Bookkeeper - Clerk - COMOT V

To perform this position successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential function of the position satisfactorily. The requirements listed in this document are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Tippecanoe County provides reasonable accommodations to qualified employees and applicants with known disabilities who require accommodation to complete the application process or perform essential functions of the job unless the accommodation would present an undue hardship.

Incumbent serves as Bookkeeper for the Tippecanoe County Elected Clerk, responsible for maintaining accounting records, producing financial reports, and ensuring compliance with Indiana State Board of Accounts and state statute legal reporting requirements.

DUTIES:

• Oversees the Office daily financial transactions, including accounts receivable, accounts payable, adjustments, general ledger entries and trouble-shooting financial inaccuracies.
• Receives and processes various payments and posts to appropriate court cases, within the State’s court case management system (Odyssey or Quest) including garnishments, judgements, restitution, and court fees and costs.
• Accepts child support payments and enters them into the Indiana Support Enforcement Tracking System (ISETS/INvest) and generates child support payment histories as needed.
• Posts and balances receipts and disbursements in various Case Management systems (Odyssey, Quest, ISETS/INvest).
• Retrieves reports daily for all online payments including credit and debit cards and e-filed case payments, posts, and processes transactions accordingly.
• Interprets and verifies court documents such as court orders, pre-trial diversion agreements and traffic tickets, to assess fees or apply bond.
• Manages and invests funds into investment vehicles with Elected Clerk approval.
• Counts cash from previous business day, creates deposit, and deposits checks, cash, and money orders in bank account. Creates daily audit reports, verifying all receipts, monies, and disbursements are balanced.
• Posts daily receipts and disbursements to the daily cash balance for each case management system (Odyssey, Quest, ISETS/INvest). Posts items held in trust in the Clerk’s Trust Register.
• Assists with supervising and directing Main Office Deputy Clerks, including planning and making work assignments, providing orientation and training as needed.
• Prints, sorts, verifies amounts, scans, and mails checks daily from the previous day’s collections.
• Reviews online bank account records daily, reconciling check and ACH deposits and verifying balances and posted items.
• Research destroyed or lost checks issued by the Clerk’s Office and issues Stop Payment orders with bank.
• Manages month end closing by reconciling banks accounts and preparing state required reports and filing reports with the County Auditor, including Odyssey, Quest, ISETS, CDs and Trust accounts. Maintains complete filing system to support financial records.
• Prepares for the Elected Clerk, monthly and yearly reports of funds collected, cash book balances, bank statements, bank reconcilements, and list of outstanding checks for the monthly and yearly Gateway reporting.
• Prepares itemized report of funds collected, files report with County Auditor and disburses funds by issuing check to County Treasurer.
• Prepares itemized report of Continuing Education funds collected for various law enforcement agencies, transmits report and completed general claim form to law enforcement agencies for claiming their share of funds from the County Auditor.
• Prepares annual report of unclaimed funds held by Clerk’s Office and submits report as required by statute. Transmits funds via ACH from the appropriate Clerk’s bank account.
• Prepares report for semi-annual settlement with the state as required by statute. Transmits the court costs due to the state via ACH from the appropriate Clerk’s bank account to the State Auditor.
• Calculates and communicates payoffs for judgments, which may also include adding additional interest. Maintains tracking system for release of judgements and final payment distribution.
• Tracks delinquent case fees and fines and assesses late charges when applicable. Maintains list of delinquent accounts and sends delinquencies to Collection Agency.
• Prepares and issues 1099 forms yearly, to report non-employment income to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
• Manages annual State Board of Accounts audit of Clerk’s Office.
• Establishes accounting policies and procedures for Clerk’s Office. Trains new employees including newly elected Clerk on financial processes and procedures of the Odyssey and Quest court case management systems and ISETS/INvest as well as the internal controls of the office.
• Answers telephone and greets office visitors, determining nature of call or visit, answering questions, providing information, taking messages, and/or directing to appropriate individual or office.
• Arranges, stores, scans, saves, transfers, destroys Clerk’s Office financial records in accordance with Indiana Archives and Records Administration Retention Schedules.
• Prints and distributes various checks daily, such as garnishments, judgments, and restitution.
• Prepares and mails correspondence regarding payment problems and notices of final payments and communicates with banks for stop payment or reissue checks as appropriate, or to correct errors.
• Processes bonds and bond refund requests after approval by courts, including verifying identity, and applying funds to court costs and fines per order or after prosecutor bond release.
• Balances and reconciles cash, checks, and credit card payments daily, and reports overages or shortages, and assists with balancing and correcting errors in Main Office Clerks’ drawers as needed.
• Reconciles financial records monthly, including reconciling various computer records with bank statements, and preparing, printing, and distributing various reports as required. Prepares or assists in preparing and distributing quarterly reports as required.
• Performs year-end functions, such as reconciling various computer and manual records, and forwarding funds to Indiana Attorney General as required.
• Periodically establishes interest-bearing bank accounts as directed.
• Testifies in court concerning financial matters when summoned.
• Performs the duties of the Main Office Deputy Clerk and Main Office Clerk Supervisor in their absence or as needed.
• Performs related duties as assigned, including Voter Registration and Election tasks.

