Financial Specialist (Environmental Specialist 4)

Keeping Washington Clean and Evergreen

The Department of Ecology is hiring a Financial Specialist (Environmental Specialist 4) within the Shorelands & Environmental Assistance (SEA) program.

Note: This is a temporary position that will end on June 30, 2027. This position has the potential to be converted to a permanent position depending on funding.

This position can be based at any of the following duty stations:

• Headquarters Office in Lacey, WA.

• Northwest Region Office in Shoreline, WA.

• Bellingham Field Office in Bellingham, WA.

• Padilla Bay Office in Mount Vernon, WA. 

Upon hire, you must live within a commutable distance from the selected duty station.

Note: If the selected duty station is the Northwest Region Office in Shoreline, the salary will include an additional 5% premium pay due to its location in King County. Salary range: $6068 - $8163 monthly.

Schedule: 

• This position is eligible for telework and flexible schedule options.

• A minimum of one day per week is required in the office. 

• Schedules are dependent upon position needs and are subject to change.

Application Timeline: 

• Apply by August 11th, 2026

Duties

This Financial Specialist (ES4) position offers a unique opportunity to provide technical, administrative, and financial leadership for federal grants, receivable agreements, and payable contracts across the Padilla Bay and Program Manager sections within Ecology’s Shorelands & Environmental Assistance (SEA) Program. In this role, you will independently manage complex financial processes, ensure compliance with state and federal requirements, and support projects that advance Ecology’s mission and the SEA Program’s statewide environmental priorities. You will serve as a key financial resource to project officers, funding partners, Section staff, and SEA Program financial teams—helping maintain agreement integrity, track budgets, resolve fiscal discrepancies, and develop tools and documentation that strengthen financial management practices across the program.

You will also guide project staff through administrative requirements, coordinate agreement approvals, maintain organized records, and facilitate high-quality reporting and invoicing. This position plays an important role in ensuring federal grants and interagency agreements are implemented effectively from application through project completion, supporting transparent financial processes and consistent delivery of program obligations.

What You Will Do:
• Oversee financial management for federal grants, interagency agreements, and payable contracts, ensuring compliance with federal and state statutes, SEA Program policies, and agency procedures.• Provide technical and administrative guidance to Padilla Bay and Program Manager section staff on budgeting, scopes of work, documentation, and structural requirements for agreements and amendments.
• Conduct quality assurance reviews of project scopes, budgets, special conditions, and work plans to ensure fiscal accuracy, eligibility of costs, and consistency across agreements.
• Coordinate agreement approvals, signatures, and record maintenance, including managing agreement libraries and ensuring accurate and accessible documentation.
• Track project budgets, monitor expenditures, evaluate financial data for accuracy, and resolve discrepancies across fiscal systems.
• Prepare and review invoices, progress reports, match documentation, amendments, and deadline tracking to support timely and accurate fiscal reporting.
• Serve as a liaison between contracting agencies, project officers, and the SEA financial management team, gathering information and facilitating communication to support agreement development and administration.
• Negotiate with federal and state funding partners on invoicing schedules, reporting requirements, and contractual conditions during agreement establishment and modification.
• Assist project officers in drafting agreements and required documentation, including contracts, scopes of work, learning plans, and progress narratives.
• Participate in team meetings, contribute to problem-solving discussions, and support consistent financial management practices across the SEA Program.
• Follow records and information management requirements, maintain organized electronic and paper records, and ensure compliance with public records retention policies.
• Perform other duties as assigned that support SEA Program financial operations and project delivery.

Qualifications

For detailed information on how we calculate experience and responses to other frequently asked questions, please visit our Recruitment website.

Required Qualifications:

Nine (9) years of experience and/or education related to the duties of the position, which includes the following:

• Federal and State Funding Administration: Experience performing tasks that support the preparation, administration, or management of federal grants, interagency agreements, or payable contracts. 
• Financial Tracking: Ability to evaluate financial data, review project expenditures, verify fiscal accuracy, and identify inconsistencies across financial systems.
• Budget Monitoring: Skill in maintaining project budgets, updating cost categories, tracking rate changes, monitoring spending patterns, and identifying issues that require correction. 
• Regulatory Compliance: Ability to review statutes, rules, policies, procedures, or contract provisions to determine required actions for financial or administrative compliance. 
• Information Management: Ability to maintain organized electronic and paper records, ensure accurate version control, track reporting deadlines, and support retrieval of documentation used in financial or contractual processes. 
• Independent Work Management: Demonstrated ability to organize workloads, prioritize tasks, meet required deadlines, and work independently while collaborating effectively within a distributed team environment. 

