Located halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco along a six mile stretch of the Pacific Ocean, the small City of Pismo Beach (population 8,200) offers an incomparable quality of life. This fiscally strong and stable city is seeking a highly motivated Accounting Technician in its Administrative Services Department.
The ideal candidate will be pleasant to work with, have excellent customer service skills, be organized to meet a demanding schedule, and have local government financial experience.
Under general supervision, performs a variety of paraprofessional accounting duties in the preparation, maintenance, and processing of accounting records and financial transactions, including payroll, accounts payable, and accounts receivable; maintains City financial accounts and records and assists in the preparation of financial reports and analyses; provides responsible technical and clerical accounting support to professional staff in the Finance Division of the Administrative Services Department; and performs related work as required.
Interviews for this position will be held via Zoom following the close of the recruitment period.
Please take a moment to view our recruitment video for the Accounting Technician position! http://youtu.be/XRmwEMK3aeM
Examples of Essential Job Functions
Management reserves the right to add, modify, change or rescind the work assignments of different positions and to make reasonable accommodations so that qualified employees can perform the essential functions of the job.
When performing all assignments:
Performs complex paraprofessional accounting and financial office support work and prepares various reports; assists with special projects as assigned.
Maintains, audits, verifies and reconciles a variety of reports, journals, budgets, or related fiscal or statistical data; summarizes and posts data as required.
Audits and verifies information, including source data as well as manual and computer-produced reports.
Works with City departments to assist in preparing a variety of tax forms, grant applications, and special reports.
Interprets and applies Federal, State and local laws and regulations concerning financial and statistical transactions and reports.
Provides information to the public or City staff that requires the use of judgment and the interpretation of rules or procedures; meets with the public or City staff to obtain data, interpret information, and answer questions; prepares correspondence independently to answer questions, request information, or provide explanations.
Performs a variety of general office support work such as organizing and maintaining various files, typing correspondence, reports, forms, and specialized documents; proofreads and checks materials for accuracy, completeness and compliance with City and department policies and regulations.
Prepares and maintains computerized financial spreadsheets on a personal computer for ledgers and statistical records; prepares reports from spreadsheets summarizing information and financial records.
Balances financial information system controls; balances and posts cash receipts, payments, and registers; balances various other statistical and financial transactions with source documents and controls; closes the cash register and prepares bank deposits.
Provides technical and administrative support to the Finance Manager and Administrative Services Director as needed.
May exercise technical or functional direction over assigned administrative support staff.
Performs related duties as assigned.
When performing the payroll assignment:
Receives, reviews, verifies, and processes time recording documents to prepare payroll for all City employees; audits such documents for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with rules and regulations; prepares and balances payroll reports and records.
Processes, calculates, and maintains records of a variety of payroll actions, including new-hire setup, overtime hours, cost-of-living adjustments, incentive and/or premium pay, retroactive pay, benefit withholdings, wage garnishments, and final paychecks and pay-offs based on appropriate provisions; maintains employee records for voluntary and non-voluntary deductions; prepares payroll warrants and wire transfers; prepares reports and payments for various tax, financial, and insurance organizations.
Enters and maintains salary and deduction information including taxes, pensions, insurances and loan payments.
Prepares, reconciles, and remits employee deductions including wage assignments,
garnishments, pensions, and insurances; prepares and enters payment request for deduction payments; makes payment of Federal and State payroll taxes.
Compiles statistical data for various agencies; compiles current and previous years earnings for employee wage verifications.
Applies and ensures compliance with provisions of collective bargaining contracts and personnel rules as they apply to payroll and a wide variety of paid and unpaid leave usage.
Applies and ensures compliance with applicable tax laws and rulings with regard to the employee benefits program as well as earnings.
Prepares yearly sick leave buy back reports, spreadsheets and payments; prepares yearly W-2 spreadsheets, and prepares and distributes W-2 forms.
Conducts new employee orientations; provides new employees with hiring and benefits paperwork.
Conducts salary and benefit surveys.
Updates various payroll system deduction rates as required.
When performing the accounts payable assignment:
Processes payments in batches and logs batch reports as appropriate; processes warrant writing on a weekly basis; prepares documentation for payment; confers with vendors as necessary; enters and verifies data into the automated accounts payable system to produce payment; may prepare manual checks; prepares payments for mailing and files copies with backup.
Audits, verifies, codes, and batches accounts payable transactions; matches purchase orders, packing slips, and invoices; researches discrepancies and unauthorized purchases; checks allocations against department budget appropriations; prepares payment requests; balances and maintains retention accounts; liquidates purchase orders; processes purchasing requisitions for the assigned department.
Sets up new vendor accounts; obtains necessary information and paperwork from vendors; prepares vendor invoice tracking; inputs vendor invoices and prints checks; totals and balances accounts.
Maintains credit card accounts; processes receipts and reconciles to credit card statements.
Reviews source documents for accuracy, receipt of necessary information, and compliance with rules, regulations, and procedures; determines proper handling for compliance.
