Accountant/Senior Accountant

This is the journey-level class in the professional accounting series.   Incumbents perform the full range of routine and complex departmental accounting and record-keeping programs under only minimal supervision.  Responsibilities require the use of tact, discretion, and independent judgment.   Successful performance of the work requires thorough knowledge of governmental accounting practices and procedures, fund accounting, and fiscal management.  The Senior Accountant is responsible for more complex and higher-level accounting functions and exercises a higher level of discretion and independent decision-making.

Examples of Duties

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.

As an Accountant:
 

• Provides responsible professional and technical assistance in the administration and implementation of the City's financial, auditing, and accounting programs. 
• Prepares a wide variety of financial and statistical reports, including year-end reporting, budgetary reports, assisting in the preparation of the Comprehensive Annual Finance Report (CAFR), and preparing other legal documents and management analysis. 
• Monitors expenditures, revenues, and budget allocations to determine the City's financial status and prepares custom reports, graphs, and schedules as needed. 
• Prepares journal entries and reconciles general ledger and subsidiary accounts related to postings from payroll, accounts payable, cash receipts, and accounts receivable; prepares monthly financial statements, including distributing monthly revenue and expenditure reports to departments; prepares numerous monthly financial reports.
• Interprets, explains, and applies general and governmental accounting/auditing principles and procedures, laws, and regulations affecting the financial operations of municipal government. 
• Analyzes and reconciles expenditure and revenue accounts, including bond accounts; reviews and processes appropriation transfer requests between accounts; reconciles bond statements and bank statements to the general ledger.
• Participates in and assumes responsibility for various departmental programs including financial statements, general ledger, monthly statements, and special projects accounting; conducts and prepares special studies and reports. 
• Records and maintains appropriate controls for fixed assets, including City-owned vehicles and land; assists in the City's purchase orders and accounts payable system, auditing and financial analysis, grant accounting, and special reports. 
• Maintains and monitors the City’s grant funds and ensures compliance with rules and regulations governing the use of each grant.
• Receives and tracks property tax payments; ensures that property tax bills are remitted to the proper City departments for payment authorization.
• Tracks Capital Improvement Program expenditures and allocates funds to the appropriate Capital Improvement Project account.
• Performs annual audit of the City’s water inventories; conducts on-site inspections of inventories, records current levels, and reconciles any discrepancies.
• Assists in the coordination of the annual audits. 
• Assists with investments, portfolio management, cash management, debt management, new financing, annexations and subdivisions, and revenue and expense projections. 
• Participates in the compilation and preparation of the annual budget, including assisting other departments with budget preparation, providing personnel cost projections and estimated grant revenues and expenditures, monitoring expenditures to ensure compliance with adopted budget, and assisting in publication of the budget.
• Attends meetings, conferences, workshops, and training sessions, and reviews publications to remain current on principles, practices, and new developments in the field of accounting.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

As a Senior Accountant:
 

• Provides complex professional and technical assistance in the administration and implementation of the City's financial, auditing, and accounting programs, including financial report development, budget monitoring, forecasting, and collection of revenues.
• Participates in the development and implementation of goals, objectives, policies, and priorities for assigned programs; recommends and administers policies and procedures.
• Analyzes financial data and prepares a wide variety of financial reports and statements, including the City's Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, State Controller's Financial Transactions Report, etc.
• Analyzes and reconciles expenditure and revenue accounts, verifying availability of funds and classification of expenditures; researches and analyzes transactions to resolve problems; prepares monthly and year-end journal vouchers for a wide variety of financial programs.
• Coordinates and administers a wide variety of financial and accounting programs.
• Participates in the compilation and preparation of annual budgets, including assisting other departments with budget preparation, providing revenue and expense projections, monitoring expenditures, and preparing and updating cash flow and projections.
• Participates in the preparation of audit schedules and reports for external auditors and assists the Accounting Manager during the annual auditing process.
• Prepares payment requisitions for debt service transfers, fees, and agreements; maintains historical data on debt service requirements; projects costs and property taxes.
• Processes and reconciles revenues, expenditures, and technical transactions in compliance with all applicable Federal, State, and City laws, rules, regulations, and ordinances.
• Provides financial information to bond consultants, fiscal agents, investors, or consultants, as requested.
• Prepares and processes reports and records including cash flows, historical summaries, charts, graphs, and various memos and letters.
• Receives, reviews, and processes various reports and records including payment authorizations, computer reports, and fiscal agent bank statements, checks, and receipts.
• Refers to manuals, documents, and books including Auditing and Financial Reporting Manual and Governmental Accounting and Financial Reporting Standards.
• Prepares comprehensive financial and accounting activity studies, statistics, statements, and reports.
• Researches and analyzes technical transactions to resolve questions and validate data; ensures fiscal accountability and fund integrity for transactions and supporting documentation.
• Coordinates technical and financial information and communications between the division, other departments, and external agencies regarding allocations and accounting issues.
• Interprets, explains, and applies general and governmental accounting/auditing principles and procedures, laws, and regulations affecting the financial operations of municipal government; provides professional and technical guidance and training to other staff in accounting processes and procedures.
• Assists in writing and reviewing the Recommendation and Fiscal Impact sections of staff reports; prepares reports taken to the City Council and various other committees and boards.
• Attends meetings, conferences, workshops, and training sessions, and reviews publications to remain current on principles, practices, and new developments in accounting.
• Reviews, reconciles and analyzes financial data including inter-fund transfers, bank reconciliations, accounts receivable and payable, bank notes and loans, leases and other financial contracts and/or agreements; prepares various statements and evaluations, formulating recommendations based on findings; develops and maintains catalogues of data to include subsidiary accounts and general ledgers.
• Assists the Accounting Manager with special projects as required.
• Performs other duties as assigned.