Accountant III

Accountant III

Salary

$80,776.80 - $141,359.50 Annually

Location

FX. CTY. GOVERNMENT CENTER, 12000 GOVERNMENT CENTER PKWY., FAIRFAX (EJ32), VA

Job Type

FT Salary W BN

Job Number

26-01250

Department

Finance

Opening Date

08/15/2026

Closing Date

9/4/2026 11:59 PM Eastern

Pay Grade

S27

Posting Type

Open to General Public

• Description
• Benefits
• Questions

Job Announcement

This position works as an analytical, detail-oriented, and solutions-focused accountant to support the county's financial reporting and audit processes.

• Prepares highly complex and diversified financial reports, such as governmental fund (modified accrual) and government-wide (full accrual) financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
• Assists with the coordination of the independent audit of the countys financial statements.
• Provides technical accounting guidance and assistance to assigned departments, as well as monitoring the accounting activities within assigned funds.
• Assists with the development and review of accounting policies and procedures and with the implementation of new accounting requirements.
• Possesses strong analytical and organizational skills, knowledge of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and the ability to communicate complex accounting information clearly to both financial and nonfinancial audiences.

Note: Salary offer will not exceed the mid-point of the salary range ($111,068.26).

Illustrative Duties

(The illustrative duties listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all inclusive list. A complete list of position duties and unique physical requirements can be found in the position job description.)

• Supervises staff in preparation of highly complex and diversified financial reports with a countywide impact required by federal and state, including the countys annual comprehensive financial report(ACFR);

• Serves as a lead consultant and coordinates training opportunities for county departments on accounting and financial reporting matters;

• Participates in development and implementation of countywide policies and procedures pertaining to accounting and financial reporting;

• Coordinates programs with countywide impact (i.e., Integrated Customer Assistance Compliance program, Internal Controls program);Participates in the management and oversight of countywide policies and procedures.

Required Knowledge Skills and Abilities

(The knowledge, skills and abilities listed in this specification are representative of the class but are not an all inclusive list.)

• Considerable knowledge of the principles, methods, and practices of governmental accounting and fiscal management, and the ability to apply them to complex governmental accounting systems;
• Considerable knowledge of federal, state and county procedures, policies, regulations and legislation impacting the maintenance of county financial records and reports;
• Knowledge of electronic financial data processing systems;
• Ability to plan, direct, and supervise the activities of professional accountants engaged in complex accounting work;
• Ability to prepare and/or coordinate the preparation of comprehensive, complex accounting reports and records;
• Ability to develop and implement sound accounting policies and procedures.

Employment Standards

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Any combination of education, experience, and training equivalent to the following: (Click on the aforementioned link to learn how Fairfax County interprets equivalencies for "Any combination, experience, and training equivalent to")

Graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a bachelors degree in accounting; or a bachelors degree in business administration or related field that has been supplemented by at least 24 credit hours of intermediate level accounting or higher; plus four years of increasingly responsible accounting experience including two years experience with automated accounting systems. CPA certification or a masters degree in an appropriate field may be substituted for one year of required experience.

NECESSARY SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

The appointee to this position will be required to complete a criminal background check and credit check to the satisfaction of the employer.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience with local government financial accounting.
• Experience utilizing automated accounting systems.
• Experience preparing or auditing financial reports.
• Experience interpreting and implementing governmental accounting standards and policies.
• CPA or other relevant professional certification.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills including the demonstrated ability to prepare reports for management and external customers.
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Excel, including complex formulas, data analysis, reconciliations, and large-data reporting.
• Ability to perform tasks with attention to detail in a fast-paced environment where multiple high priority or high visibility tasks must be completed within a set timeframe.
• Innovative individual motivated by continual change and professional development.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

Job is generally sedentary in nature, however, visual acuity is required to read data on computer monitor, incumbent must be able to operate keyboard driven equipment. Must communicate with others. All duties performed with or without reasonable accommodations.

SELECTION PROCEDURE:

Panel interview and may include exercise.

Fairfax County is home to a highly diverse population, with a significant number of residents speaking languages other than English at home (including Spanish, Asian/Pacific Islander, Indo-European, and many others.) We encourage candidates who are bilingual in English and another language to apply for this opportunity.

