Senior Accountant - Behavioral Health (Open and Promotional)

Full Job Description

San Mateo County Health is accepting applications for Senior Accountant - Behavioral Health.

The Senior Accountant plans, oversees, coordinates, and monitors a major accounting function and performs complex professional accounting work related to the Countywide and departmental financial systems.

This advanced specialist and/or supervisory role exercises a high level of independent judgment on complex and specialized assignments and carries significant accountability for ongoing decisions.

Incumbents may lead the implementation or modification of accounting systems, project revenues and expenditures, and support budget development and fiscal reporting.

This position primarily supports Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) -funded activities.

BHSA was established through passage of Proposition 1 in 2024, with full implementation beginning July 1, 2026.

BHSA expands upon the former Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) to integrate mental health and substance use disorder services, address homelessness through housing supports, and strengthen accountability and equity across California’s behavioral health system.

There is currently one regular vacancy in the Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Division located in San Mateo, CA. Occasional travel may be required to attend meetings.

Key Responsibilities

• Monitor, analyze, and report financial data to ensure compliance with BHSA requirements
• Project and track BHSA revenues and expenditures, including monitoring funded projects and related costs
• Review and approve accounting transactions, including deposits, wire transfers, invoices, journal entries, and claims
• Ensure accurate coding of costs to appropriate funding sources, cost pools, and job ledger/object codes
• Develop, maintain, and refine accounting and coding systems to support BHSA fiscal reporting and compliance
• Support month-end and year-end close activities, including reconciliation and financial review
• Monitor BHSA contracts and related fiscal activities
• Prepare and submit BHSA claims, including administrative cost claims and required fiscal reports (e.g., BHOATR)
• Provide technical assistance to internal, external, and governmental auditors
• Participate in BHSA integrated plan development and fiscal planning activities
• Provide direction, training, and work review to assigned professional and fiscal support staff
• Collaborate with Contracts unit to ensure fiscal language and procedures are appropriate for provider agreements
• Serve as backup for other fiscal functions, as needed

The ideal candidate will:

• An understanding of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), the Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB), and the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB).
• One year of increasingly responsible experience performing a wide variety of financial duties in a large, complex public agency.
• One year of journey level accounting experience and a bachelor's degree in accounting, or finance.
• Experience completing Medi-Cal and other financial reports to the California Department of Health Care Services including administrative, Proposition 30, and Mental Health Services Act etc.
• Experience with healthcare finance and/or governmental financial principles, practices, procedures, and analysis.
• Experience with principles, practices, and procedures of financial compliance and claiming and audit facilitation.
• Ability to analyze, prepare and produce journal entries, worksheets and reports as requested; explain entries and data; use Microsoft Excel and Access; and County systems such as OFAS and SHERPA.
• Experience in coordinating and calculating entries for month-end and year-end closings.
• Experience with government budgeting, forecasting, and monitoring preferred.
• Ability to organize and prioritize a variety of projects and multiple tasks in an effective and timely manner; organize own work, set priorities, and meet critical time deadlines.

NOTE: The eligible list generated from this recruitment may be used to fill future extra-help, term, unclassified, and regular classified vacancies.

Requirements

Duties may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Provide direction, supervision, training, work review and/or evaluation to assigned professional and fiscal support on a project or ongoing basis.
• Provide input into selection decisions and disciplinary matters.
• Review accounting documents to ensure accuracy of information and calculation and make correcting entries.
• Examine supporting documentation to establish proper authorization and conformance with agreements, contracts, and state and federal regulations.
• Prepare and maintain control and subsidiary accounting records involving a variety of transactions and accounts.
• Prepare trial balances; coordinate and calculate scheduled and periodic closings.
• Prepare journal entries and reconciliation of general ledger, journals, subsidiary accounts and bank statements.
• Compile and prepare general and subsidiary ledgers and supporting schedules.
• Assist in and/or coordinate the preparation and analysis of budgets for departmental and County funds.
• Maintain expenditure and budgetary control accounts; prepare and coordinate budget appropriation transfers.
• Confer with departmental representatives and provide information regarding budgeting and accounting processes.
• Analyze and prepare varied financial statements and reports.
• Apportion monies including secured, unsecured, impounded, redeemed, and other taxes.
• Review and approve claims for referral of tax, grant or other monies and prepare claims for reimbursement from various state or funding agencies and/or programs.
• Maintain varied departmental cost accounting records, disbursing funds to various accounts and/or billing for reimbursements as required.
• Analyze programs and legislation to determine fiscal and budgetary impact; prepare budgetary appropriation transfers and supplemental budgets.
• Review and recommend modifications to accounting systems and procedures; upon approval, implement new or modified systems and procedures.
• Provide technical support to internal and outside auditors and governmental program auditors.
• perform related duties as assigned.

