Duties

This position is being filled at the GS-07 or GS-09 grade level. The full performance level is a GS-13.

This position is located in the Audit Division.

The Audit Division reports to the Assistant Staff Director, who reports to the Chief of Compliance Officer, who reports to the Agency Staff Director, of the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

The Audit Division is charged with three primary tasks: 1) the mandatory audit of all publicly financed presidential campaigns; 2) the certification for payment by the Treasury of funds to eligible presidential campaigns; and 3) the audit of other political organizations that fail to meet the Commission's standards for compliance with campaign laws.

As an Auditor, in this position, you will assist in the audits and financial analyses of campaigns and political organizations. Specifically, you will:

• Assist in auditing the committees of persons seeking election to the office of the President, the House of Representatives, the Senate, as well as political party organizations and political action committees that fail to meet the Commission's standards for compliance with federal campaign finance laws.
• Perform analysis of data from multi-use accounting systems, such as those used by political party organizations and the political action arms of labor unions and major corporations.
• Conduct compliance reviews and special projects, with guidance and supervision by higher graded auditors and Audit Division managers.
• Assist in preparing draft reports that incorporate audit findings and recommendations, comments made by the auditee, and responses to those comments, ensuring adequacy, technical sufficiency and adherence to the audit program and division quality standards.
• Perform bank reconciliations, database reconciliations, dollar unit sampling (DUS) and other audit procedures necessary to complete an audit with guidance from higher graded auditors and Audit Division management.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. citizen or national.
• You must be able to pass a background investigation.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see Legal and regulatory guidance below).
• You may be required to serve a 2 year probationary period.
• Direct Deposit of Pay is required.
• You must meet eligibility and qualification requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.
• Status candidates must meet time-in-grade/band requirements (52 weeks at the next lower grade).
• This is a bargaining unit position.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the Basic Education Requirement and the Minimum Qualification Requirement, for each grade, described below. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience. If qualifying based on education, a copy of your unofficial or official transcripts must be provided with your application.

Basic Education Requirement for the Auditing Series, 0511

1. Degree: accounting, auditing; or a degree including auditing courses in a related field such as business administration, finance, or public administration that included or was supplemented by 24 semester hours in accounting. The 24 hours may include up to 6 hours of credit in business law. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
2. Combination of education and experience: at least 4 years of experience in accounting, or an equivalent combination of accounting experience, college-level education, and training that provided professional accounting knowledge. The applicant's background must also include one of the following:

• Twenty-four semester hours in accounting or auditing courses of appropriate type and quality. This can include up to 6 hours of business law. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

-OR-

• A certificate as Certified Public Accountant or a Certified Internal Auditor, obtained through written examination. Note: You must submit a copy of your license.

-OR-

• Completion of the requirements for a degree that included substantial course work in accounting or auditing, e.g., 15 semester hours, but that does not fully satisfy the 24-semester-hour requirement of option A, provided that (a) the applicant has successfully worked at the full-performance level in accounting, auditing, or a related field, e.g., valuation engineering or financial institution examining; (b) a panel of at least two higher level professional accountants or auditors has determined that the applicant has demonstrated a good knowledge of accounting and of related and underlying fields that equals in breadth, depth, currency, and level of advancement that which is normally associated with successful completion of the 4-year course of study described in option A; and (c) except for literal nonconformance to the requirement of 24 semester hours in accounting, the applicant's education, training, and experience fully meet the specified requirements. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts and other required documentation.

