The process for filling the vacant Warren County property valuation administrator position will begin Feb. 23 with a qualifying examination for prospective candidates.

Triggered by the Jan. 31 retirement of Bob Branstetter from the PVA position he held for 14 years, the test will be at 9 a.m. CT in the Capital Plaza Hotel at 405 Wilkinson Blvd. in Frankfort.

Jill Midkiff, director of communications for the Kentucky Finance and Administration Cabinet, said the exam administered by the state Department of Revenue will be to screen potential applicants for the vacant Warren County and Nicholas County PVA jobs that are normally elected positions.

Applicants for the Warren County job must be at least 24 years old, have resided in the state for at least two years, and resided in Warren County for at least one year.

A government-issued photo ID will be required for all those taking the exam.

The PVA exam is based on verbal and mathematical skills. All materials needed to take the exam, including calculators, will be supplied.

Those scoring 70% or higher on the exam will be eligible to be appointed by Gov. Andy Beshear to fill the unexpired term of Branstetter, which runs through December 2022.

Midkiff said the starting annual salary for the Warren County PVA is $108,187.73.

“By statute, the compensation of local PVAs is based on the county’s population and the schedule contained in KRS (Kentucky Revised Statute) 132.590,” Midkiff said in an email. “The compensation of PVAs is calculated and adjusted annually by the Kentucky Department for Local Government.”

The person appointed will be eligible to seek reelection to a four-year term in 2022, Midkiff said.

Due to the social distancing requirements of the coronavirus pandemic, those interested in taking the exam must pre-register with the state Department of Revenue no later than 4 p.m. CT Feb. 16.

An online registration form for the exam is available at the revenue.ky.gov website.

Completed registration forms should be sent to the Leslie.Mayes@ky.gov email address or faxed to 502-564-8368.

Questions about the qualifying exam can be addressed to Leslie Mayes in the state Department of Revenue. Mayes can be reached at 502-564-1258.

The opening was created by the retirement of Branstetter, who was serving his fourth term as PVA when he retired at age 67.

Branstetter, who cited the need to have some surgical procedures done as a reason for retiring, oversaw an office that had seen its workload grow along with the county’s population growth in recent years.

PVA records show the number of real estate properties (residential, farm and commercial) in Warren County has grown from 47,305 in 2006 to 49,063 in 2020.

With farm properties diminishing while higher-valued residential and commercial properties have grown, the total assessed value of the county’s real properties has skyrocketed from $5.03 billion in 2006 to $10.1 billion in 2020.