As an Accountant in the Support Services Division, you will ensure accurate reporting of all accounting, cost, and budget data, and to facilitate the efficient use of allocated funds for the Regional Office (RO). Assists management in providing analytical and organizational expertise for all division activities, including financial, budgetary, and administrative.

Duties

Major Duties: 1. Apply agency policies and procedures to accounting procedures 2. Establish tables of accounts and assign entries 3. Prepare accounting records, financial statements, or other financial reports 4. Analyze overall business operations, looking at trends, incoming revenue, outgoing financial obligations, etc. 5. Recommend changes in accounting program operations 6. Provide internal or external auditing services as needed 7. Assist in planning and implementation of electronic accounting programs and databases 8. Provide technical advice on design of accounting or data processing systems 9. Provide advice to managers or staff on meeting regulatory requirements 10. Prepare recurring and regular reports related to accounting practices 11. Collaborate on program budget development 12. Assess need for modifications in automated accounting systems 13. Check accuracy and adequacy of budget justification data 14. Monitor obligations and expenditures for assigned program and support functions 15. Develop cost-benefit analysis for recommending changes in funding and budget plans 16. Develop justification for accounting policies and practices 17. Draft procedural guidance on audit compliance 18. Assist with voucher auditing 19. Serve as subject matter expert in accounting services 20. Integrate mandates for new legislation and regulatory requirements into accounting practices 21. Develop and deliver oral briefings on accounting practices and reports 22. Prepare written briefings for senior management 23. Identify problems in accounting practices and recommend solutions 24. Collaborate with different programs or agencies on budget/financial related activities 25. Provide answers to telephonic or personal inquiries on accounting issues 26. Provide written responses to accounting-related inquiries 27. Work with databases, graphs, charts, and spreadsheets 28. Develop and deliver PowerPoint presentations on a range of accounting program needs 29. Provide oversight of accounting programs 30. Prepare reports for managers regarding funds usage and availability 31. Serve as approving official for general operating expenses credit card purchases 32. Purchase card quality reviews

Requirements

• You must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this job
• Selectees are subject to a background/suitability investigation
• Selective Service registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• A probationary period may be required for employees and supervisors
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process
• This position IS in the bargaining unit

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement. Applicants must meet both the Basic Education Requirement and Specialized Experience in order to qualify for the Accountant position. The Office of Personnel Management's group coverage qualification standards, associated individual occupational requirements (IOR), and individual qualification standards covering white collar occupations in the Federal competitive service can be found here. NOTE: There is an Individual Occupational Requirement (IOR) for this series: Basic Education Requirement All applicants are required to have one of the following basic education requirements. A. Degree in accounting; or a degree in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. (The term "accounting" means "accounting and/or auditing" in this standard. Similarly, "accountant" should be interpreted, generally, as "accountant and/or auditor.") OR B. Combination of education and experience - at least (4) years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include oneof the following: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of paragraph A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in paragraph A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements. AND Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. To support your claim of time in grade, you must submit your most recent appointment, promotion, or within grade increase SF-50 (not an award or general adjustment SF-50). Some applicants may have to submit more than one SF-50 to demonstrate their eligibility.See the required documents section for more information. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. AND Specialized Experience: Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. In addition to basic requirements listed above, applicants must also meet the specialized experience requirement. Applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. GS-07: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-05) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as work that involves knowledge of accounting theories, methods, practices, and techniques using conventional procedures and practices; modifying techniques and resolve accounting problems by using knowledge of accounting systems; ensuring proper documentation and entry of accounting transactions within a large integrated system using knowledge of accounting principles; and the ability to create written communications to include letters, memorandums, operating procedures, and directives to convey information relating to the accounting process. GS-09: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-07) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as work that involves knowledge of and demonstrated expertise in accounting theories, practices, methods, and techniques; governmental accounting operations and requirements; analytical techniques to solve a variety of accounting problems; automated systems design practices and limitations; and the ability to create written communications to include letters, memorandums, operating procedures, and directives to convey information relating to the accounting process. GS-11: To qualify, applicants must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-09) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Specialized experience is defined as work that involves application of government-wide accounting practices and procedures, laws, and regulations; experience using accounting systems to complete transaction verification and analysis and reconcile accounting, financial and statistical data; demonstrating advance knowledge of automated financial systems and detailed accounting procedures; performing financial accounting functions impacting division and/or district levels within the organization; and the ability to create written communications to include letters, memorandums, operating procedures, and directives to convey information relating to the accounting process. OR Applicants may substitute education for the experience required. GS-7: 1 year of graduate-level education or superior academic achievement GS-9: 2 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree. GS-11: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify. Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for federal employment. You can verify your education here. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education.

Contacts

• Address Togus VA Medical/Regional Benefit Office Center 1 VA Center Augusta, ME 04330 US
• Name: Mary Chavez
• Phone: 515-323-7575
• Email: [email protected]