Tax Technician Trainee 1

Due to current testing space limitations, candidates may need to travel to a test site to take this examination. Candidates will be notified of their test site location on their admission notice.

THE LIST RESULTING FROM THIS EXAMINATION WILL BE USED FOR VACANCIES IN THE ALBANY AREA ONLY.

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Minimum Qualifications

On or before February 10, 2024, you must have:

Either 1. 60 or more semester credit hours of college-level study, including six (6) semester credit hours of accounting, auditing, and/or taxation;*

Or 2. Two years of full-time accounting, auditing, or tax examination experience as described below.

Experience must have been gained in any one or combination of the following:

1. Experience in performing or assisting in audits, financial examinations, or tax consultation and planning. Experience must include review, analysis, or management of accounting systems, conducting financial accounting/auditing activities for an entity, or analysis and/or interpretation of tax law.
2. Experience in bookkeeping, preparing tax returns, reconciling accounts and data, reviewing accounting and auditing reports, and verifying accuracy of calculations, balances, and supporting documentation.
3. Experience in a federal, State, or municipal agency performing audits to determine compliance with the taxing jurisdiction's laws, rules, and regulations; the collection of the jurisdiction's taxes, interest, penalties, delinquent tax returns, and other financial obligations; the use of processing systems in providing taxpayer information, assistance, and technical support; or being a member of a taxpayer contact center and involved in the resolution of taxpayer inquiries requiring in-depth knowledge of the tax law.

*You must provide the course name, the number of semester credit hours earned, the grade, and the name of the accredited college/university attended. Only courses with the word accounting, auditing, or taxation are considered qualifying. Although you may have received credit for courses such as business law, economics, statistics, or finance as part of an accounting curriculum, these courses cannot be counted toward the required 6 semester credit hours. FAILURE to provide the course listing will result in disqualification. If successful on the test, you cannot be considered for appointment until you submit proof of successful completion of the educational requirements to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance.

Vague wording or omissions WILL NOT be interpreted in your favor and will result in the disapproval of your application.

1. If you expect to meet the educational requirements by September 30, 2024, you can take the multiple-choice test. You MUST submit proof of successful completion of the educational requirements to the appointing authority at the time of the employment interview or you will not be considered for appointment. Failure to meet the educational requirements by September 30, 2024, may result in your removal from the eligible list.
2. Your required educational credentials must have been awarded by an educational institution accredited by a regional, national, or specialized agency recognized as an accrediting agency by the United States (U.S.) Department of Education/Secretary of Education. If awarded by an institution outside of the U.S. and its territories, you must provide independent verification of equivalency. A list of companies that provide these services (fees must be paid to the company you choose) can be found at: http://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/degrees.cfm.
3. If verifiable, we will accept and prorate qualifying part-time and volunteer experience.
4. New York State residency is not required.

Traineeships: To be advanced to the full performance level of this title you must successfully complete a set training and development program. Upon satisfactory completion of the 12-month training as a Trainee 1, you will automatically advance to Tax Technician Trainee 2 at a salary of $47,925. Upon satisfactory completion of the 12-month training as a Trainee 2, you will advance to the full level of Tax Technician 1 at a salary of $50,678 without further examination.

An appointee's performance in the trainee position and in the set training and development program will be observed and evaluated. The training and development program will include extensive on-the-job training and carefully designed and monitored work experience. If an appointee does not meet the standard requirements, they may be terminated at any time after the initial eight weeks and before completion of the traineeship.

You may, at the agency's discretion, be appointed to a higher level (Advanced Placement). You must inform the agency of any additional qualifications at the time of your interview.

For advanced placement to the Trainee 2 level: in addition to 60 or more semester credit hours of college-level study, including six (6) semester credit hours of accounting, auditing, and/or taxation,* you must have one year of full-time accounting, auditing, or tax examination experience as described above; OR three years of full-time accounting, auditing, or tax examination experience as described above.

For advanced placement to the Full Performance level: in addition to 60 or more semester credit hours of college-level study, including six (6) semester credit hours of accounting, auditing, and/or taxation,* you must have two years of full-time accounting, auditing, or tax examination experience as described above; OR four years of full-time accounting, auditing, or tax examination experience as described above.

Additional Requirements for Appointment:

1. Any candidate selected for this position will be subject to a review on their tax return submissions by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance. Employment of a candidate is conditioned upon a finding by the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance that the candidate is in compliance with all local, state, and federal tax laws.
2. Background Investigation: In accordance with federal government requirements, the employment of any candidate selected for this position is conditioned upon successfully completing a background investigation including a criminal history record check (fingerprint check).

The Positions: These positions exist in the Department of Taxation and Finance and are located in Albany only.

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Duties

As a Tax Technician Trainee 1, you will participate in a two-year traineeship in which you will be trained to perform desk audits and related activities involving tax returns filed under various articles of the Tax Law administered by the Department. Training will consist of on-the-job training, supplemented by formal classroom training, designed to develop journey-level skills as a desk audit technician.

Notes:

1. A transition examination is also being held for these positions. Although a transition examination is being held, it is expected that appointments will be made as the result of this examination open to the public.
2. Agencies have the option of making appointments from either the list resulting from this examination open to the public or the list resulting from the transition examination. If you meet the requirements for both examinations, you may wish to file for both.

