Jeff Simmons

The newest member of City Comptroller Bill Thompson's press staff is Ebony Meeks, daughter of Queens Congressman Greg Meeks.

She had worked on David Paterson's [corrected] last campaign, according to the comptroller's spokesman Jeff Simmons, and did a "fantastic job."

"She has experience pitching stories, setting up interview, researching and enjoyed working with the media on a daily basis," he said.

According to Simmons, two other people applied for the job after seeing it advertised on the comptroller's web site, but unlike Meeks, they had not worked on the campaign and weren't as well qualified.

Update: Meeks worked on Paterson's campaign, not Thompson's, Simmons said. More importantly, the two other people who applied for the job "didn't have the experience or credentials." Meeks has a degree in journalism from Howard University. -- Azi Paybarah

In a bit of a thematic departure, yesterday's Page Six led off with an item sourced not to a Bungalow 8 patron or a Hollywood publicist but to a "disgruntled" government employee in the city comptroller's office.

What it lacked in glamor, the item made up in sting: the employee, via e-mail, accused several aides by name of forging their time sheets -- a criminal act.

The piece included a response from Comptroller Bill Thompson's spokesman, Jeff Simmons:

"Your information is factually inaccurate . . . We ensure that employees account for their time," the statement, which Simmons sent via email, began.

But what words did Page Six elide with those three dots?

"And flat-out defamatory," according to a copy of Simmons's email to Page Six's Chris Wilson, which Jeff provided upon request.  read more »

Simmons declined to comment on the likelihood of a libel suit.