Receives vendor inquiries via telephone, fax, or mail; resolves any issues, problems, or requests using established procedures.
Prepares bank deposits; maintains warrant control log for check stock.
Maintain and update IRS W-9 information of vendors for IRS 1099 year-end tax reporting and processing.
Maintains signature authorization listing used to verify payment authorization signatures.
When performing the accounts receivable/utility billing assignment:
Reviews accounts receivable; analyzes reports for outstanding receivables; reconciles accounts receivable subsidiary ledger to the general ledger.
Maintains the daily financial records on utility accounts, including performing data entry, maintaining receipt records according to prescribed guidelines, printing and auditing reports, entering field data, preparing and balancing invoices, and preparing work orders.
Receives and balances cash receipts; allocates revenue to proper cost accounts; posts revenue; prepares deposits and related reports; prepares delinquent item reports, initiates and monitors delinquent processing.
Operates specialized computer billing systems; prepares and sends bills; sets up new
accounts and prepares closing bills for cancelled service; issues credit to accounts as necessary; reviews bills prior to sending to third-party vendor.
Schedules meter sets, rereads, hydrant meter installations, shut-offs, and collections; processes shut-off notices as necessary.
When performing the business licensing/transient occupancy tax assignment:
Maintains the business license database; researches new businesses and notifies them of licensing requirements; mails application materials; processes closing accounts; reviews and reconciles payment ledger against database of notices; verifies bankruptcy information and performs other research about business and property information; initiates work orders for inspectors as needed.
Calculates necessary fees; accepts and processes payments at the front counter, over the phone, and by mail, in cash, by check, or by credit card; makes change as necessary and maintains cash drawer as appropriate; balances payments and posts transactions in the accounting system daily.
Collects and enters City Bed tax payments and maintains associated files and spreadsheets; sets up new accounts and contacts delinquent accounts regarding payment.
Prepares monthly renewal, second, late, final, and delinquent notices.
Balances month end work and researches, compiles, enters, and classifies data for new business input.
Participates in the implementation of new business license rates.
Qualifications
Knowledge of:
Terminology and practices of financial and accounting document processing and record keeping.
Principles and practices of auditing accounting and finance documents.
Basic principles and practices of fund accounting and public agency budgeting.
Record keeping principles and procedures.
Computerized finance systems and computer software and systems related to accounting and finance processes.
Business letter writing and report preparation.
Basic arithmetic and statistical techniques.
Applicable Federal and State laws and local regulations; City and department regulations, codes, policies, and procedures; MOUs and policies and procedures of fiscal record keeping and accounting.
Modern office practices, methods, and computer equipment.
Computer applications related to the work; spreadsheet software at an intermediate level.
English usage, grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and punctuation.
Techniques for effectively representing the City in contacts with governmental agencies, community groups, and various business, professional, educational, regulatory, and legislative organizations.
Techniques for providing a high level of customer service to public and City staff, in person and over the telephone.
Ability to:
Review documents related to department operations; observe, identify, and solve technical issues and procedural problems; understand, interpret, and explain department policies and procedures; explain operation and respond to accounting issues for the public and staff.
Interpret, input, retrieve, and transmit statistics and other communications to and from the public or computer.
Perform detailed accounting, record keeping, and financial office support work accurately and in a timely manner.
Prepare financial reports and maintain ledgers and journals through the use of spreadsheets and/or word processing.
Review financial documents for completeness and accuracy.
Interpret, apply, and explain a variety of Federal, State, and local regulations, as well as policies and procedures of fiscal record keeping and accounting.
Analyze data and draw logical conclusions; identify and troubleshoot problems.
Learn prescribed formulas for calculation and reconciliation of assigned functions; perform mathematical calculations with speed and accuracy.
Perform a variety of processing/record keeping clerical functions; accurately compare, proofread, and verify lists of names and numbers.
Respond to and effectively prioritize multiple phone calls and other requests for service.
Maintain attention to detail and accuracy.
Prepare clear and concise reports, correspondence, and other written materials.
Make accurate arithmetic, financial, and statistical computations.
Organize and prioritize a variety of projects and multiple tasks in an effective and timely manner; organize own work, set priorities, and meet critical time deadlines.
Operate modern office equipment including computer equipment, specialized
software applications programs, including at an intermediate level Microsoft Word and Excel.
Identify and take appropriate action when unusual operating problems occur.
Use English effectively to communicate in person, over the telephone, and in writing.
Use tact, initiative, prudence, and independent judgment within general policy, procedural, and legal guidelines.
Establish, maintain, and foster positive and harmonious working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
Supplemental Information
Any combination of training and experience which would provide the required knowledge, skills, and abilities is qualifying. A typical way to obtain the required qualifications would be:
Equivalent to the completion of the twelfth (12th) grade, supplemented by college-level coursework in accounting, finance, or a related field and two (2) years of increasingly responsible technical accounting experience. An Associate's degree from an accredited college is desirable.