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Subject of Examination

To be considered for appointment to this title, you must pass the multiple-choice test. The multiple-choice test evaluates your knowledge, skills, and/or abilities in the following areas:

1. Understanding and interpreting tabular material - These questions test your ability to understand, analyze, and use the internal logic of data presented in tabular form. You may be asked to perform tasks such as completing tables, drawing conclusions from them, analyzing data trends or interrelationships, and revising or combining data sets. The concepts of rate, ratio, and proportion are tested. Mathematical operations are simple, and computational speed is not a major factor in the test. You should bring with you a hand-held battery- or solar-powered calculator for use on this test. You will not be permitted to use the calculator function of your cell phone.
2. Understanding and interpreting written material - These questions test for the ability to understand and interpret written material. You will be presented with brief reading passages and will be asked questions about the passages. You should base your answers to the questions only on what is presented in the passages and not on what you may happen to know about the topic.
3. Preparing written material - These questions test for the ability to present information clearly and accurately, and to organize paragraphs logically and comprehensibly. For some questions, you will be given information in two or three sentences followed by four restatements of the information. You must then choose the best version. For other questions, you will be given paragraphs with their sentences out of order. You must then choose, from four suggestions, the best order for the sentences.

Your final score must be 70 or higher in order to pass. Your final score on the eligible list will be determined after adding any wartime Veterans' and Civil Service Law Section 85-a credits.

Admission To The Test: If approved for a multiple-choice test, you will receive an admission notice which will indicate your assigned test date and the way your test will be administered. Your test may be administered with paper and pencil or online at a state test site using a state-provided Chromebook. You cannot request to change your scheduled day or request a specific type of test administration.

Applicants are required to have a Personal NY.gov account and keep their email address up to date. The Department of Civil Service and other state agencies will communicate with you through email correspondence. This may include notification of your application status, your test arrangements, examination results, and canvassing you for interest in appointment. It will be important for you to keep your email address, phone number, and mailing address current by logging into https://www.cs.ny.gov/home/myaccount.

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How To Apply

Additional Information

New York State is an Equal Opportunity Employer

It is the policy of the State of New York to provide for and promote equal opportunity employment, compensation, and other terms and conditions of employment without unlawful discrimination on the basis of age, race, color, religion, disability, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, veteran or military service member status, marital status, domestic violence victim status, genetic predisposition or carrier status, arrest and/or criminal conviction record, or any other category protected by law, unless based upon a bona fide occupational qualification or other exception.

Appointment to many positions in State government require candidates to undergo an investigative screening. This may include a thorough character investigation, a Federal Bureau of Investigation Criminal Record History Check, a Child Abuse Registry clearance, or other similar procedures. Candidates may be fingerprinted and may be required to pay any necessary fees for that procedure. Depending on the nature of the job, the criminal convictions discovered, or any falsified or omitted information revealed, the investigative findings may bar appointment or result in removal after appointment.

Eligibility for Employment

You must be legally eligible to work in the United States at the time of appointment and throughout your employment with New York State. If appointed, you must produce documents that establish your identity and eligibility to work in the United States, as required by the federal Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986, and the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Religious Accommodation

Most multiple-choice tests are held on Saturdays. If you cannot take the test on the announced test date, due to a conflict with a religious observance or practice, check the box under “Religious Accommodation.” We will make arrangements for you to take the test on a different date (usually the following day).

Reasonable Accommodations in Testing

It is the policy of the Department of Civil Service, in accordance with the New York State Human Rights Law and the Americans with Disabilities Act, to provide qualified persons with disabilities equal employment opportunity and equal opportunity to participate in and receive the benefits, services, programs, and activities of the Department. It is the policy of the Department to provide such persons reasonable accommodations and reasonable modifications as are necessary to provide equal opportunity. Persons with disabilities who require an accommodation to participate in an examination must note this on their application. Further information is available from the Test Accommodation Unit of the Department of Civil Service at Testaccommodation@cs.ny.gov.

Admission to Examination

Notice to appear for the test may be conditional as review of applications may not be made until after the test. If you have not received your notice to appear for the multiple-choice test three days before the date of the test, email us at AdmissionNotices@cs.ny.gov. Please provide your first and last name, address, and the last four digits of your social security number, and we will provide you with the information you need to attend your multiple-choice test. If you have an issue other than not receiving your admission notice, please contact our office at (518) 474-6470 in the Albany area or toll free at 1-877-697-5627. Please leave a clear concise message and provide your first and last name, last four digits of your social security number and a daytime phone number.

Taking State and Local Examinations Scheduled for the Same Day

If you have applied to take a multiple-choice test announced by either one or several local jurisdictions (county, town, city) scheduled to be held on the same test date as this multiple-choice test, you must notify each of the local jurisdictions no later than two weeks before the test date to make arrangements for taking all tests at one test site. All tests will be held at the state examination center. For your convenience, contact information for all local civil service agencies is available on our website at: https://www.cs.ny.gov/jobseeker/local.cfm.

Cell Phones or Electronic/Communication Devices at the Test Site

The use of cell phones, beepers, headphones, or any electronic or other communication devices at your personal testing site or in the test room, hallways, restrooms, building, grounds, or other areas, except as expressly authorized by the Department of Civil Service, could result in your disqualification.

S3/TB2 SER-dah
Issued: 11/21/23

This announcement is subject to amendment or cancellation without notice. Do not copy it, or post it to any other site, but link to it instead.

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