City of Cerritos is hiring: Accountant in Cerritos

Under direction of the Accounting Administrator, performs a variety of technical and operational accounting and management functions, including general ledger, cash management and cash handling, investments, revenue and expenditures, accounts receivable and accounts payable, capital assets and project accounting, lease management, budget reporting, fund overhead allocations and transfers, successor agency debt service, water utility billing; audits, analyzes, compiles and reconciles municipal financial transactions, prepares and maintains financial statement and budget reports and documents; performs related work as required.

Responsibilities

• Conducts and organizes technical and operational accounting and management functions, including general ledger, cash management and cash handling, investments, revenue and expenditures, accounts receivable and accounts payable, capital assets and project accounting, lease management, budget reporting, fund overhead allocations and transfers, successor agency debt service, water utility billing, audits, and analyzes.
• Compiles and reconciles municipal financial transactions; prepares and maintains financial statement and budget reports and documents.
• Participates in the development and implementation of goals and priorities for the division; identifies opportunities and makes recommendations for improvement.
• Researches and analyzes general ledger revenue, expenditures and balance sheet accounts, and answers questions regarding account status and the proper coding of transactions.
• Participates in the implementation and management of new or revised accounting systems, procedures, and records; assists in the training of other city staff.
• Monitors changes in regulations and technology that may affect operations; identifies and resolves problems and inconsistencies involved in maintaining accounting controls and processes.
• Researches, analyzes, and implements Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) pronouncements, including preparing initial journal entries and ensuring compliance for future transactions.
• Maintains, analyzes and reconciles subsidiary and general ledger accounts; performs detailed year-end functions.
• Develops journal entries; identifies and resolves problems and inconsistencies; reconciles general ledger accounts; reviews, books and adjusts journal entries daily, monthly, quarterly and annually.
• Gathers and reviews financial information and data; prepares budget and overhead allocations; assists with development of the Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and the City’s annual Budget book.
• Coordinates and prepares audit work papers, supporting schedules and staff assignments; meets with and assists external auditors.
• Conducts and monitors posting, balancing, and reconciliation of the general ledger and subsidiary accounts as assigned.
• Prepares monthly and year-end revenue and expenditure accruals.
• Prepares monthly bank reconciliations; reviews discrepancies with deposits or withdrawals; identifies and resolves issues and discrepancies; implements new process/procedure to correct issues and deficiencies.
• Performs internal audit of investments, revenues, expenditures and miscellaneous revenues from various City departments and facilities.
• Provides instructional and technical support for point-of-sale system; maintains systems and general ledger accounts; resolves technical issues utilizing point of sale system with various facilities.
• Determines City's cash position and funds available; maintains and monitors daily cash flow with bank deposits; receives payments for various types of financial transactions in the form of cash, checks, credit card charges, wires, online payments, etc.
• Classifies payments to appropriate General Ledger accounts; reconciles deposits and lockboxes.
• Maintains Petty Cash Box; manages financial inventory as range cards, gift certificates, check stock and receipt books.
• Records and reconciles monthly investment activities; prepares portfolio and treasurer's report; prepares monthly investments reports.
• Assists in investment of idle funds, records investment activities, and prepares monthly portfolio report.
• Manages commercial utility billing; reconciles billing, payments, and aging reports; documents and records to General Ledger; maintains billing account historical data; prepares, audits, reports utility payments received.
• Interprets financial terms indicated on Ground Lease contracts; monitors and reports monthly billing rates; maintains up-to-date lease billing records for historical reference and contract renegotiations; reconciles accounts receivable aging report.
• Monitors incoming revenues such as property taxes, transient occupancy taxes, documentary transfer tax, franchise taxes as utility, trash and cable, water and electric utility, court fines, parking fines, sales tax, highway users' tax, ROPS, prop A & C, measures M & R, AQMD, SB90, RMRA, parking and administrative citations, etc.
• Generates monthly invoices; processes ground rent, general site improvement, landscape assessment, water, property damages and miscellaneous reimbursement billings; assists with resolving billing disputes or payment arrangements.
• Receives and prepares CCPA Artists disbursements.
• Prepares and processes Successor Agency reporting and debt payments on a semi-annual basis.
• Processes budget amendments and updates in the accounting systems.
• Assists in the preparation of the City’s annual Budget book.
• Maintains project and capital expenditure accounting systems.
• Prepares quarterly payments for State Energy Tax; funds overhead allocations and interest income allocations, and grant reporting as needed.
• Processes and submits State Controller’s reports, and Metro-related actual revenues and expenditures.
• Coordinates retention and management of financial documents/records for internal departments such as Water Billing, Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable to the guidelines provided.
• Attends and participates in professional association meetings, stays abreast of new trends in municipal finance and accounting.
• Serves as a resource to other City staff by providing technical assistance related to accounting; provides customer service to residents and vendors.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business, or a related field.
• Two (2) years of Accounting related work.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Advanced Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), practices, and procedures and their application to a variety of accounting transactions and problems.
• Principles, practices and theories of accounting, auditing, financial and statistical reporting.
• Established internal control procedures and guidelines.
• Budgeting procedures and techniques.
• Federal, state, and local laws, codes, and regulations.
• Modern office procedures and equipment including computers and 10-key by touch.
• Word processing, spreadsheet, and other related software applications.
• Applicable laws regulating public agency accounting and fiscal operations.
• Bank statement reconciliation procedures.
• Cash management/handling.

Ability to

• Understand, implement and apply accounting theories, principles and standards in a government environment.
• Ensure proper authorization and documentation for disbursements and other financial transactions.
• Review, analyze and reconcile complex financial data.
• Analyze problems to identify solutions.
• Audit, analyze, compile and reconcile financial and accounting transactions.
• Work independently with minimal supervision, set priorities, meet critical deadlines and follow-up on assignments.
• Establish and maintain cooperative working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
• Work with accuracy and attention to detail.
• Prepare statistical reports; analyze deviations and variances to established benchmarks.
• Review and interpret financial reports, transactions, and legal documents.
• Communicate effectively, both orally and in writing.
• Prepare comprehensive and clear financial statements, reports, and fiscal records.
• Identify process gaps and make recommendations for process improvement and streamlining.

Physical and Environmental Conditions

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Work is performed in an office environment.
• Use of computer keyboard and prolonged sitting.
• Standing, walking, and twisting, reaching, bending, crouching, kneeling, grasping and lifting accounting records and other office items weighing up to 30 pounds.
• Visual perception and discrimination.
• Speaking and communicating both in written and oral capacity.
• Mobility, vision, hearing, and dexterity levels appropriate to the duties to be performed.

Required Licenses and Certificates

• Possess a valid California class “C” driver license.