, American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section (1979 to 1993); Director, American Bar Association Professional Services Division-D.C. (1986 to 1993)6
  • Jeffrey Leigh Sedgwick (2008 to 2009): Director, Bureau of Justice Statistics; Professor, University of Massachusetts7
AGENCY

Department of Justice

Mission: To enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law, ensure public safety against foreign and domestic threats, provide federal leadership in preventing and controlling crime, seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior and ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans.

COMPENSATION

Level IV $155,500 (5 U.S.C. § 5315)1

REPORTS TO

Associate Attorney General2

SENATE COMMITTEE

Judiciary

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Footnote
  1. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2017 (Public Law 115-31, May 5, 2017), contains a provision that continues the freeze on the payable pay rates for certain senior political officials at 2013 levels during calendar year 2017.
  2. https://www.justice.gov/agencies/chart
  3. Leadership Directories
  4. OPM
  5. http://www.allgov.com/news/appointments-and-resignations/assistant-attorney-general-for-justice-programs-who-is-karol-mason-130303?news=847233
  6. http://cls.gmu.edu/people/lrobin17
  7. https://www.justice.gov/archive/tribal/docs/fv_tjs/session_7/bios.pdf
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