Regional Office Liaison

City of New York•New York, NY

2d•Onsite

About The Position

Family Independence Administration (FIA) provides temporary assistance to individuals and families with social service and economic needs to help them achieve self-sufficiency. This includes programs such as temporary cash assistance, SNAP, childcare, eviction prevention, adult protective services, job training, and child support enforcement. The FIA is seeking an Associate Benefits Opportunity Specialist III to serve as a Regional/Administrative Office Liaison. This role involves assisting the Deputy Commissioner or Regional Manager in the day-to-day administration of FIA Benefit Access Centers and Food Stamp operations. The liaison will represent management at meetings, monitor application interviews for timely processing, respond to inquiries from legal services and advocates, review and edit complaint responses, monitor Fair Hearing compliance, conduct site visits to assess efficiency and effectiveness, provide technical support to Center Managers for performance improvement, and participate in staff training on agency policies and procedures.

Requirements

A four-year high school diploma or its educational equivalent, and three years of full-time satisfactory experience working directly in social/human services or a related setting, providing either client services or employment planning/counseling services.
A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college plus eighteen months of full-time satisfactory experience working as a Benefits Opportunity Specialist.
A baccalaureate degree from an accredited college plus eighteen months of full-time satisfactory experience in social/human services or a related setting providing client services or employment planning/counseling services.
College credit from an accredited college may be substituted for experience on the basis of 60 semester credits for 9 months of work experience, but all candidates must have at least 18 months of full-time satisfactory experience as a Benefits Opportunity Specialist or in social/human services work.

Responsibilities

Represent and assist the Deputy Commissioner or Assistant Deputy Commissioner or Regional Manager in the day-to-day administration of FIA Benefit Access Centers and Food Stamp operations.
Represent the Deputy Commissioner or Assistant Deputy Commissioner or Regional Manager at FIA Center Operations meetings, sharing outcomes verbally and in written form.
Assist in the daily functions and operations of several Benefit Access Centers and Food Stamp sites, monitoring application interviews to ensure timely public assistance for eligible individuals.
Respond to inquiries from Legal Services, Council Members, and Advocates regarding Welfare Reforms initiatives.
Review and control written complaints from various sources and edit responses.
Monitor Fair Hearing compliance activities, prepare weekly updates, follow up on outstanding cases, and scan systems for completion of Fair Hearing decisions.
Identify errors in Fair Hearing processes and advise Benefit Access Centers of corrective actions.
Conduct frequent visits to Benefit Access Centers and Food Stamp sites to assess efficiency, effectiveness, and adherence to policy and procedure.
Conduct audits to measure target areas and participate in the development of corrective action plans.
Provide technical support to Center Managers to improve performance and productivity, focusing on Quality Control and Error Reduction.
Ensure mandated re-determinations of financial eligibility are completed within appropriate timeframes.
Participate in training staff on agency policies and procedures.
Maintain controls and records to ensure public assistance determinations are consistent with laws, regulations, and policies.