Enable America Jobs

Summary Securing Travel, Protecting People - At the Transportation Security Administration, you will serve in a high-stakes environment to safeguard the American way of life. In cities across the country, you would secure airports, seaports, railroads, highways, and/or public transit systems, thus protecting America's transportation infrastructure and ensuring freedom of movement for people and commerce. Responsibilities This Accountant position is located Chief Finance Office, Financial Management Division, Accounting, Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Duties include but are not limited to: Coordinates and oversees complex accounting analysis and reconciliations, prepares and assists journeymen level accountants with reconciliations, journal vouchers, and other related general ledger entries for the monthly reporting to the Department of the Treasury (Treasury) and DHS. Provides guidance and training to TSA internal stakeholders as required for various accounting related activities. Conducts and documents periodic management control reviews per audit policies for the annual internal and external financial audit. Oversees the clearing of daily suspense items, revenue analysis and reconciliations for monthly and quarterly reports per DHS, Treasury, and other policy standards and assists junior staff to ensure accurate reporting to Treasury. Identifies, researches, evaluates and recommends modifications or improvements to financial/accounting procedures, policies, and financial systems that can be identified as more efficient and accurate for processing recorded transactions. Examines sub-ledgers against reports and automated databases for unreconciled transactions, identifies discrepancies in the posting of current and past transactions, records and proposes corrections for supervisor approval, enters corrections for erroneous postings and accounting classifications, and balances, reconciles and adjusts accounts and records to produce periodic financial reports and analyses. Recommends corrective actions as appropriate. Ideal Candidate: The ideal candidate is an experienced professional who has excellent analytical, time-management, and communication skills; is a team player; and has thrived in Federal accounting, general ledger monthly closing, and financial statements preparation. The candidate must have experience in either interpreting and applying U.S. Treasury USSGL accounting scenarios (or private sector accounting scenarios), building strong working relationships with internal and external customers, or writing guidance to implement and change an organization's financial management practices and system operations. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must possess U.S. Citizenship or be a U.S. National. You must have reached the minimum age (18) at the time of application. You must complete a favorable Background Investigation (BI). Selective Service registration is required. If you fail to meet the conditions of employment or any other pre-employment requirements, such as missing any of the scheduled appointments, the hiring agency may rescind their tentative offer of employment. Applying to this announcement certifies that you give permission for TSA to share your application with others in DHS for similar positions. Any offers of employment made pursuant to this announcement will be consistent with all applicable authorities, including Presidential Memoranda, Executive Orders, interpretive U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) guidance, and Office of Management and Budget plans and policies concerning hiring. These authorities are subject to change. Qualifications To qualify for the SV-J Pay Band (equivalent to GS-14), you must have one year of specialized experience at the SV-I or GS-13 in the Federal service or equivalent experience in the private sector. Specialized experience is defined as experience that has equipped you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position. Such experience is defined as: Experience applying the United States Standard General Ledger (USSGL) to perform, reconcile, analyze and monitor the full scope of financial activities (i.e. reviewing system posting logic models, identifying abnormal general ledgers balances, analyzing budgetary vs proprietary balance relationships, reconciling subsidiary balances to the general ledger in the financial system) in compliance with Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board (FASAB), the U.S. Treasury, Office of Management and Budget, and other accounting standard-setting organizations. Experience developing/advising new or existing policies or procedures to improve accounting processes. Experience independently manages key operational accounting activities (i.e., training less experienced staff, recommending corrective actions, developing/reviewing financial policies and guidelines). The candidates should possess the skills listed above and one or more of the following 1. Applying FASAB standards and Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) to analyze, reconcile, and report on intergovernmental transactions; prepare necessary financial schedules related to elimination entries and trading partner discrepancies; and prepare appropriate journal entries that comply with USSGL. 2. Reviewing payroll accounting transactions prior to posting; prepare payroll accruals; reconcile payroll disbursements from multiple sources to Treasury disbursements; identifying and resolving discrepancies; and preparing any necessary corrections to ensure accurate financial reporting. 3. Reconciling Fund Balance with Treasury to agency financial reporting, identify discrepancies, document corrective actions, and prepare appropriate journal entries that comply with USSGL. Credit for experience is given based on a 40-hour workweek. Part-time experience is credited on a part-time ratio, i.e., working 20 hours per week for two months equals one month of experience. No additional credit is given for overtime. National Service Experience (i.e., 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; religious; 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. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize employment offers made to current or former political appointees. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, Non-career SES or Presidential Appointee employee in the Executive Branch, you must disclose this information to the Human Resources Office. Resumes must include the following: Narrative description of duties with start and end dates (including the month and year) for work experience. State the number of hours worked in a position (i.e. full-time or part-time). If part-time, state the total number of hours worked per week. Performance level (i.e. band or grade) Utilizing the USAJOBS Resume Builder and completing all available fields is strongly encouraged. You must meet the qualification requirements for this position no later than the closing date of the vacancy announcement. Education Basic Requirements A. 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 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 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. NOTE: (You MUST submit copies of your proof of education as described in the vacancy announcement; failure to submit required documents by the close of the announcement may result in an Ineligible rating.) Additional Information Eligibility to apply for other Federal positions: TSA is an Excepted Service agency exempt from most of Title 5 United States Code, including regulations which apply to displaced Federal employees (CTAP/ICTAP) of other agencies, and employment with TSA does not confer "Competitive Status" that generally results from selection and service in Competitive Service agencies. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has established an Interchange Agreement, which allows most permanent TSA employees to apply and be considered for vacancies in Competitive Service agencies. Information from OPM on this or other Interchange Agreements is available at: www.opm.gov/ To ensure the accomplishment of our mission, DHS requires every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully pass a background investigation as a condition of placement into this position. DHS uses E-Verify, an Internet-based system, to confirm the eligibility of all newly hired employees to work in the United States. Learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities. If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment. TSA employees who are absent for the purpose of performing military duty may apply for any vacancies announced in their absence. More than one position may be filled from this announcement. If you are entering TSA employment on an appointment without time limitations, you must serve a basic trial period unless you have already met the requirement. DHS offers competitive salaries and an attractive benefits package, including: health, dental, vision, life, and long-term care insurance; retirement plan; Thrift Savings Plan [similar to a 401(k)]; Flexible Spending Account; Employee Assistance Program; personal leave days; and paid federal holidays. Other benefits may include flexible work schedules; telework; tuition reimbursement; transportation subsidies; uniform allowance; health and wellness programs; and fitness centers. DHS is committed to employee development and offers a variety of employee training and developmental opportunities. For more information, go to the DHS Careers website and select "Benefits." Disabled veteran leave will be available to any Federal employee hired on or after November 5, 2016, who is a veteran with a service-connected disability rating of 30 percent or more. Employees who transfer to TSA from an agency that allows employees to maintain an annual leave balance higher than the maximum accumulation for the appointed position will have their leave ceiling set to the maximum accumulation for the appointed position (e.g., United States duty location - 240 hours, foreign duty location - 360 hours, or TSES position - 720 hours). TSA will not make a monetary payment for any leave forfeited under these circumstances.