Residence Requirements:

THIS EXAMINATION IS OPEN TO ALL QUALIFIED EMPLOYEES OF THE ERIE COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES. There are 3 anticipated vacancies at the Erie County Department Of Social Services.

Examples of Duties:

A Special Investigator performs duties in the field of Social Services investigations;

Reviews cases for falsification and investigates to verify written documents and determine allegation of fraud;

Obtains written statements from clients and witnesses;

Prepares detailed written reports of fraud findings;

Prepares and computes budgets of cases to determine if there is overpayment of funds on over issue of food stamps;

Locates clients that have left the area;

Obtains agreements of repayments in fraud cases;

Oversees repayment accounts;

Interviews and assists clients in mortgaging their real property, filing for Veteran's benefits and life insurance;

Investigates and determines assets and resources available to clients;

Searches court records;

Maintains cases of clients who need Social Services to pay their bills from Social Security, S.S.I., retirement;

Identifies and applies for benefits for children in custody of department;

Interviews relatives, investigates assets of clients who need County burial service;

Reviews referrals from districts to determine need for investigation;

Establishes accounts and repayment schedules, receives payments;

Prepares civil recovery and fraud packages for collection and possible prosecution;

Prepares deeds, mortgages and assignments as needed;

May conduct investigations as needed in estates or negligence claims;

Conducts field investigations as required;

May provide oral and/or written testimony in criminal, civil, or administrative proceedings against persons accursed of having fraudulently received assistance benefits;

May help in the determination of applicant eligibility for assistance by verifying application information through the use of in-office or field investigations.

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 Assistant Special Investigator.

Notes:

A Guide for the Written Test for Investigators is available at the New York State website:www.cs.ny.gov/testing/localtestguides.cfm . Candidates not having access to a computer or the internet may request copy of the test guide from the municipal civil service office conducting this examination using the contact information found elsewhere on this announcement.

Subjects of Examination:

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

1. Evaluating information and evidence

These questions test for the ability to evaluate and draw conclusions from information and evidence. Each question consists of a set of facts and a conclusion based on the facts. The candidate must decide if the conclusion is warranted by the facts.

2. Investigative techniques

These questions test for knowledge of the fundamental concepts in the area of field investigation. The questions will cover such areas as: obtaining the cooperation of individuals involved in an investigation, preparing for the investigation and/or interview, investigative principles, interviewing principles and practices, behavior and attitudes of the investigator and others, gathering of data and evidence, and presenting the results of an investigation.

Many of the questions are situational in nature and attempt to measure the candidate's ability to apply basic investigative techniques. The questions are generic rather than dealing with investigations in a particular field.

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.

4. 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.

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.

  INFORMATION FOR PROMOTION CANDIDATES

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

VETERANS:  Disabled and non-disabled veterans as defined in Section 85, New York State Civil Service Law, will have 5 and 2.5 points, respectively added to their earned scores if successful in the examination.  You must claim these credits when you file application but you have an option to waive them any time prior to appointment.  If you have already used these credits for a permanent position in NYS, you may not claim them again.

**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.