Government Affairs Specialist

El Paso County will be a trusted regional leader known for excellence in county service delivery. We provide essential public services to the Pikes Peak Region in support of our residents, businesses, and communities, enhancing the freedom for all to thrive.

About the role

Be the Voice That Connects Government and Community. Do you have a passion for public service, exceptional communication skills, and the ability to navigate complex issues with professionalism and diplomacy? Join El Paso County as a Government Affairs Specialist, where your constituent services work helps strengthen the connection between County leadership and the residents we serve.

In this role, you'll serve as a trusted liaison and resource between the Board of County Commissioners, County departments, and the public. Every day brings new opportunities to research complex issues, craft thoughtful correspondence, coordinate responses to citizen inquiries, and help ensure residents receive timely, accurate, and meaningful information. Your ability to build relationships, analyze information, anticipate emerging issues, and communicate with clarity will directly support informed decision-making and foster public trust.

This position is ideal for a professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment, enjoys solving problems, and can balance competing priorities while maintaining the highest level of discretion and confidentiality. If you're energized by public service, skilled at translating complex policies into clear communication, and committed to delivering exceptional customer service, we'd love to hear from you.

Responsibilities

• Serve as a key point of contact for citizen inquiries and constituent services on behalf of the Board of County Commissioners.
• Research, analyze, and communicate complex policy, legislative, and government-related topics in a clear and accessible manner to constituents.
• Draft professional correspondence, reports, proclamations, and communications for County leadership and elected officials.
• Build collaborative relationships with County departments, external agencies, and community stakeholders to ensure timely, coordinated responses.
• Track constituent concerns, identify trends, and provide leadership with meaningful insights to support informed decisions.
• Support transparency and accountability through coordination of Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) requests and other public communications.
• Supports El Paso County residents and elected Commissioners by managing a diverse array of citizen inquiries.
• Utilizing discretion, proactively responds to such inquiries with tact and within the policy parameters of the applicable elected official.
• Plans, organizes, executes, and advises on appropriate communication strategies and tactics as it relates to constituent response.
• Independently creates written correspondence on behalf of leadership and elected officials, including letters, explanation of complex policy, reasoning for decisions, and State law.
• Stays abreast of emerging issues, votes, and other current events to anticipate and prepare for future citizen requests.
• Advises leadership and elected officials on how decisions may be received by the public, media, or stakeholders.
• Establishes and maintains trust and positive relationships within all applicable elected officials and departments to efficiently manage and proactively communicate the progress of citizen requests.
• Collaborates and builds strong working relationships with applicable departments/offices to retrieve and communicate timely information to the public.
• Creates and maintains a database of constituent inquires/requests, tracks status/progress, and communicates trends to leadership.
• Researches, analyzes, summarizes, and regularly reports a variety of complex fiscal, statistical, and other information related to the program; compiles reports and correspondence and disseminates to the appropriate internal or external stakeholder(s).
• Works closely and strategically with appropriate parties as it relates to open records requests governed by the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA).
• Assists with Board of County Commissioner Proclamations, tribute letters, or certificates of appreciation including scheduling, drafting, suggesting and inviting guest speakers and securing approval in accordance with County policies.
• Serves as a Commissioner liaison with other County offices, departments, divisions, and external agencies.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent education.
• Three years of experience in a high-volume, public contact environment.
• Associate’s degree in a related field may substitute for one year of the required experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in a related field may substitute for two years of the required experience. Education substitutions are not cumulative; only the highest qualifying degree will be considered.
• Experience in constituent response generation and dissemination.

Skills

• Knowledge of pertinent Federal, State, municipal, and other local laws, codes, and regulations.
• Knowledge of government, public policy, the role of elected officials, and how decisions impact the lives of citizens.
• An in-depth understanding of El Paso County government, its mission, departments, and legal parameters.
• Maintain a high degree of confidentiality, attention to detail, and exceptional organizational skills.
• A strong command of the English language, including proper usage, spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
• Ability to work with and establish genuine rapport and trust with citizens, elected officials, executive staff, and other County staff members.
• Ability to provide excellent customer service.
• Ability to self-motivate, organize projects, and complete assigned tasks, frequently under deadline pressure.
• Ability to respond in a flexible manner and reprioritize as situations change.
• Ability to assess situations and make prudent and appropriate decisions, resolve conflict, and solve problems.
• Proficiency with standard office equipment and applications, including Microsoft Office products.
• Maintain regular and punctual attendance.

Preferred Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in political science, English, or business administration.
• Experience working for an elected official, in a government office, or related field.

Benefits

Employment is subject to the terms, conditions, and policies detailed in the Personnel Policies Manual (PPM).

Pay

Hiring Range: $62,000.00 – $75,000.00 annually

Schedule

This position has an anticipated work schedule of Monday - Friday, 8:00 am–5:00 pm. Evenings and/or weekends may occasionally be required; subject to change. Due to the nature of the role and its operational responsibilities, this position is not eligible for a hybrid or remote work schedule, as it requires full-time, on-site presence.

Pre-Employment Requirements

• Must pass conditional post offer background investigation and drug screen.

Work Conditions

Duties are primarily performed in an office environment.