CONTRACT SPECIALIST

Mayor

Exempt | Location: Civic Center

Annual Salary

$69,700.00 - $101,900.00

contact information

Mayor's Office HR Team
213-978-0600
Mayor.Jobs@lacity.org

job description

LOCATION: Los Angeles City Hall, 200 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles 90012

TERMS: Full-time, Exempt

SALARY: $69,700 - $101,900 (Mayoral Aide IV)

SUMMARY:

The mission of the Mayor’s Office of Community Safety is to prevent crime and violence through community-based strategies that impact the social and economic conditions that drive community harm. The office coordinates the Mayor of Los Angeles’ community safety initiatives, including civilian first responders, violence interruption, re-entry services, youth diversion programs, and capacity building programs for non-profit organizations working to address community safety. Through these measures we work in partnership with the community to positively impact the lives of the people we serve to keep communities safe.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

This position assists with research, procurement implementation, contract development, and negotiation. The Contract Specialist will also provide guidance on policy and program initiatives as needed. This position is critical to supporting community-led safety initiatives and will play an important role in assisting small nonprofit organizations in understanding and navigating the City’s bidding, contracting, and compliance policies and practices.

As a member of the Mayor’s Office of Community Safety (MOCS) team, the Contract Specialist may also perform duties outside of their core responsibilities to support program initiatives, special projects, and other assignments that advance the overall mission of the office.

Job duties include:

Draft, negotiate, and oversee professional services contracts for Community Safety special projects,
Provide research and analysis in support of community safety initiatives and legislative priorities;
Research and draft requests for proposals and administer the procurement process in accordance with city, state and federal policies.
Develop and negotiate contracts with other jurisdictions and private sector partners on regional homeland security and emergency preparedness initiatives.

REQUIREMENTS:

Masters Degree with 1-2 years’ experience in contract development and/or compliance
Excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to work with contractors, non-profit organizations, program staff and City departments to define and articulate project requirements
Strong analytical skills, demonstrating the ability to apply administrative policies and compliance functions

PREFERRED REQUIREMENTS:

Juris Doctor degree
1-2 years prior government or security-related work experience are favored and/or legal experience

How to apply

Applicants should send a cover letter and resume to Mayor.Jobs@lacity.org with “MOCS Contract Specialist” no later than Friday, October 31, 2025. Please note that applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, and suitable candidates may be contacted and hired before the application deadline. We encourage interested candidates to submit their applications promptly.

This is an exempt, at-will position. The individual appointed to this position will not accrue any civil service tenure, contractual employment rights, or due process rights. The incumbent may be removed, without any finding of cause, by the hiring authority. The City of Los Angeles is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. As a covered entity under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate on the basis of disability and, upon request, will provide reasonable accommodations to ensure equal access to its programs, services and activities. Please call (213) 744-9300 if you need assistance.

exempt employment

If employment is said to be exempt, it is meant that the employment is exempted from the civil service provisions of the City Charter. In order to receive a regular civil service appointment, employees must have successfully participated in a civil service examination, received a high enough score on the examination to be placed on and receive an appointment from an eligible list, and they must serve a probationary period. Exempt employees do not compete in a civil service examination, they are not placed on an eligible list and receive an appointment from that list, nor do they serve a probationary period. As a result, exempt employees do not have what is referred to as a “property interest” in their job. Exempt employees serve at the will of the appointing authority and can be terminated at any time without cause. Employees with a property interest in their job, i.e. civil service employees, cannot be deprived of their employment(discharged or suspended) without due process.

General Information About Exempt Employment

Exempt employees serve at the will of the appointing authority, and as such, they may be discharged, suspended or otherwise disciplined without cause. Exempt employees have no property interest in their employment, and any procedural benefit or other prerogative extended to them by their appointing authority is not intended to create and does not create any such property interest. No officer or employee of the City may make to any other officer or employee any representation of a property interest in employment which does not correspond to Charter provisions unless the City Council, by ordinance, permits such representation. No unauthorized representation can serve as the basis of an employee's reliance on, or expectation of, a property interest.

Employees Seeking To Become Civil Service Employees

There is no protective leave for an exempt employee appointed to a civil service position. Upon receiving a civil service appointment and passing probation, the former exempt employee will be subject to the Civil Service provisions described in Article X of the City Charter. Upon appointment, the civil service employee will begin to accrue displacement and layoff seniority on the first day of his/her civil service appointment and may file for promotional examinations for which s/he qualifies. A full or half-time exempt employee appointed to a full or half-time civil service position continues to: contribute to the Retirement System; accrue vacation time; accrue sick time; receive anniversary date salary increases; and, receive health and dental benefits identical to those received in the civil service position.

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