Nominee Jenny Snapp emphasizes operations and equity in Montgomery County housing deputy director interview

Jenny Snapp, the county executive’s nominee for deputy director of the Montgomery County Department of Housing and Community Affairs (DHCA), told the County Council she has about 23–24 years of local government experience and emphasized operations, program administration and racial-equity engagement in a confirmation interview.

Snapp said she oversaw the administration of a $23 million Emergency Rental Assistance program in Franklin County, Ohio, and later helped secure an additional $10 million for that program; she described experience with procurement, budgeting, community outreach and partnerships with HUD and local subrecipients. "I have that fiscal and operational aspect of experience, too, that I think will complement what I bring to Montgomery County," Snapp said.

Why it matters: The deputy director role supports DHCA’s mission to increase affordable housing production and preservation, manage landlord-tenant affairs and implement rental and housing-related enforcement. Council members pressed Snapp on operational priorities, racial equity, code enforcement and possible conflicts of interest as a current City of Rockville employee.

Topics raised and candidate responses: Snapp urged internal and external engagement — mentoring and ride-alongs with inspection and code staff, meetings with landlords and tenants, and close work with the Office of Racial Equity and Social Justice and the Office of Community Partnerships. On racial equity she described community-specific outreach and training, including an instance of taking a multiweek class at a mosque in Northeast Ohio to improve engagement with Somali and Afghan residents.

Code enforcement and compliance: Councilmember Will Jawando and others cited an Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) report (identified at the hearing as report 2025-56) that found DHCA’s code enforcement for multifamily properties was not in full compliance and that complaint-driven enforcement can fall disproportionately on renters. Snapp said she had not yet reviewed that specific OLO report but committed to work with Director Jeffrey Bruton and staff to address findings and to engage tenants, landlords and staff to improve consistency and compliance.

Conflict-of-interest and other logistics: Snapp acknowledged she is a City of Rockville employee and said she would consult the county ethics office on any conflicts related to Rockville while serving at DHCA. On formal obligations such as reporting required by state law, Councilmember Andrew Glass asked whether the county had submitted reports under a state bill (referred to in the hearing as HB151/HB155); administration staff said they would follow up with the council with a specific answer.

Next steps: The session was an interview; council members praised Snapp’s operational emphasis and many said they intended to support her nomination. Director Bruton and Chief Administrative Officer Rich Maddalino described her Franklin County and Rockville experience and recommended confirmation; no confirmation vote occurred in the hearing record provided.

Speakers who participated included Jenny Snapp; Rich Maddalino, the chief administrative officer; Director Jeffrey Bruton (participating virtually); and multiple council members who questioned Snapp about operations, racial equity and code enforcement.