Alex Espinosa, Montgomery County’s director of finance, will resign his position April 5 to take a job as the chief financial officer of Stafford County, Virginia — a county of about 146,000 people 40 miles south of Washington.
Espinosa’s departure was confirmed by county spokesman Ohene Gyapong, who said the job is closer to the finance director’s home in Virginia.
“It’s a golden opportunity he couldn’t have passed up,” he said.
County Executive Marc Elrich echoed those sentiments in a news release.
“Alex Espinosa served the county well for more than 21 years; and I am especially grateful for the work he has done leading up to, and beyond, my administration’s transition period. Though I invited him to stay, an exciting opportunity opened up for Alex; and it would have been hard to pass up,” he wrote.
Espinosa has worked in Montgomery County government since December 1997, according to his Linkedin online profile, first as the operating budget manager and then as finance director beginning in August 2016.
Espinosa’s salary was $200,000 per year in 2018, according to county data.
Espinosa will start his new job April 29 and will be paid $150,009, said Shannon Howell, a spokeswoman with Stafford County government.
Espinosa’s departure is the latest in a series of county department heads to resign or retire since Elrich was sworn into office on Dec. 3. With a change of administration, it is often common for top advisers to depart. They include:
-Former health and human services director Uma Ahluwalia
-Former budget director Jennifer Hughes
-Former office of community partnerships director Bruce Adams
-Former housing director Clarence Snuggs
-Former chief administrative officer Tim Firestine
-Police Chief Tom Manger
Dan Schere can be reached at Daniel.schere@moco360.media