AND at least one of the Minimum Qualification Requirements below:

Minimum Qualification Requirement for the GS-0511-07:
Have at least one full year of specialized experience at the GS-05 level performing non-complex analysis work. This must include activities such as: (1) applying financial analysis and evaluation techniques; (2) using financial databases and/or spreadsheets (i.e., Access, Excel, etc.); (3) conducting research into financial discrepancies; and/or (4) reviewing segments of audit reports to assess completion.
-OR-
Have 1 year of graduate education (18 semester hours). Such education must have provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of this position. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Meet the requirements for a Superior Academic Achievement. I earned a bachelor's degree with at least one of the following (1) a grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher based on a 4.0 scale; (2) a 3.5 GPA or higher for required courses completed in a major field of study during junior and senior year of a 4-year college or university; (3) class standing of upper third of the graduating class in the college, university, or a major subdivision of the college, based on completed courses; or (4) membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society certified by the Association of College Honor Societies, excluding freshman honor societies. In order to be creditable under this provision, superior academic achievement must have been gained in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position being filled. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Have an equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate education. Note: To compute this, first determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required above; then determine your total qualifying graduate education as a percentage of the education required above; add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal to 100 percent to qualify. Note: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

Minimum Qualification Requirement for the GS-0511-09:
Have at least one full year of specialized experience at the GS-7 level performing non-complex auditing work. This must include activities such as: (1) applying analysis research and evaluation techniques; (2) using databases and spreadsheets (e.g., Access, Excel, etc.); (3) conducting audit assignments requiring an integrated analysis of a number of different operational regulations; and/or (4) writing and reviewing segments of audit reports and memoranda to ensure adequacy, technical sufficiency, and adherence to the audit program.
-OR-
Have two years (36 semester hours) of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree, or master's, or equivalent graduate degree, that provided the knowledge, skills and abilities to perform the duties of this position. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Have an equivalent combination of specialized experience and graduate education. To compute this, first determine your total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required above; then determine your total qualifying graduate education as a percentage of the education required above; add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal to 100 percent to qualify. You may only use graduate education beyond the first year (18 semester hours) in determining your creditable education. NOTE: You must submit a copy of your transcripts.

In addition, you must provide a cover letter describing your experience with the competencies identified below: Please limit your cover letter to 2 pages. If you do not provide a cover letter with your application, you will be found ineligible for the position.

Auditing - Knowledge of generally accepted auditing standards and procedures for conducting financial and compliance, economy and efficiency, and program audits. Audit Reporting - Knowledge of the principles, practices, and techniques used to report audit findings (criteria, condition, cause, effect, and recommendation). Financial Analysis - Knowledge of the principles and methods to identify, analyze, evaluate and specify the requirements; to include conducting qualitative and quantitative analysis. Written Communication - Writes in a clear, concise, organized, and convincing manner for the intended audience.

Part-time or unpaid experience: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week.

Volunteer or unpaid experience: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. (Self-created transcripts will not be accepted).

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.

PASS/FAIL COURSES: If more than 10 percent of your undergraduate course work (credit hours) were taken on a pass/fail basis, your claim of superior academic achievement must be based upon class standing or membership in an honor society.

GRADUATE EDUCATION: One academic year of graduate education is considered to be the number of credits hours your graduate school has determined to represent one academic year of full-time study. Such study may have been performed on a full-time or part-time basis. If you cannot obtain your graduate school's definition of one year of graduate study, 18 semester hours (or 27 quarter hours) should be considered as satisfying the requirement for one year of full-time graduate study.

Additional information

FEC offers competitive salaries and an attractive benefits package, including: health, dental, vision, life, and long-term care insurance; retirement plan; Thrift Savings Plan [similar to a 401(k)]; Flexible Spending Account; Employee Assistance Program; personal leave days; and paid federal holidays. Other benefits may include: flexible work schedules, telework, and transportation subsidies.

If you receive a tentative offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application, prior to entry on duty. False statements on any part of the application may result in withdrawal of offer of employment, dismissal after beginning work, fine, or imprisonment.

Noncompetitive Appointment Authorities: The following links contain information on the eligibility requirements to be considered under a noncompetitive appointing authority:
Special Hiring Authorities for Veterans
Special Hiring Authority for Certain Military Spouses
Other Special Appointment Authorities

Additional selections may be made from this announcement.