Qualifications

Experience and Education:

Any combination of education and experience that would likely provide the required knowledge and skills is qualifying. A typical way to qualify is:

• Equivalent to graduation from a four-year college or university with major coursework in accounting, finance, business administration or a closely related field and one year of journey level accounting experience.

Knowledge of:

• Basic supervisory principles and practices.
• Principles, practices and terminology of general, fund and governmental accounting.
• Principles and practices of business data processing, particularly as
• Related to the processing of accounting information.
• Principles of public finance.
• Applicable laws regulating public fiscal operations.
• Budgeting principles and terminology.
• Auditing and financial reconciliation principles and methods.

Skill/Ability to:

• Plan, direct, review, and evaluate the work of assigned support staff.
• Train others in work procedures.
• Review, analyze, post, balance, interpret and reconcile complex financial data and accounts.
• Develop and implement accounting systems and procedures.
• Verify the accuracy of financial data and information.
• Ensure proper authorization and documentation for disbursements.
• Interpret and apply complex financial procedures and legal documents.
• Exercise sound independent judgment within established policy guidelines.
• Prepare and direct the preparation of clear, concise and complete financial reports and statements, audit reports and audit work papers.
• Make accurate mathematical and statistical calculations.
• Establish and maintain effective working relations.

Please Note: This classification requires the successful completion of a minimum of twelve semester units of college-level accounting coursework.

Additional Information

Open & Promotional. Anyone may apply. Current County of San Mateo and County of San Mateo Superior Court of California employees with at least six months (1040 hours) of continuous service in a classified regular, probationary, or extra-help/limited term position prior to the final filing date will receive five points added to their final passing score.

The examination process will consist of an application screening based on the candidates' application and responses to the supplemental questions (weight: pass/fail). Candidates who pass the application screening may be invited to a panel interview (weight: 100%). Depending on the number of applicants, an application appraisal of education and experience may be used in place of other examinations, or further evaluation of work experience may be conducted to group applicants by level of qualification. Applicants meeting the minimum qualifications are not guaranteed advancement through any subsequent phase of the examination. All examinations will be given in San Mateo County, California, and applicants must participate at their own expense.

IMPORTANT: Applications for this position will only be accepted online. If you are currently on the County's website, you may click the “Apply” button.

If you are not on the County's website, please go to https://jobs.smcgov.org/ to apply.

Responses to the Supplemental Questionnaire must be submitted in addition to the standard County employment application form.

A resume will not be accepted as a substitute for the required application materials. Online applications must be received by the Human Resources Department before midnight on the final filing date.

TENTATIVE RECRUITMENT SCHEDULE
Final Filing Date: Wednesday, March 11, 2026, at 11:59PM PST
Application Screening: Week of March 9, 2026
Panel Interview: Week of March 23, 2026

About the County
San Mateo County is centrally located between San Francisco, San Jose, and the East Bay. With over 750,000 residents, San Mateo is one of the largest and most diverse counties in California and serves a multitude of culturally, ethnically, and linguistically diverse communities.

The County of San Mateo, as an employer, is committed to advancing equity in order to ensure that all employees are welcomed in a safe and inclusive environment. The County seeks to hire, support, and retain employees who reflect our diverse community. We encourage applicants with diverse backgrounds and lived experiences to apply. Eighty percent of employees surveyed stated that they would recommend the County as a great place to work.

The County of San Mateo is an equal opportunity employer. We seek to hire, support and retain employees who reflect our diverse community.
We encourage applicants with diverse background and lived experiences to apply.