Fairfax County Government prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, age, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetics, political affiliation, or military status in the recruitment, selection, and hiring of its workforce.

Reasonable accommodations are available to persons with disabilities during application and/or interview processes per the Americans with Disabilities Act. TTY 703-222-7314. DHREmployment@fairfaxcounty.gov EEO/AA/TTY.

#LI-JY1

Merit Positions

Fairfax County is proud to offer employees an attractive and comprehensive benefits program, including the following:

• Medical/Vision/Dental Insurance Coverage
• Group Term Life Insurance
• Long Term Disability
• LiveWell Program
• Flexible Spending Programs
• Paid Leave (annual, sick, parental, volunteer activity, and more!)
• Paid Holidays
• Contributory Retirement Plan
• Deferred Compensation
• Employee Assistance Program
• Employees Child Care Center
• Continuous Learning Opportunities

Please click here for a summary of our benefits.

NOTE: Fairfax County Government is a qualifying employer under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. For more information about the PSLF program: Public Service Loan Forgiveness | Federal Student Aid

For additional details please visit the Countys benefits webpage.

Non-Merit Positions

• Non-Merit Benefit Eligible: scheduled to work a minimum 1,040 hours and no more than a maximum of 1,560 hours in a calendar year.

• Medical/Vision/Dental Insurance Coverage

• Flexible Spending Program

• Deferred Compensation

• Temporary: scheduled to work a maximum of 900 hours in a calendar year.

• No benefits

01

What is the highest level of education that you have completed?

• Less than 12th grade
• High school diploma or GED
• Some college
• Associates degree
• Bachelors degree
• Masters degree
• Doctorate degree

02

If you answered "Some college" for the highest level of education completed, please indicate the number of quarter or semester hours you have completed towards a degree.

• Less than 45 quarter hours
• 45 to less than 90 quarter hours
• 90 to less than 135 quarter hours
• 135 to less than 180 quarter hours
• 180 or more quarter hours
• Less than 30 semester hours
• 30 to less than 60 semester hours
• 60 to less than 90 semester hours
• 90 to less than 120 semester hours
• 120 or more semester hours
• Not applicable

03

Please indicate the major(s) or minor(s) for your completed degree(s). Check all that apply.

• Accounting
• Finance
• Business administration
• Other (related field)
• Other (non-related field)
• Not applicable

04

If you answered "Other (related field)" or "Other (non-related field)" for the previous question, please list all of your majors and minors. If this question does not pertain to you, or you do not have a degree, enter "Not applicable".

05

Have you completed at least 24 credit hours of intermediate level accounting or higher?

• Yes
• No

06

Do you currently possess a CPA (Certified Public Accountant) license? Please list your license number and expiration date under the "Certificates and Licenses" section of your application.

• Yes
• No

07

How many years of full-time equivalent, increasingly responsible accounting experience do you possess?

• None
• Less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six to less than seven years
• Seven to less than eight years
• Eight or more years

08

How many years of full-time equivalent experience do you have working with automated accounting systems?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six or more years

09

How many years of full-time equivalent experience do you have with local government financial accounting?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six or more years

10

How many years of full-time equivalent experience do you have either preparing or auditing financial reports?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six or more years

11

How many years of full-time equivalent experience do you have interpreting and implementing governmental accounting standards and policies?

• None
• Less than one year
• One to less than two years
• Two to less than three years
• Three to less than four years
• Four to less than five years
• Five to less than six years
• Six or more years

12

Please indicate your level of proficiency with Microsoft Excel.

• Beginner (Basic knowledge of creating a worksheet; performing calculations in a worksheet; modifying and formatting a worksheet; printing workbook contents)
• Intermediate (Knowledge of inserting and modifying graphic objects in a worksheet; customizing and enhancing workbooks; analyzing data using Pivot Tables, Slicers, and Pivot Charts)
• Advanced (Extensive knowledge of increasing productivity and improving efficiency by streamlining workflow; collaborating with others using workbooks; auditing worksheets; analyzing data; working with multiple workbooks; importing and exporting data, using Excel with the web)
• No experience

Required Question

Employer Fairfax County

Address 12000 Government Center Pkwy. Suite 270

Fairfax, Virginia, 22035

Phone 703-324-3311

Website http://agency.governmentjobs.com/fairfaxcounty/default.cfm