The City of Rancho Palos Verdes is looking for a detail-driven Accounting Technician who takes pride in their work and thrives in a collaborative team environment. If you are someone who values precision, accountability, and making an impact, this is your opportunity to shine!

This recruitment will open on Monday, April 13, 2026, and close on Sunday, May 3, 2026.

Selection Process

5/3/2026 - Application Submittal Deadline

Week of 5/25/2026 - Panel Examinations

Week of 06/01/2026 - Department Interviews

DEPARTMENT

Responsibilities

The Finance Department prides itself on providing a supportive, close-knit team environment where collaboration is key and everyone’s contributions matter. The department is staffed by a team of nine full-time professionals who are responsible for a wide range of services through the following functions:

Fiscal Services: Budget preparation, budget monitoring, long-term financial planning, financial forecasting, financial analysis/modeling, system administration and financial reporting.
Accounting: Managing general ledger, business processes, bank reconciliation, chart of accounts, auditing, payroll processing, and general billing
Purchasing: Processing invoices and purchase orders, reviewing and monitoring compliance for contracts and procurement guidelines
Business Licenses: Providing centralized cashiering and processing business licenses
Treasury: Preparing cash flow analysis and reviewing City's investments

POSITION

This is a full-time, non-exempt position represented by the Rancho Palos Verdes Employee Association (RPVEA). This position works on a 9/80 schedule with rotating Friday’s off.

Under general supervision, this position primarily performs a variety of accounts payable and purchasing related duties, including processing requisitions, purchase orders, and purchase order changes, ensuring compliance with purchasing and procurement guidelines. ?An example of the normal operations includes performing the City's bi-weekly check run and processing over 200 invoices. This position manages the retention records, reconciles sales taxes for quarterly filing, communicates closely with vendors, department staff and supervisors, and provides quarterly open purchase order reports. The incumbent also provides daily customer service to help assist with various accounts payable activities. Additionally, this position prepares and files 1099 tax forms, assists with year-end processes and audits, and prepares journal entries related to accounts payable.

Overall, this position performs routine to complex technical and administrative accounting and financial support duties, including verifying financial records, preparing journal entries, auditing, analyzing, and reconciling general ledger accounts.

IDEAL CANDIDATE

The Accounting Technician is a vital member of the City's organizational structure and contributes meaningful work that supports the community. The ideal candidate will model Finance’s core values which are: transparency, integrity, and accuracy. The ideal candidate will enjoy being part of a fast-paced, hardworking team that values cooperation and shared success.

We are looking for someone who brings a strong work ethic, exceptional organization, and the ability to confidently juggle multiple priorities. You’ll thrive in this role if you’re customer-focused, detail-oriented, and take initiative to find creative, efficient solutions. Strong communication and problem-solving skills are essential, along with the ability to build and maintain positive working relationships across all levels of City staff.

Experience with accounts payable and purchasing, preparing routine journal entries, reconciling general ledger accounts, supporting year-end close and audits, and handling cashiering functions will set you up for success. Familiarity with ERP systems, especially Tyler Technologies software such as Munis is highly desirable.

DEFINITION AND CLASS CHARACTERISTICS

Under general supervision, performs a variety of routine to complex technical and administrative accounting and financial support duties in the preparation, maintenance, and processing of accounting records and transactions, including payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payable, cash receipts, and general ledger; and performs related work as required.

This is the journey-level class within the accounting support series. This class is distinguished from the Senior Accounting Technician in that the latter provides technical and functional supervision over lower-level staff and performs the most complex and responsible accounting and financial support duties.

EXAMPLES OF TYPICAL JOB FUNCTIONS (Illustrative Only)

Management reserves the rights to add, modify, change or rescind the work assignments of different positions and to make reasonable accommodations so that qualified employees can perform the essential functions of the job.

