Accountant

Full Job Description

The incumbent serves as an Accountant for the Accounting Section within the Financial Management Service Line at VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System.

The accountant must be vigilant in terms of accuracy, timeliness and reporting requirements of various functions assigned.

The incumbent devises solutions to regulatory or production problems and suggests improvements to accounting processes; and identifies measures to improve efficiency and effectiveness of the accounting operations.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 04/17/2026.

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-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. 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.

Basic Qualifications: Must meet the Individual Occupational Requirement: 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 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: Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality.

This can include up to 6 hours of business law; A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination; or 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.

AND To qualify for a GS-11, you must have one year equivalent to at least GS-9 specialized experience, examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Prepares journal vouchers, inter-office vouchers and expenditure transfers.

Processes cost transfer adjustments between specified cost centers so the accurate costs are charged to the appropriate functional area.

Works closely with engineering and contracting to complete reconciliations, timely capitalization of completed projects and verifying proper end dates on projects.

Interprets policies and regulatory requirements and makes recommendations for improvements. OR Have 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D.

or equivalent doctoral degree.

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/.

Major Duties:

The Accountant duties include but are not limited to: Classifies and processes transactions that include verifying the accuracy and completeness of the accounting data, compliance with regulations, determining the accounts and subsidiary accounts affected and determining the entries to be made.

The incumbent carefully analyzes each document/transaction to determine propriety of payment coordinates and resolves discrepancies and/or problems, and corrects rejects promptly.

Reviews transactions for timeliness and reasonableness and resolves problematic areas.

Verifies that obligations are set up timely and reports all delinquent obligations to Chief Accountant, taking action to ensure that delinquencies are corrected.

Ensures that funds are available to cover obligations to prevent anti-deficiency.

This includes review of undelivered orders, accounts payable, accounts receivable, suspense, outstanding travel, travel expense reports and others.

Researches and analyzes discrepancies or problems noted and determines the corrective entries required to adjust accounts. Also recommends actions to prevent recurrence of similar discrepancies.

Responsible for monitors reported as financial indicators by reviewing and taking action based on criteria to achieve a successful rating for the fiscal year to include Undelivered Orders, Equipment, Accounts Payable, Suspense Accounts, Accounts Receivable, General Post Fund accounts, 224 and Outstanding Travel.

Maintains oversight of the monthly open order process for VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, ensuring that service line responses are received, reviewed and taken action on by all parties involved.

Incumbent is responsible for conducting routine reviews of accounting transactions which requires the application of generally accepted accounting principles to ensure technical accuracy of accounting records and compliance with VA regulations.

Coordinates work flow between units in the accounting, budget, payroll and other Financial Management Service Line sections.

Incumbent is responsible for the accurate and timely preparation of recurring financial reports for submission to the VISN, Office of Financial Oversight and VA Central Office and for preparing special reports for use by local management and operating officials.

Responsible for updating financial data in Microsoft Access databases and Microsoft Excel workbooks and to write queries or functions for use in financial reporting.

Reconciles accounts, identify the sources of discrepancies, and makes the required adjustments to bring the account into balance.

Work Schedule: 8:00am-4:30pm, Monday-Friday Telework: This position may be authorized for adhoc telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Accountant/PD01412A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized