Residence Requirements:

THIS EXAMINATION IS OPEN TO ALL QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES OF THE ERIE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES. At present there are two anticipated vacancies in the Erie County Erie County Department of Social Services. The duration of all promotional eligible lists is four years from date of establishment unless otherwise indicated. The eligible list resulting from this examination will not supersede currently existing promotional eligible lists for this title, if any. The duration of all promotional eligible lists is four years from date of establishment unless otherwise indicated.

Examples of Duties:

A Chief Child Support Investigator is responsible for supervising the Support Collection of the Office of Child Support Enforcement;

Serves as the head of the Support Collection Unit (SCU), a major division of the Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE);

Oversees, through subordinate supervisors, several units charged with different aspects of child support collections resulting from local enforcement efforts as well as State and Federal enforcement programs, such as, but not limited to, auditing and reconciling payments made to child support recipients and making related adjustments;

Inputting information to set up and make revisions to accounts based on court orders;

Auditing and reconciling account records of support moneys received in Albany by the centralized child support processing center, and appears as expert witness in criminal trials of persons charged with criminal non-support;

Prepares periodic progress reports and writes procedures to meet organizational objectives;

Plans work assignments and supervises subordinate supervisory and clerical staff;

Oversees audits of individual accounts as ordered by the Family Court or upon the request of Enforcement Unit supervisors;

Oversees the process to authorize the $50.00 pass-through of child support to Public Assistance recipients whose benefits cannot be authorized as part of the automated monthly pass-through process;

Troubleshoots problem accounts in coordination with enforcement staff;

Serves as SCU contact person with bank officials, New York State Office of Child Support Enforcement and any fiscal agent on all child support fiscal issues;

Assists in preparation of the division budget and prepares yearly equipment budget for area of responsibility;

Uses computer applications or other automated systems such as spreadsheets, word processing, calendar, and e-mail and database software in performing work assignments.

Qualifications:

QUALIFYING EXPERIENCE FOR TAKING THE TEST: Candidates must be permanently employed in the competitive class and must be serving and have served continuously on a permanent or contingent permanent basis in the competitive class for 12 months immediately preceding the date of the written test in the position of Supervising Child Support Investigator. 

Notes:

Subjects of Examination:

A written test designed to evaluate knowledge, skills and /or abilities in the following areas:

1. Administrative techniques and practices

These questions test for a knowledge of management techniques and practices used in directing or assisting in directing a program component or an organizational segment. Questions cover such areas as interpreting policies, making decisions based on the context of the position in the organization, coordinating programs or projects, communicating with employees or the public, planning employee training, and researching and evaluating areas of concern.

2. Investigating and evaluating financial resources

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices used in determining the existence of various types of assets and other financial resources and determining the value and availability of assets.

3. Laws, rules and regulations related to child support

These questions test for knowledge of federal and state policy, laws, rules, and regulations related to child support.

4. 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.

5. Supervision

These questions test for knowledge of the principles and practices employed in planning, organizing, and controlling the activities of a work unit toward predetermined objectives. The concepts covered, usually in a situational question format, include such topics as assigning and reviewing work; evaluating performance; maintaining work standards; motivating and developing subordinates; implementing procedural change; increasing efficiency; and dealing with problems of absenteeism, morale, and discipline. 

NOTICE TO CANDIDATES:  Unless otherwise noted, candidates are permitted to use quiet, hand held, solar or battery powered calculators.  Devices with typewriter keyboards, "Spell Checkers", “Personal Digital Assistants", "Address Books", "Language Translators", "Dictionaries", or any similar devices are prohibited.  You may not bring books or other reference materials.

Unless otherwise indicated, the eligible list resulting from this examination will have a duration of four years and will not supersede existing promotional lists, if any.

RATINGS REQUIRED:  Test is rated on a scale of 100 with a passing mark at 70.  Test instructions may further divide the tests into parts and set minimum standards for each part.

Points will be added to scores of candidates who achieve a passing mark as follows: Seniority:  For each year of service in the classified service:

Less than 1 year……………………..................…0 points

1 year up to 6 years…………….…........................1 point

Over 6 years up to 11 years.....………......….........2 points

Over 11 years up to 16 years….…........….........…3 points

Over 16 years up to 21 years………..................…4 points

Over 21 years………………………..................…5 points

**IMPORTANT APPLICATION FEE - READ CAREFULLY**

A $20.00 filing fee is required for this exam. The required fee must accompany your application. Send or bring check or money order made payable to Erie County Personnel Department and write the examination number(s) on your check or money order. Do not send or bring cash, as the County cannot be responsible for cash payment. As no refund will be made, you are urged to compare your qualifications carefully with the requirements for admission and file only for those examinations for which you are clearly qualified.