The City of Helena is an equal opportunity employer. The City shall, upon request, provide reasonable accommodations to otherwise qualified individuals with disabilities.
Under direction of the City Controller, perform a variety of accounting and administrative duties including City accounts receivables: depositing and recording revenues, and reconciling deposits to the City’s main checking account, ensuring accurate and timely revenue recognition, monitoring banking activity and establishing procedures and control measures to capture city-wide receipts. In addition, this position cross-trains with Account Payable position and acts in their absence to cover duties and supports the Controller with other duties as assigned. This is a centralized City function, which serves, supports and enables other City operations, and regularly works with outside agencies and the general public. Assistance is provided to supervisors and other department and divisions as needed.
Essential Duties: These job functions are the essential duties of the position and are not all-inclusive of all the duties the incumbent may be assigned.
80%Banking and Accounts Receivable
This position is responsible for preparing daily deposits, recording revenues, and keeping City deposits reconciled to bank accounts in a timely and accurate basis. Ensures appropriate documentation for each deposit is received and managed according to record retention policies.
This position processes cash receipts, adjusting journal entries and check reconciliations in the City’s accounting system.
Additionally, this position is responsible for preparing the balancing spreadsheet for our monthly tax and assessment revenue payments received from Lewis & Clark County. Once the tax and assessment payments are reconciled, this position must also prepare an import file and upload the cash receipts into the City’s accounting system. Position must be familiar with the county tax system to review city tax and assessment deposits to reports from the tax system.
Distributes notices of ACH remittances to City divisions and departments. Monitors and notifies appropriate City departments of any returned checks so they can be recorded in point-of-sale system.
Uses Excel spreadsheets extensively as tools to facilitate balancing between the bank, credit card processing companies and the accounting system. Creates reports and maintains spreadsheets to accurately record revenue from City divisions and departments.
Assists City personnel with records retrievals and revenue reports
Processes refunds and voids for cashiering batches.
Is highly knowledgeable of general ledger chart of accounts and monitors deposit activity to ensure all deposits and credits are recorded and reconciled according to established procedures and appropriate general ledger fund and object code accounts. Ensuring accurate coding of all deposits which is critical for revenue recognition and reporting.
Prepares monthly and annual reconciliations of cash receipts to close accounting periods. These include reconciling receipts from cash, credit card, ACH, and wire deposits; and check, ACH and wire withdrawals for each department separately and together and investments for the city as a whole, using multiple spreadsheets, queries, and reports from accounting software. This position is responsible for verifying that departments have entered revenue correctly through the Cashiering accounting software. If cash receipts do not balance to the bank, this position will investigate to resolve the discrepancies and perform any needed adjusting entries.
10% Accounting System Support
- This position acts as a liaison between Finance and other city departments to train, support and monitor cash receipt procedures throughout the city in the Accounting System. Recommends process changes and works with departments to analyze and recommend workflow approvals and other processes. Occasionally trains new users on Cashiering module.
- Documents and keeps desk manual up to date.
10% Miscellaneous
- Prepare a variety of monthly, quarterly and annual reports as requested by outside departments within the scope of job responsibilities.
- Supports the City Controller with special projects as assigned. Tests internal controls at offsite cash receipt locations.
- Acts as the administrator of the City’s Enterprise Software Cashiering module including new user set up and user profile changes.
- Cross trains and covers for Accounts Payable during absences.
- Any other duties as assigned.
Knowledge of:
- Customer service skills including active listening and problem solving
- Ability to work independently and master responsibilities with general instruction
- Ability to perform intermediate basic calculations with accuracy
- Highly proficient in organizing records
- Understanding of government operations and/or ability to learn in a timely manner
- Highly knowledgeable with generally accepted accounting and bookkeeping principles as they relate to accounts receivable, accounts payable and general ledger activity
· Knowledge of federal and state laws or ability to research and familiarize self as related to position duties.
Skill or ability to:
- Communicate effectively both orally and in writing
· Establish, maintain and foster positive, harmonious, and effective, professional working relationships with employees and the public
- Practice excellent time management and organizational skills
· Perform varied and responsible fiscal and operational duties involved in the completion of division operations.
- Learn and become highly functional in several major modules of the City’s software systems
- Exercise sound decision-making and problem-solving skills
- Exercise strong interpersonal skills
- Multi-task and work with routine interruption
- Exercise intermediate proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel & Word)
- Perform analytical and intermediate mathematical skills with accuracy
The position requires the ability to perform sedentary physical work with the ability to lift and carry up to 10 pounds regularly and on occasion up to 50 pounds. The position must have the ability to perform body movements applicable to records management and an office environment.
Performs all functions in the safest possible manner and according to policies and procedures. Participates fully with safety trainings. Reports unsafe work conditions and practices, work-related injuries, illnesses, and near-misses as soon as possible to assigned supervisor.
This position requires a minimum of a certificate of completion or graduation from a two-year business, vocational, trade school or college curriculum with emphasis in accounting.
Requires a minimum of five years of experience in using a sophisticated computerized accounting ERP system, including accounts receivable, cash receipting, bank reconciliation, general ledger and accounts payable modules.
Requires intermediate proficiency and working knowledge in Microsoft Word and Excel.
Frequent interpersonal contact and customer service experience in the performance of duties.
Other relevant combinations of education and work experience may be evaluated on an individual basis.
Must possess a valid driver’s license with acceptable driving record at the time of hire and have the ability to obtain a valid MT driver’s license within six months of hire.
Under general direction of the City Controller/Treasurer.
