Job Description
Accountant
Washington, DC - Can work fully remote
12 Months - Temp to Perm Can be fully remote, however if the contractor were to be converted to FTE they would have to be able to come into the Washington D.C. office.
Pay: 40 - 45/hr
Description: This position performs highly responsible and technical accounts payable and grant accounting work requiring precision, judgment, and familiarity with federal cost principles (2 CFR Part 200). The incumbent ensures that all vendor payments, reimbursements, and cost allocations are properly coded, authorized, and documented for a portfolio of 18+ concurrent grants across federal, state, and private funding sources.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities:
1. Accounts Payable and Transaction Processing
- Review, verify, and process invoices, check requests, and expense reimbursements for accuracy and completeness.
- Match purchase orders, contracts, and receiving documentation to ensure compliance with procurement policies and grant terms.
- Enter transactions into the financial system with correct grant, cost center, object code, and funding source assignments.
- Ensure payments are properly authorized and released within the prescribed timelines.
- Reconcile vendor statements and resolve discrepancies in coordination with Procurement and Finance teams.
2. Multi-Grant Accounting and Cost Allocation
- Apply established cost allocation plans and indirect cost rates to ensure proper distribution of shared expenses (e.g., rent, utilities, communications, supplies) across 18+ grants.
- Track and maintain grant codes, project IDs, and cost categories for each funding source to ensure accurate financial reporting.
- Support monthly grant expenditure reconciliations between AP subledger, general ledger, and grant budgets.
- Assist in preparing and posting month-end accruals and reclassifications to align expenses with the correct funding periods.
- Maintain accurate audit trails for all allocated expenses and shared costs.
3. Compliance and Documentation
- Ensure all expenses meet allowability, allocability, and reasonableness standards under 2 CFR 200 Subpart E and funder-specific terms.
- Verify that vendor documentation, invoices, and payment requests comply with internal procurement thresholds and approval hierarchies.
- Maintain organized electronic and physical files to support audits, financial monitoring, and subrecipient reviews.
- Identify and flag unallowable or questionable expenses for management review.
- Support compliance testing and Single Audit documentation requests.
4. Internal Controls and Collaboration:
- Uphold segregation of duties by maintaining independence between invoice initiation, review, and approval functions.
- Communicate regularly with Program, Finance, and Operations teams to resolve coding or funding issues.
- Participate in continuous improvement efforts to streamline invoice routing, coding accuracy, and cost allocation efficiency.
- Support system transitions, updates, and workflow improvements as directed.
Qualifications
Education & Experience
- Associate or Bachelor's degree in Accounting, Finance, or Business Administration.
- 3-5 years of experience in accounts payable and grants accounting; experience managing multi-grant portfolios required.
- Working knowledge of Uniform Guidance (2 CFR 200), GAAP, and federal procurement standards.
- Experience with complex cost allocation plans and indirect cost applications.
- Proficiency in Excel (pivot tables, lookups) and ERP systems (Oracle, NetSuite, Workday, or Sage Intacct).
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
- Exceptional attention to detail and analytical ability.
- Ability to interpret financial and contractual language across multiple grants.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills to meet overlapping deadlines.
- Effective communication with finance, program, and operations teams.
Job Tags
Permanent employment, Temporary work, For contractors, Work at office,