Accounting Assistant

Helena, City of•City-County Building - Helena, MT

54d•Onsite

About The Position

Launch your municipal career as a vital Accounting Assistant for the City of Helena, where your financial skills directly support our community. In this dynamic role, you will work under the strategic direction of the Finance Director and Controller to keep the city’s financial engine running smoothly. Rather than managing repetitive paperwork, you will be the go-to operational hub for the finance team. You will handle everything from banking and receivable operations to managing the crucial loan portfolios that fuel local development. As the city's liaison for property and liability insurance claims, you will protect municipal assets and help navigate critical risk scenarios. This highly collaborative position offers incredible variety—whether you are streamlining records management, executing daily deposit workflows, or stepping up to support the utility customer service team during peak times. If you are a detail-oriented professional ready to make a tangible impact on the capital city, this multitasking role is your next great step.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED certificate.
Proficiency and working knowledge in Microsoft Word and Excel.
Proficiency in interoffice and public communications.
Frequent interpersonal contact in the performance of duties.
A minimum of two years of experience in using a computerized accounting system.

Nice To Haves

Certificate of completion or graduation from a two-year business, vocational, trade school or college curriculum.

Responsibilities

Preparing daily deposits and entering daily banking activity on the banking worksheet.
Ensuring appropriate documentation for each deposit is received and managed according to retention policies.
Balancing between the bank, credit card processing companies and the accounting system using Excel spreadsheets.
Recording loan receivables in established schedules and ensuring documents have been recorded with the County Clerk’s office.
Updating loan schedules with new loans, loan payoffs and expired loans.
Organizing loan documents for easy reference and to tie to loan schedules.
Preparing loan-payoff estimates for supervisor review and acting as the city finance liaison for escrow companies and brokerage firms.
Entering department purchase orders and direct invoices.
Creating miscellaneous billings for audit, county shared services, etc.
Administering the department petty cash funds.
Supporting accounts payable and receivable personnel as assigned, including cross-training to support those activities as needed.
Administering the City’s liability and property insurance claims, monitoring submitted claims.
Contacting claimants to finalize claims and sending them to the insurance adjuster.
Communicating and collaborating with other city departments and the City Attorney’s office to gather claim information.
Maintaining and updating monthly claim files and reports.
Preparing monthly liability deductible invoices by reviewing claims and determining deductible payment assignments for cost recovery.
Administering annual property insurance valuation updates, including collecting property data, organizing it, and sending it to divisions for review and updates.
Finalizing insurance renewal information and ensuring updated certificates are received and organized.
Preparing and updating procedural manuals as assigned.
Processing incoming and outgoing mail.
Word processing, proofreading, and processing a variety of documents, including correspondence, reports, meeting agendas and minutes, memos, and spreadsheets.
Tracking and managing department files for records retention compliance.
Managing office supply inventory, including ordering, receiving, inventorying, storing, and distributing supplies, forms, and related items.
Performing other administrative duties as assigned.