Education involving major study in environmental, physical, or one of the natural sciences, environmental planning, finance, accounting, economics, or other allied field 

A Bachelor’s degree substitutes for 4 years of experience. 

A Master’s degree substitutes for 6 years of experience. 

Examples of how to qualify:

• 9 years of experience.

• 8 years of experience AND 30-59 semester or 45-89 quarter college credits.

• 7 years of experience AND 60-89 semester or 90-134 quarter college credits (Associate’s degree).

• 6 years of experience AND 90-119 semester or 135-179 quarter college credits.

• 5 years of experience AND a Bachelor’s degree.

• 3 years of experience AND a Master’s degree.

Desired Qualifications:

• Grant management or similar financial management experience.

Supplemental Information

Ecology does not use the E-Verify system; therefore, we are not eligible to extend STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT). For more information, please visit www.uscis.gov.

Application Process

Ecology seeks diverse applicants: We view diversity, equity, inclusion, and respect through a broad lens including race, ethnicity, class, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status, military background, language, education, life experience, physical disability, neurodiversity, and intersectional identities. Qualified job seekers from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.

How to Apply

Click “Apply” at the top of this page. Complete the entire application, including full work history and responses to all supplemental questions, and attach:

• Cover letter, describing your interest in and qualifications for this position 

• Resume

Because we base our selection on the information you provide, it is in your best interest to complete the application thoroughly. A resume will not substitute for the “work experience” section of the application or vice versa. Applications with blank fields or supplemental question responses with comments such as “see resume” may be considered incomplete. 

For detailed application information, please visit our Recruitment website.

Application Attestation: By submitting an application, you are affirming that the information contained in your application and on all attachments is complete and truthful. The state may verify this information, and any false or misleading answers may result in rejection of your application or dismissal if employed.

Need an Accommodation?

If you need reasonable accommodation during the application and/or screening process, including this job announcement in an alternate format:

• Please contact us at 360-407-6186 or careers@ecy.wa.gov 

• If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you may call through the Washington Relay Service by dialing 711 or 1-800-833-6384.

Questions?

• For specific questions about the position location options, schedule, or duties, please contact Bridget Talebi at  Bridget.Talebi@ecy.wa.gov 

• If you need assistance applying for this job, are inquiring about the status of your application, would like to request the full position description, or have any other questions, please contact the Recruitment Team at careers@ecy.wa.gov

About the Shorelands and Environmental Assistance (SEA) Program 

The mission of the SEA Program is to create community conservation partnerships to protect and restore our shorelands, wetlands, and floodplains.

About the Department of Ecology

As the State of Washington’s environmental protection agency, we are deeply committed to protecting, preserving, and enhancing Washington’s environment for current and future generations. Joining Ecology means becoming part of a team dedicated to protecting and sustaining healthy land, air, water, and climate in harmony with a strong economy. A career in public service at Ecology allows you to help solve some of the most challenging problems facing our state, while keeping your health and financial security a priority. We combine one of the most competitive benefits packages in the nation with a strong commitment to life/work balance. We invest in our employees to create and sustain a working environment that encourages creative leadership, effective resource management, teamwork, professionalism, and accountability.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Respect (DEIR) are core values central to Ecology's work. We strive to be a workplace where we are esteemed for sharing our authentic identities, while advancing our individual professional goals and collaborating to protect, preserve, and enhance the environment for current and future generations. 

We believe that DEIR is both a goal and an action. We are on a journey, honoring our shared humanity and taking steps to demonstrate our commitment to a vision where each of us is heard, seen, and valued. 

Ecology employees may be eligible for the following: Medical/Dental/Vision for employee & dependent(s), Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), Vacation, Sick, and other Leave*, 11 Paid Holidays per year*, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, Tuition Waiver,  Long Term Disability & Life Insurance, Deferred Compensation Programs, Dependent Care Assistance Program (DCAP),  Flexible Spending Arrangement (FSA), Employee Assistance Program, Commute Trip Reduction Incentive, Combined Fund Drive, SmartHealth *Click here for more information

To learn more about Ecology, please visit our website, explore Working at Ecology, check out our Strategic Plan, and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, or our blog. 

Equal Opportunity Employer: The Washington State Department of Ecology is an equal opportunity employer. We strive to create a working environment that includes and respects cultural, racial, ethnic, sexual orientation and gender identity diversity. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, persons of disability, persons over 40 years of age, veterans, military spouses or people with military status, and people of all sexual orientations and gender identities are encouraged to apply.

Collective Bargaining: This is a position covered by a bargaining unit for which the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE) is the exclusive representative.  

Note: This recruitment may be used to fill other positions of the same job classification across the agency. Once all the position(s) from the recruitment announcement are filled, the recruitment may only be used to fill additional open positions for the next sixty (60) days.

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