State of Maryland

A Collection Agent I is the entry level of professional work in the collection of delinquent accounts as an agent of the Central Collection Unit in the Department of Budget and Management.  Employees in this classification recover overdue payments for accounts owed by individuals to various State agencies.  Employees in this classification locate, contact and interview debtors and arrange for collection payment schedules.  Employees in this classification do not supervise other positions.

Employees in this classification receive close supervision from a Collection Agent Supervisor or other designated administrator.  The work may require travel throughout Maryland.

Positions in this classification are evaluated by using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the classification specification.

The Collection Agent I and Collection Agent II are differentiated on the basis of supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees.  The Collection Agent I learns to perform duties under close supervision.  The Collection Agent II performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision. 

Reviews debtor files to determine extent of indebtedness;

Contacts debtors, explains reason and amount of indebtedness and arranges repayment schedules;

Recommends accounts to be referred for litigation, or for full or partial abatement;

Interprets and explains State laws and regulations concerning the source of indebtedness or required collection to debtors or debtor’s representative;

Secures information concerning debtor ability to pay;

May review calculation and assignment of indebtedness and may predetermine indebtedness from financial information about debtor ability to pay;

May investigate financial condition of debtors for information on debtor ability to pay;

May contact various agencies to verify financial information;

May analyze tax returns and financial statements for information on debtor’s ability to pay;

May testify in court on the calculation of indebtedness and attempts to collect;

May investigate the status of estates of deceased debtors;

Performs other related duties.

Class Descriptions are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies.  Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.

Class Descriptions provide information about the Nature of Work, Examples of Work, General Requirements and Acknowledgements.  The Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities; Minimum Education and Experience Requirements; Special Requirements; and recruitment and testing procedures are set by the using agency.

This is a Skilled Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Skilled Service positions that are designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Finance and Procurement Article, Section 3-301, Annotated Code of Maryland.

This classification is not assigned to a bargaining unit as indicated by the designation of S (supervisor), M (manager), T (agency head), U (Board or Commission member), W (student), X (used by agency or excluded by executive order), or Z (confidential).  As provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and therefore, all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.

Employees in this classification are eligible to receive overtime compensation.  An employee who works more than the normal workweek is entitled to be compensated for that overtime as provided by State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 8-305.

This classification is one level in a Non-Competitive Promotion (NCP) series.  NCP promotions are promotions by which employees may advance in grade and class level from trainee to full performance levels in a classification series.  In order to be non-competitively promoted to the next level in a NCP series an employee must: 1) perform the main purpose of the class as defined in the Nature of Work section of the class specification; 2) receive the type of supervision defined in the class specification and 3) meet the minimum qualifications of the classification.