Performs technical and administrative accounting and financial support duties, including payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payable, cash receipts, and general ledger.
Receives, reviews, verifies, and processes time recording documents to prepare payroll for all City employees; audits such documents for completeness, accuracy, and compliance with rules and regulations; prepares and balances payroll reports and records.
Processes, calculates, and maintains records of a variety of payroll actions, including new-hire set-up, overtime hours, cost-of-living adjustments, incentive and/or premium pay, retroactive pay, benefits withholdings, wage garnishments, workers compensation claims, and final paychecks and pay-offs based on appropriate provisions; maintains employee records for voluntary and non-voluntary deductions; prepares payroll warrants and wire transfers; prepares reports and payments for various tax, financial, and insurance organizations.
Receives and verifies timesheets; checks for available sick leave and vacation days and other types of available leave days and inputs into payroll system; advises supervisors and employees on requirements of union contracts for time reporting.
Processes personnel transactions making appropriate adjustments/changes in the payroll system.
Prepares reports and payments for employee retirement benefits; prepares quarterly Federal and State tax reports.
Assists departments and employees by providing payroll information, explains procedures, and answers labor contract questions pertaining to payroll.
Reviews daily cash receipts for errors; makes necessary corrections; inputs cash receipt batches into City's accounting system.
Inputs and reviews journal entries for accounts receivable, accounts payables, expenditures, and income; files and maintains journal entries.
Reviews accounts payable data for accuracy; generates and sends invoices to vendors, individuals, and other agencies; updates accounts receivable spreadsheets with new invoices; sends additional invoices as necessary.
Interacts with vendors over the phone regarding statements and invoices; answers any questions or concerns vendors may have regarding payments and related issues.
Verifies, posts, and records a variety of financial transactions; prepares and maintains spreadsheets, records, and a variety of periodic and special financial and accounting reports.
Generates and assists in the preparation of monthly, quarterly, and year-end financial, summary and technical reports, as directed.
Performs general office support duties such as filing and record keeping, prepares correspondence.
Maintains and updates postage machine; ensures proper postage rates are applied.
Performs other duties as assigned.

Education and Experience: Equivalent to the completion of the twelfth (12th) grade supplemented by college-level coursework or specialized training in payroll, accounting, or a related field and one (1) year of experience that has included the maintenance, processing, and preparation of employee payroll and/or financial and accounting processing and record keeping, or one (1) years of experience equivalent to Account Clerk at the City of Rancho Palos Verdes.

License: None.

Knowledge Of

Public agency finance and account functions including payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payable, cash receipts, and general ledger.
Computerized accounting and finance systems and computer software and systems related to finance and payroll processes; other computer applications related to work, including word processing and spreadsheet software.
Applicable Federal, State, and local laws, regulatory codes, ordinances, and procedures relevant to assigned area of responsibility.
Modern office practices, methods, and computer equipment.
Record keeping principles and procedures.
Business arithmetic and statistical techniques.
English usage, grammar, spelling, vocabulary, and punctuation.
Techniques for providing a high level of customer service by effectively dealing with the public, vendors, contractors and City staff.

Ability to:

Perform a variety of accounting and financial support duties.
Review payroll and other financial documents for completeness and accuracy.
Make accurate arithmetic and financial computations.
Enter and retrieve data from a computer with sufficient speed and accuracy to perform assigned work.
Organize own work, set priorities and meet critical time deadlines.
Operate modern office equipment including computer and handheld equipment and software programs.
Use English effectively to communicate in person, over the telephone and in writing.
Use tact, initiative, prudence and independent judgment within general policy, procedural and legal guidelines.
Establish, maintain, and foster positive and effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.

Applicants with disabilities who require special testing arrangements must contact Human Resources. If you have a disability for which you require an accommodation, please contact us at (310) 544-5332 no later than five (5) business days before the test date.

All public employees in the State of California are considered Disaster Service Workers. As a Disaster Service Worker (DSW), you may be asked to carry on with your work as usual, or you may be asked to do something completely different than your everyday job. There are many different ways to assist during a disaster because each situation is unique. Before entering upon the duties of employment, all public employees take and subscribe to an oath by the City Clerk’s office declaring them to be Disaster Service Workers in time of need. The oath reaffirms an employee’s willingness to support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California.

City of Rancho Palos Verdes

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ACCOUNTING TECHNICIAN