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2 DATE: November 3, 2025
TO: Mayor and Members of the City Council
President and Members of the Estero Municipal Improvement District (EMID) Board of Directors
VIA: Stefan Chatwin, City/District Manager
FROM: Diane Pitman, Administrative Services Director
Nate Cruz, Finance Director
DEPARTMENT: Administrative Services, Finance Department SUBJECT: ADDING NEW JOB DESCRIPTION OF PRINCIPAL
ACCOUNTANT, AUTHORIZING THE UPGRADE OF AN
EXISTING SENIOR ACCOUNTANT POSITION TO PRINCIPAL
ACCOUNTANT, APPROVING A SUPPLEMENTAL
APPROPRIATION TO FUND THE UPGRADED POSITION, AND
APPROVING AND ADOPTING THE AMENDED PAY PLAN FOR
FISCAL YEAR 2025-2026
RECOMMENDATION
It is recommended that the City Council/EMID Board of Directors (City Council) adopt the attached resolutions approving the new job description of Principal Accountant, the upgrade of an existing Senior Accountant position to Principal Accountant, a supplemental appropriation of $18,600 to fund the upgraded position in FY 25-26, and the amended pay plan for FY 2025-26.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The City’s financial system, Naviline/HTE, was implemented in 1992 and is due for replacement (the “Financial System Replacement Project” or FSRP). While the Information Technology (IT) division will be leading the FSRP, Finance will play a critical role in all phases of the project including gathering requirements, system selection and design, implementation, testing, deployment, and ongoing training. Staff is
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2 recommending upgrading an existing Senior Accountant to a newly created classification of Principal Accountant to serve as the primary subject matter expert for IT during the multi-year FSRP.
BACKGROUND/ANALYSIS
The City’s existing financial system, Naviline/HTE, was first installed in 1992 and is in need of replacement. While its core financial functions are stable, its capacity to integrate with complementary systems, such as for budget or utility billing/payments, is poor. Additionally, it offers none of the efficiencies of a modern system such as automatic payments, instead, checks are placed manually in envelopes today. A new financial system is anticipated to allow staff to modernize operations and even opportunities to consolidate multiple functions currently under different systems under a single system.
The process for replacing Naviline/HTE is scheduled to begin in early 2026 and is expected to take at least two (2) years until full implementation is complete. During each phase, Finance needs to provide specific input that addresses both: (a) the daily tasks and current processes for making and recording transactions; and (b) the financial reporting needs of managers.
As the main representative of the Finance Department in the FSRP, this position would provide critical contributions to the project in the following areas:
Defining requirements: Identify core accounting, reporting, budgeting, and compliance needs that the new system must support.
Mapping current processes: Document existing financial workflows (e.g., accounts payable/receivable, general ledger, fixed assets) to guide system configuration.
Product selection: Help select vendors by evaluating financial module capabilities.
Design future-state processes: Collaborate with consultants and IT to optimize financial operations using the new financial system‘s capabilities. Oversee data migration: Validate the accuracy and completeness of financial data being transferred from legacy systems.
Ensure data integrity: Set standards for financial data quality, reconciliation, and audit trails in the new system.
Lead financial testing: Develop test cases for financial modules and validate outputs like journal entries, reports, and tax calculations. Develop reports: Help design financial dashboards and reporting templates. Support User Acceptance Testing: Confirm that the system behaves correctly under real-world financial scenarios.
Train finance users: Help develop training materials and lead sessions for finance staff.
Design internal controls: Work with auditors and risk teams to embed financial controls into the system.
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2 The current Senior Accountant has performed nearly every transactional role in the Finance Department during her 17 years with Foster City and also prepares the existing reports used by management such as the monthly budget versus actuals and capital project expenditure reports. This current employee is uniquely qualified to serve as the Principal Accountant and the lead Finance expert for the FSRP.
While the FSRP is likely to be completed in two years, there will be an ongoing need for this position to serve as the Finance expert on this new system and ensure other staff members throughout the City are operationally fluent in the new system.
This position would be created in FY 2025-26 at the salary schedule below and provide full benefits.
Position Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5
Principal
Accountant
$12,133.52 $12,740.21 $13,377.22 $14,046.08 $14,748.39
California Environmental Quality Act
Not Applicable
FISCAL IMPACT
The incremental cost of upgrading the existing Senior Accountant position to a Principal Accountant through the remainder of FY 2025-26 is $18,600 and would be funded through a supplemental appropriation from the General Fund Reserve. Costs in future years will be included in the respective budget proposals for those years.
CITY COUNCIL VISION, MISSION, AND VALUE/PRIORITY AREA
Staff Empowerment and Operational Excellence
ATTACHMENTS:
Attachment 1 – City Resolution
Attachment 2 – EMID Resolution
Attachment 3 – Principal Accountant Job Description
Attachment 4 – Amended Pay Plan for Fiscal Year 2025-26 Effective November 3, 2025