Accountant

Summary This position is located at the Veterans Benefits Administration Finance Center (VBAFC) Hines, IL and is organizationally aligned under the Office of Financial Management (OFM), Veterans Benefits Administration. The incumbent in this position functions as an Accountant and serves under the supervision of the Supervisory Accountant (Division Chief). The VBAFC provides financial management support services for the VA Benefit Programs with a budget of over $161 billion annually. Responsibilities Specific duties include: The incumbent of this position is tasked with providing professional accounting duties and financial management support for the VA Benefit Payment programs and all systems affecting programs supported by the VBA Finance Center to include day-to-day operational and accounting system processing and analysis: Administers an accounting system designed to track, reconcile, and report on agency administered programs and/or appropriations for which the agency has legislative oversight and responsibility. Assists in developing accounting and financial procedures and resolving technical problems in executing a computerized, integrated accounting system. Responsible for ensuring the accuracy of official accounting records and documents for all VA benefit programs. Assists responsible Finance Center, VA Central Office, and other Federal agency staff in the analysis and resolution of complex accounting system issues and processes within assigned program areas. Solves complex reporting problems encountered in the review, analysis, reconciliation, and consolidation of various accounting and financial reporting applicable to VBAFC appropriations and funds. The incumbent will ensure data used to update VA financial records (for example general ledger, budget accounts and subsidiary records) is correct and recorded timely. Accounting data is updated in a number of appropriations. The accountant is responsible for reviewing several source documents and data elements used to update financial records. This review can occur prior to or after financial records have been updated. The incumbent shall reconcile and validate data entered to a variety of specialized accounts that are integrated into a large complex accounting system. Performs several complex reconciliations between the general ledger and number of subsidiary systems. Verifies totals, identifies pending items, follows up on variances, and initiates proper corrective actions. The incumbent shall serve as a Certifying Officer for review and disbursement of daily and recurring beneficiary payments and verification of funding availability and accuracy of financial reporting.. The incumbent shall also serve as a financial accounting transaction reviewer and approver for lower grade accountants. Provides analysis on financial matters associated with control of funds. The incumbent applies budget analysis, cost, forecasting, and planning methods to ensure reports, plans, and strategies are consistent with official guidance, and support program goals and initiatives. Provides financial advice and assistance for programs both external to the organization and administered by the agency. Reviews and determines correct accounting transactions. Reviews rejected transactions and inputs corrections ensuring financial and subsidiary records accurately reflect all accounting transactions. Ensures all entries used to record accounting events are accurate and meet guidance provided by Treasury and others. Provides financial statements to program officials for informational and planning purposes. Studies existing accounting procedures and devises solutions to regulatory or production problems Work Schedule: Full time, Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Compressed/Flexible: Available Telework: Available Virtual: This is a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Accountant;38825A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not Required Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:09/25/2024. 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. To verify your eligibility, you must submit a copy of your most recent Notification of Personnel Action, Standard Form 50 (SF-50). The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. You must provide a copy of your most recent SF-50 that indicates proof of status, and shows Time in Grade (for example, you were a career or career-conditional employee) and identifies your position title, series, grade, step, salary, tenure, and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must also submit your most recent promotion or within-grade increase in addition to your recent SF-50. If you previously held a higher grade, you must also submit any SF-50 showing that grade. DO NOT submit Award SF-50s and/or General Adjustment SF-50s as they cannot be used to prove time-in-grade. For a GS-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11 level. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENT: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-11 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: Degree: 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 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 applicants background must also include one of 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 applicants education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements. Education Substitution: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law; Volunteer 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week.. Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary but involves use of a personal computer. A degree of manual dexterity and visual acuity enough to utilize these tools are required. Work requires considerable data input, speaking in a group setting, and working at a personal or laptop computer. A moderate amount of standing and walking is required in getting to and from meeting places away from the worksite. The incumbent may become fatigued due to reading difficult types of printed and handwritten material over an extended period. No special physical demands are required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Managements website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to be credited towards qualifications. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All education claimed by applicants will be verified upon appointment. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript to receive credit. Additional Information VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPMs Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. For more information on the “Who may apply” eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicants criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), https://www.va.gov/EMPLOYEE/docs/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf