Accounting Clerk (Lte)

Salary : $62,076.24 - $72,036.00 Annually
Location : Mercer Island, WA
Job Type: Full time
Job Number: 00184
Department: Finance
Opening Date: 03/07/2024
Closing Date: Continuous
FLSA: Non-Exempt
Description
Picture yourself as part of a team dedicated to excellence in public financial services. The City of Mercer Island has recently added a limited-term Accounting Clerk position to its Finance Department. The selected candidate will be part of a departmental effort to implement best practices in local government finance working alongside an experienced, successful, and supportive management team, led by Finance Director Matthew Mornick and Deputy Finance Director LaJuan Tuttle.
This role provides data entry support to the Finance Department with daily, weekly, and quarterly tasks to reconcile City finances and provide key assistance to other departments. Helping with day-to-day operations is integral to this role while a significant strategic project to upgrade the City's new financial management software is underway. With the opportunity to work remotely and in-person, the position will assist with technical accounting duties for accounts payable and receivable, revenue, utility billing, and other specialized accounting functions for Finance, who supports the operating departments that are managing a variety of financial and public policy issues.
GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
Under general supervision, the Accounting Clerk performs technical accounting duties for accounts payable and receivable, revenue, utility billing, and other specialized accounting functions; reviews and enters data, processes transactions, maintains accounts, and provides customer service. Job tasks are typically sensitive and require a general understanding of accounting structures.
This is a limited-term (LTE) position for one year (12 months). Applications will be reviewed as received.
Essential Job Functions
The essential functions listed are typical examples of work performed by positions in this job classification. Specific duties and responsibilities may vary depending on department or program needs without changing the general nature and scope of the job or level of responsibility.

• Functions as a member of the financial operations team and works closely with management and department colleagues to accomplish day to day activities.
• Completes daily and weekly tasks including retainage tracking, scanning mail, data entry for month-end reconciliations, accounts payable data entry and check printing.
• Verifies, reconciles, and posts accounting entries is support of accounts payable, monthly revenues, cash receipts, and accounts receivable.
• Assures that input data is properly prepared, documented and processed for various ledgers, journals, and financial reporting needs.
• Tracks employee compensation and position changes through employee action forms filed by staff (only recently began on this task with the new budget on the horizon)
• Assists with the data conversion with the new financial management software implementation project, including maintaining consistent information and settings between different software environments.
• Using pre-formatted templates, creates and enters various monthly journal entries for posting to the City's current financial management software.
• Maintains strict confidentiality of restricted information.
• Ensures adherence to all established City policies, procedures, and protocols.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• This position has no supervisory responsibilities.

Qualification Requirements

• Associate degree in finance, accounting, business or public administration, or related field; supplemented by one (1) years of directly related public sector experience; or an equivalent combination of education, certification, training, and/or experience. Bachelor's degree preferred.
• Experience with Excel is required.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with OneSolution is desired.

LICENSES AND OTHER REQUIREMENTS
Valid WA State Driver's License with a driving record free from frequent or serious violations. A three (3) year driving record abstract must be submitted prior to hire.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Bookkeeping principles and practices.
• Data entry in enterprise-wide financial systems.
• Electronic billing and payment processing.
• Numerical ability to perform arithmetic computations accurately and quickly.
• Work with attention to details.
• Reconcile cash receipts for city services with bank statements.
• Print and prepare accounts payable checks for mailing.
• Demonstrated ability to utilize word processing, email, databases, excel spreadsheets, and in-house software systems to produce work and summary reports.
• Demonstrate excellent customer service.
• Communicate effectively with the public and other employees, using tact, discretion, and courtesy.
• Independently prioritize work to meet deadlines.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with those interacted with during work regardless of race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, genetic information, disability, political affiliation, military service, or diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
• Ability to commute independently to and from work and arrive punctually for designated work schedule (virtually or in person), including to community meetings and events.

Working Conditions & Physical Abilities
Depending on functional area of assignment, tasks involve the ability to exert light physical effort in sedentary to light work, which may involve some lifting, carrying, pushing and/or pulling of objects and materials of light weight (up to 20 pounds). Tasks may involve extended periods of time at a keyboard or workstation and extended periods of time standing and/or walking.
Tasks are regularly performed inside without exposure to adverse environmental conditions (e.g., dirt, cold, rain, fumes).
Some tasks require manual dexterity, in addition to visual and hearing acuity. Some tasks may involve identifying and distinguishing colors. Some tasks require the ability to perceive and discriminate visual cues or signals. Some tasks require the ability to communicate orally and in writing.
The City of Mercer Island strives to offer employees a comprehensive benefits package. Regular full-time and part-time employees (working 20 or more hours per week, or 30 or more hours per week for Thrift Shop employees) are eligible for insurance benefits beginning the first day of the month following the hire date. The benefits package includes 11 paid holidays and one paid floating holiday per year; vacation and sick leave; medical, dental, vision, and orthodontia insurance for employees and their eligible dependents; Employee Assistance Program; life and disability insurance; wellness program; deferred compensation options; retirement benefits through the Washington State Retirement System; and optional Flexible Spending Account. The City is a member of the Social Security System, and also a qualified employer under the Federal Government's Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
Details about benefits for non-represented employees can be found at Represented employee benefits are similar and outlined in their respective union contracts available at