I. JOB REQUIREMENTS AND DIFFICULTY OF WORK:

• Associate degree in accounting, finance, or business Administration and three (3) years of full-time paid experience in accounting, bookkeeping, finance, or a closely related field. Bachelor’s Degree preferred. Experience in Criminal Justice, Legal Studies, or Paralegal Certificate a plus.
• Must be at least 18 years of age.
• Ability to meet all hiring and retention requirements, including passage of three (3) separate background checks, including IRS background investigations, law enforcement checks, citizenship/residency checks, and FBI fingerprinting check.
• Must be able to adhere to Indiana’s Title IV-D Program requirements (Child Support Bureau).
• Must be adaptable to performing under stress and when confronted with persons acting under stress.
• Practical knowledge of bookkeeping and accounting principles, practices, standards, laws, and regulations and ability to perform arithmetic calculations, maintain and reconcile accurate financial records, and prepare periodic reports.
• Practical knowledge of and ability to calculate, post, and manage accounting figures and financial records and ability to pay attention to detail, accuracy, and demonstrate problem resolution skills, including identifying, analyzing, and correcting issues pertaining to financial entries.
• Working knowledge of standard office policies and applicable State Board of Accounts requirements, and ability to apply such knowledge to a variety of interrelated processes, tasks and operations.
• Working knowledge of standard office procedures and computer software used by the Department, including Microsoft Office, TEAMS, Outlook, WORD, excel, and ability to apply such knowledge to a variety of interrelated processes, tasks, and operations.
• Working knowledge of standard English grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and ability to prepare correspondence and detailed reports as required.
• Knowledge of legal terminology, standard legal documents and petitions, and ability to communicate with and assist various government and public agencies and departments as necessary.
• Ability to supervise and direct assigned personnel, including planning and making work assignments, providing orientation and training as needed.
• Ability to properly operate internet-based software used by department, including, but not limited to, Odyssey Court Case Management System, Odyssey Task Manager, Odyssey E-File & Serve System, Quest Case Management System, INcite, Indiana Support Enforcement Tracking System (ISETS)/INvest, Docuware, and credit card online payment systems.
• Ability to properly operate standard office equipment, including computer, printer, copier, telephone, fax machine, checking writing machines, signature machines, typewriter, microfilm reader, scanner, check protector, mail opener, and Ten Key calculator.
• Ability to understand and follow oral and written instructions, and work alone and with others in a team environment with minimum supervision, often under time pressure.
• Ability to work on several tasks at the same time and to complete assignments effectively amidst frequent distractions and interruptions; and work alone or with others in a team environment with minimum supervision, often under time pressure.
• Ability to emotionally handle stressful court cases, involving murder, abuse, neglect, adoption, custody, visitation, domestic violence, paternity, and child support.
• Ability to effectively communicate orally and in writing with co-workers, other County departments, state agencies, law enforcement, corrections personnel, attorneys, bank personnel and the public, including being sensitive to professional ethics, gender, cultural diversities, and disabilities.
• Ability to provide public access to, or maintain confidentiality of, department information and records according to state requirements.
• Shall comply with all employer and department policies and work rules, including, but not limited to, attendance, safety, drug-free workplace, and personal conduct.
• Ability to competently serve the public with diplomacy and respect, including occasional encounters with irate or hostile persons.
• Ability to count, compute and calculate and perform basic arithmetic operations.
• Ability to understand, memorize, retain, and carry out written and oral instructions, present findings in oral or written form.
• Ability to occasionally work extended and/or evening hours.

II. RESPONSIBILITY:

Incumbent performs standard, recurring duties according to well-established department policies and procedures and applicable State Board of Accounts requirements. Incumbent performs duties according to a flexible, customary routine, with work priorities determined by service needs of the public and/or statutory deadlines. Incumbent is responsible for proper completion of assigned tasks, with desired results clearly specified. Unusual situations or problems are discussed with supervisor and incumbent is responsible for applying well established departmental practices and legal procedures and precedents to individual work assignments, ensuring internal control procedures and safeguards are followed.

Errors in work are primarily prevented or detected through standard bookkeeping checks and/or notification from other departments, agencies, or the public. Undetected errors could result in loss of funds owed to individuals held in trust as a result of a court action and government entities could lose revenue collected by the Clerk, time to correct error and inconvenience to other departments, agencies, or the public.

III. PERSONAL WORK RELATIONSHIPS:

Incumbent maintains frequent contact with co-workers, other County departments, state agencies, law enforcement, corrections personnel, attorneys, bank personnel and the public for the purpose of exchanging information, rendering service and supervising and directing personnel.

Incumbent reports directly to Elected Clerk or Chief Deputy Clerk.

IV. PHYSICAL EFFORT AND WORK ENVIRONMENT:

Incumbent performs duties in a standard office environment, which may involve sitting/standing/walking at will, sitting for long periods, lifting/carrying objects weighing less than 30 pounds, hearing sounds/communication, close vision, handling/grasping/fingering objects, keyboarding, and speaking clearly.

Incumbent is occasionally required to work extended and/or evening hours.