Assistant Treasurer/Collector

Job Description

The City of Newton is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals and, as part of this commitment, will provide reasonable accommodation to perform essential job functions as required by law.

DEFINITION

This position is responsible for assisting the Treasurer/Collector with management of the city’s revenue management and collections responsibilities and will be expected to supervise and manage front line staff.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

The essential functions or duties listed below are intended only as illustrations of the various types of work that may be performed. The omission of specific statements of duties does not exclude them from the position if the work is similar, related, or a logical assignment to the position.

• Manages and supervises all front-line staff, along with managing daily activities related to ongoing review of office priorities and establishment of a daily office schedule for staff.
• Supervises staff interaction with the public on collection related issues and assigns daily schedule of staff activities to ensure adequate office coverage.
• Manage relationships between outside vendors providing online, electronic payment systems and oversees a seamless electronic integration of revenue data received from all city departments and online electronic platforms, and coordinates posting of revenue data received into City’s accounting system (Munis).
• Trains staff on operational functions and assign team members to back up each other and train peers as necessary.
• Researches and resolves all taxpayer and financial institution inquiries as related to tax and utility bill and payment and explains dept policies, procedures, rules and regulations.
• Researches into customer and cross-functional departments’ questions, inquiries and complaints and works to fully resolve them. Escalates to superiors as needed.
• Manages all bank and vendor lockbox processing and responds to payment and other processing inquiries within strict timeframes.
• Communicate daily with banks related to daily deposit questions, returned checks and other inquiries related to office business.
• Works with Treasurer/Collector and other cross-functional departments to move all tax and excise bills to various stages of collection.
• Works with other City departments and vendor to review quarterly property tax bill formatting and content for accuracy prior to bill file generation, printing and mailing.
• Supports preparation and disbursement of City payments for payroll, purchases and services including bank funding, bank file transmission and cash book updates based on multiple warrants issued by the Comptroller.
• Performs other related job duties as required.

SUPERVISION RECEIVED

The employee works from policies and objectives, establishes short-range plans and objectives and departmental performance standards, and assumes direct accountability for department results; consults with the supervisor only where clarification, interpretation, or exception to policy is required or requested; exercises control in the development of departmental policies, goals, objectives, and budgets; and is expected to resolve conflicts that arise and coordinate with others as necessary.

SUPERVISION EXERCISED

The employee is accountable for the quality and quantity of work done by subordinates; assures the accomplishment of the assigned work in the prescribed manner; gives advice and instruction on both administrative and work matters; informs subordinates of organizational policies, goals, and procedures; and is involved in performance management.

JUDGMENT AND COMPLEXITY

The work involves serving as a recognized authority in interpreting and applying guidelines such as executive, administrative, or organizational policies, general principles, regulations, legislation, and directives that pertain to specific functional areas. The employee develops policies and methods to implement such guidelines and requirements.

NATURE AND PURPOSE OF CONTACTS

Contacts are with co-workers, vendors, the public, and representatives of civic or professional organizations. The employee represents the organization in matters of departmental practices, procedures, regulations, or guidelines, and is called upon to tactfully discuss controversial matters and ease interactions with dissatisfied customers.

CONFIDENTIALITY

The employee has regular access to confidential records and information at the department level requiring discretion in interactions, attention to detail in handling information and records, and responsibility for following security protocols.

QUALIFICATIONS

Bachelor’s degree in Accounting, Finance, Business Administration or related field plus 3 to 4 years of related experience; or any equivalent combination of education, training, certification, and experience. Must be able to be bonded after hire.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES

• Knowledge of treasury and public funds, financial and mathematical principles, municipal finance, basic accounting practices and office management.
• Effective data management, customer service, organizational and technology skills.
• Ability to communicate effectively, work independently, prioritize work, multitask and work well with others.

PHYSICAL & ENVIRONMENTAL WORKING CONDITIONS

The physical and environmental demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.

