Accounting Specialist

Overview

Perform a wide variety of routine and non‑routine accounting and clerical tasks to support the Finance Department. Areas of responsibility include Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Cash Management, administrative support, and customer service duties. Responsible for preparing, processing, analyzing, recording, reconciling, and maintaining financial accounts. Serve as customer service representative to the public as well as other City employees. Accomplish routine tasks independently and handle non‑routine responsibilities with moderate supervision.

Full‑time 40 hours per week – AFSCME‑represented position – 12‑month probationary period.

• Processes invoices and statements, monitors receivables citywide, maintains customer accounts, reviews and processes charges, reconciles systems and processes bankruptcy files, turns accounts over to collections, maintains and transmits information related to property liens and assessments including system development charges, loans and violations.
• Processes payments coming into the City’s financial software, reviews subsystems to ensure proper flow into the City Financial System, oversees the City’s daily operating cash requirements, processes and records payment activity in the City’s banking and investment accounts, acts as City liaison to banking service providers.
• Matches purchase orders to invoices, enters invoices into the City’s financial software, processes check runs according to department deadlines, reviews requisitions and invoices for accuracy and compliance with procurement policy and departmental guidelines.
• Sets up new vendors, maintains vendor W‑9 forms, reconciles vendor statements, researches and resolves outstanding balances on accounts, produces 1099 forms.
• Trains new employees and City staff in account receivable, account payable, cash management, Pcard transactions, internal controls, banking, and electronic payment processes.
• Performs accounting and data entry duties for accounts payable, accounts receivable, invoices, and purchase orders; generates operational and summary reports; prepares journal entries and balances system detail to summary accounts.
• Provides backup support services to utility billing: information provision, transaction processing, customer account reconciliation, daily deposit preparation, customer statement adjustments, and resolution of inquiries and complaints; serves as front‑line customer service representative for walk‑in customers, answering phones, routing calls, taking messages, and responding to e‑mail.
• Reviews Pcard transactions and statements, monitoring compliance with City purchasing guidelines and the Pcard manual.
• Assists in month‑end and year‑end processes, including preparation of audit work files, and annual audit by preparing assigned reports or providing documentation.
• Maintains confidentiality and exercises discretion and judgment in dealing with sensitive or confidential information within the guidelines of the City’s Identity Theft & Red Flag policy and customer service standards.
• Interprets and applies federal, state, and local laws, administrative rules, guidelines, policies, codes, ordinances and technical principles in a variety of circumstances; performs duties in compliance with department policies, guidelines and internal controls.
• Performs routine and non‑routine clerical duties such as spreadsheet/database functions (formatting, data entry, record maintenance and word processing/typing); may assist with clerical training, proofreading, editing, and review of clerical work.
• Performs administrative support duties such as maintaining calendars, scheduling meetings, arranging travel, and purchasing office supplies and equipment.
• Maintains files on vendors, customers and transactions in accordance with applicable reporting best practice requirements.
• Prepares meeting materials, public notices and announcements.
• Writes and/or reviews procedures, provides input regarding changes and improvements in procedures and processes; provides information and training to other staff and departments; composes documents, letters, memoranda or notices from brief instructions or…