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Meet Duchy

Councilmember Trachtenberg (D-At Large) was elected to the Montgomery County Council in 2006.  She is Chair of the Management and Fiscal Policy (MFP) Committee, responsible for county economic and fiscal policy; government administrative departments; cable and telecommunications; and technology issues.  Councilmember Trachtenberg also serves on the Health and Human Services (HHS) Committee.

As MFP Chair, Councilmember Trachtenberg’s primary mission is the stewardship of the County’s fiscal health.  She guides the yearly budget-making process to ensure the protection of the County’s long-term stability while funding essential priorities and protecting the vulnerable, with transparency, equity and fiscal responsibility.

Duchy and Alan Upon joining County Council, Councilmember Trachtenberg became leading force in creating the Family Justice Center to bring coordinated and effective government services to domestic violence victims.  The Family Justice Center is a one-stop-shop approach to responding to domestic violence, eliminating the burden on victims of time and travel to offices scattered throughout the County for different services, which can take days or even weeks to fully engage. The Montgomery County Family Justice Center opened in the summer of 2009 and in its first year served over 1500 families from 100 countries.

As a public health professional, Councilmember Trachtenberg has a special interest in addiction treatment services and public health policy. Her landmark regulation prohibiting the use of artificial trans fats in Montgomery County restaurants was the first such action in the United States adopted on a county level.  She recently proposed new regulations to protect the environment and public health that requires a completed and evaluated Health Impact Assessment prior to the final decision-making on all county and state road construction projects in Montgomery County.

Councilmember Trachtenberg had been an effective grassroots activist for over twenty years on women’s equality, mental health concerns and public health issues.  She offers a strong track record of successful community networking and believes building coalitions is an effective tool in bringing about political reform.

Her dynamic leadership style reflects her genuine commitment to full equality for all women and she sat for several terms on the Board of Directors of the National Organization for Women as the Mid-Atlantic Regional Director and also for six years as a Progressive Maryland board member.

Duchy TractenbergCouncilmember Trachtenberg holds a Masters Degree in Social Work, and maintained a private practice specializing in adolescent addiction prior to her election.  She is a past Governing Councilor and Chair of the Alternative Medicine Section within the American Public Health Association (APHA).

Councilmember Trachtenberg has received numerous honors and distinctions including the Spirit Award for Humanitarian Advocate from the National Center for Children and Families (NCCF), the “Heroes” Award from the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) of Montgomery County and the “Ally for Equality” Award from Equality Maryland.  Recently she was named as a 2010 Women’s Health Hero by Our Bodies Ourselves.  Councilmember Trachtenberg has also completed the 2009 Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at the Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government.

She lives with her husband, Dr. Alan Trachtenberg, a public health physician and Research Director for the Indian Health Service, in North Bethesda.  Ms. Trachtenberg’s son, Walter, a recovering schizophrenic lives in Maryland.  Her daughter, Scarlett, a graduate of Walter Johnson High School and University of California, Berkeley, is the Advocacy and Communications Director for the Illinois Arts Alliance.