Financial Accounts Technician

Summary

The incumbent serves as the financial technician for the Vocational Rehabilitation Program (VRP) under Mental Health Service and is responsible for the accurate accounting for all control points for the program. This position requires a close working relationship with the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) or designee.

Duties

Duties to include but not limited to: Performs financial technician duties supporting the Vocational Rehabilitation Program (VRP), including accounting, payroll, billing, payment processing, fund control, and financial recordkeeping activities. Processes payroll for veterans participating in the Compensated Work Therapy (CWT) Program and other VRP components by entering, coding, verifying, and maintaining payroll information in an automated payroll system. Reviews payroll actions for accuracy, completeness, internal consistency, and compliance with applicable pay regulations, policies, procedures, and compensation requirements, including overtime, holiday, and special pay rates. Computes and prepares out-of-system payroll payments and maintains payroll records and related reports to ensure accurate and timely submission. Responds to veterans' written and verbal inquiries regarding payroll and payment issues and researches discrepancies to determine appropriate corrective action. Examines invoices, claims, and other requests for payment to verify accuracy, adequate supporting documentation, required certifications, regulatory compliance, contract provisions, pricing agreements, and proper authorization. Determines the appropriate appropriation and fund control point for expenditures and ensures payments are made only when authorized and sufficient funds are available. Coordinates with vendors, receiving personnel, and other appropriate parties to identify, research, and resolve discrepancies involving invoices, payments, obligations, and supporting documentation. Performs fiscal support activities involving the processing of receiving and disbursing documents, maintenance of financial data, vendor payment inquiries, and establishment of internal financial controls. Monitors available funds and assists in ensuring sufficient funding is available to support day-to-day financial transactions and VRP activities. Establishes and maintains veterans' direct deposit accounts with designated financial institutions and ensures related information is processed accurately. Examines, verifies, classifies, and maintains financial accounts and accounting data, including determining appropriate general ledger, journal, subsidiary account, debit, and credit entries. Reviews purchase orders, contracts, travel orders, bills of lading, and other financial documents to verify authorization, proper appropriation, account coding, and availability of funds. Records and maintains obligations against appropriated and non-appropriated funds and Fund Control Points and liquidates obligations upon notification that goods or services have been received. Prepares vendor invoices and other fiscal documents for payment and verifies amounts against original obligation documents; researches and follows up on discrepancies with vendors and receiving offices. Maintains accounting records and supporting documentation for multiple VRP program components and performs reconciliation and corrective actions when accounting discrepancies or errors are identified. Serves as timekeeper for the Vocational Rehabilitation Program and provides backup timekeeping support for Mental Health Service. Serves as a point of contact for vendors, VA employees, patients, family members, visitors, and representatives of community, state, and federal agencies to obtain, provide, and clarify financial or program-related information. Performs administrative and clerical support functions, including maintaining procedures manuals and memoranda, monitoring changes to applicable policies and regulations, preparing reports, and prioritizing workload to meet established deadlines. Provides courteous and timely customer service to veterans, families, visitors, and VA personnel in accordance with VHA customer service standards. Protects sensitive financial, patient, and employee information in accordance with the Privacy Act, applicable VA/VHA policies, and information security requirements. Maintains knowledge of applicable accounting procedures, financial regulations, VA directives, policies, and automated financial systems and applies established guidelines to resolve routine and nonstandard transactions. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm. Work schedule may change based on the needs of the agency. Telework: Not Authorized. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Financial Accounts Technician/PD102680 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/13/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience performing financial or accounting support work involving payroll, invoices, claims, obligations, payments, financial records, and account reconciliation; reviewing financial documents for accuracy, authorization, proper accounting classification, and compliance with applicable regulations and procedures; maintaining and reconciling accounting data; resolving financial discrepancies; monitoring funds and processing financial transactions using automated accounting or financial systems. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. How You Will Be Evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. You will be assessed on the following Competencies for this position: Arithmetic/Mathematical Reasoning Customer Service Flexibility Integrity/Honesty Interpersonal Skills Reasoning Teamwork Your experience must be fully documented on your resume and must include job title, duties, month and year start/end dates AND hours worked per week. A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on the online assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. 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; religions; 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. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. Other Information

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act. Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/.