• Works primarily indoors in an office setting.
• Sits or stands, with intermittent periods of stooping and walking. May be required to move objects such as files, boxes of paper, office supplies, and office equipment weighing up to 30 lbs.
• Applies motor skills to move objects, file and sort documents, and use office equipment such as telephones and computers.
• Routinely reads documents for general understanding and analytical purposes, including handwriting, spreadsheets, and forms; inspects surroundings and fine details to assess conditions of materials and equipment; and reviews detailed information displayed on a computer screen.

Company Description

THE CITY:

The City of Newton is a wonderful place to live and work. Newton has safe and attractive neighborhoods, an excellent public school system, an active community life, multiple transportation systems, proximity to Boston and a well-managed and financially strong City government. The City of Newton has a population of approximately 88,900, with 32,600 housing units and occupies a land area of 18.3 square miles. Newton is principally suburban-residential in character. Unlike many other communities that are established around a single Main Street or downtown, Newton is comprised of thirteen distinctive villages. Newton has a diversified economic base with approximately 4,700 establishments employing approximately 79,500 people. Newton is special in many ways. It is home to a variety of private secondary and post-secondary schools including a portion of Boston College, Lasell University, William James College, Hebrew College, and the UMass Amherst – Mount Ida Campus. The longest stretch of the Boston Marathon runs through the City, including the well-known Heartbreak Hill. Newton-Wellesley Hospital, part of the Mass General Brigham health care system, serves as an important partner to the City. In September 2018, Newton was again ranked #1 in Massachusetts as the best place to live and #12 in the U.S.

OUR GOVERNMENT:

Newton has what is known as a “strong Mayor” form of government with the Mayor having the executive and administrative powers of the City. The legislative branch is comprised of 24 City Councilors. Mayor Marc C. Laredo was sworn in on January 1, 2026 after serving on the City Council. The City of Newton was evaluated by Moody’s Investors Services in February 2020 and assigned its highest rating of AAA. Newton was thus well-positioned to weather the pandemic and economic downturn.

AS AN EMPLOYER:

The City of Newton believes that its employees are its greatest asset. To that end, we are committed to supporting our employees by providing competitive wages and growth, a comprehensive benefits package which includes a defined municipal pension plan, quality health and dental insurance plans, generous paid leave benefits, paid holidays, and access to supplemental benefits such as deferred compensation, short term disability plans, flexible spending accounts, and other employee benefits. We also provide access to an Employee Assistance Program and access to employee training and professional development opportunities. We continuously work to review and expand upon our benefit offerings. We encourage you to visit our Human Resources Department website to learn more about our organization and benefits which are available to our employees. And as always, you are encouraged to reach out to our dynamic HR Team by emailing hr@newtonma.gov.

Human Resources Diversity Statement

We recognize our workforce is a source of strength that is vital to our ability to effectively serve the City of Newton’s diverse community. We will:

• Actively recruit, develop, and retain a diverse and talented workforce.
• Proactively address discrimination through education and in partnership with other departments and leaders.
• Serve as a role model to celebrate and nurture diversity.
• Foster inclusion by staying curious and clarifying assumptions.
• Evaluate and develop policies and practices that reflect the diverse nature of our workforce.
• Build and strengthen accountability at all levels to support diversity efforts.

The targeted salary range reflects what the City of Newton reasonably and in good faith expects to offer for this position at the time of posting, but the final salary determination may be within or outside this range based on various factors, including, but not limited to, experience, skills, education, and market factors. The range will be reviewed regularly and is subject to change.

Benefits

• Health insurance
• Dental insurance
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Flexible Spending Accounts
• 457 Deferred Compensation plans
• Metro Credit Union
• Verizon Wireless discount
• Employee Assistance Program
• Generous paid leave time benefits and paid holidays.
• City Retirement (Mandatory)
• Weekly Direct Deposit
• Opportunity to serve the public and join a dynamic team of dedicated employees