Accountant

Job Details

Position Overview

Duties

• Reviews and evaluates financial data and transactions recorded in the financial management system, including posting entries and reconciliations of cash, investments, premium receivables, and other accounts.
• Assists with the preparation of monthly, quarterly, and annual financial statements and related reports, including FCSIC's Annual Report, government-wide and regulatory reporting such as Office of Management and Budget (OMB) data requests and year-end audited financial statements.
• Analyzes trends in insurance obligations, Insurance Fund percentages, and projected investment income; coordinates with Farm Credit System (FCS) banks or Associations to obtain data or communicate information; and projects insurance premium assessments to FCS banks.
• Drafts and updates policies, procedures, standard operating procedures (SOPs), Board materials, and other written reports and documents related to financial management, internal controls, and program operations.
• Performs internal control risk assessments for FCSIC operations and the control environment pursuant to the Federal Managers' Financial Integrity Act (FMFIA) and other relevant guidance.
• Assists in the administration of the travel system, including routing changes, assigning proper accounting codes, and responding to employee inquiries; makes, allocates and reviews purchase card transactions.

Qualifications & Requirements

1. 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
2. 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 one of the following:
   1. Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law;
   2. A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or
   3. 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.

• Preparing or contributing to audited financial statements and an annual report, including month end and year end close, account reconciliations, variance analysis, and drafting or reviewing disclosures.
• Maintaining and reconciling the general ledger in an enterprise accounting system, preparing journal entries (including accruals and adjustments), resolving abnormal balances, and clearing reconciling items promptly.
• Designing, documenting, and testing internal controls over financial reporting; summarizing results; and supporting corrective actions to remediate control deficiencies. Performing evaluations and risk assessments over financial reporting processes using a recognized internal control framework such as the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations Internal Control-Integrated Framework.
• Preparing audit requests, schedules/support and responding to auditor inquiries through fieldwork and closing.
• Drafting clear accounting procedures or policy memos and communicating complex financial topics to non accountants to support decision-making.

Education

Conditions of Employment

• Must be a U.S. citizen.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Suitability for Federal employment, as determined by a background investigation.
• May be required to successfully complete a probationary or trial period.
• Submission of a financial disclosure report may be required.
• Resume and supporting documents (See How to Apply)

Evaluations

• Accountability
• Accounting Operations, General Ledger, and Financial Systems Oversight
• Accounting Policy, Technical Guidance, and Communication
• Arithmetic/Mathematical Reasoning
• Attention to Detail
• Audited Financial Reporting and Annual Report Coordination
• Customer Service
• Decision Making
• External Audit Coordination
• External Audit, Regulatory Reporting, and Technical Accounting
• Flexibility
• Integrity/Honesty
• Internal Controls over Financial Reporting and Enterprise Risk Management
• Interpersonal Skills
• Learning
• Reasoning
• Self-Management
• Stress Tolerance
• Teamwork

• Highly-Qualified Category: In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, applicants must fully demonstrate proficiency in all major aspects of the position.
• Well-Qualified Category: In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, applicants must demonstrate proficiency in some but not all of the major aspects of the position.
• Qualified Category: In addition to meeting minimum qualifications, applicants must demonstrate a basic level of knowledge, skill and ability of the position.

Required Documents

• Your resume showing (1) paid and non-paid work experience including your position title, start and end dates (month/year) of employment, hours worked per week, and duties performed (separated by position series and grade for each federal position, if applicable).
• College Transcript(s), if qualifying based on education and/or a certificate as a Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination.
• Other supporting documents:
• Cover letter, optional
• SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action that is most recent that shows you are/were in the competitive service and the highest grade or promotion potential held. A cash award SF-50 should not be provided.
• Career Transition Assistance Program/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program documentation, if applicable (e.g., Certification of Expected Separation, Reduction-In-Force Separation Notice, or Notice of Proposed Removal; SF-50 that documents the RIF separation action; and most recent performance appraisal.)
• Veterans' Preference documentation, if applicable (e.g. DD-214 Member Copy 4 showing type of discharge/character of service; SF-15 Form and related documentation; VA letter.)
• Certain Family Members Eligible under E.O. 12721. Your most recent non-award SF-50 and performance appraisal.
• Certain Military Spouses Eligible under E.O. 13473. Permanent Change of Station (PCS) orders, that lists you as authorized to accompany the Military member to the new duty permanent station; OR verification of the member's 100% disability (VA Letter); and/or verification of the member's death while on active duty (DD-1300 and Death Certificate) AND verification of the marriage to the service member (i.e., a marriage license or other legal documentation verifying marriage).
• Interchange Agreement with Other Merit Systems Eligible. Documentation eligibility as listed in each individual interchange agreement.

How to Apply

• To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application.
• Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
• After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
• You will be taken to the online application which you must complete to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application.