Michael Keogh

As reported last night, Christine Quinn just hired a new finance director for the City Council, Preston Niblack.

Niblack is coming over from his job as deputy director for the Independent Budget Office.

He starts on May 5 and is arriving here amid the financial scandal that has pre-occupied much of the Council. Talks are already underway on how to overhaul major portions of the discretionary allocations, a vital part of how members shape each year’s city budget.

Niblack is taking over the position once held by Mike Keogh, who left around the time Quinn said she learned that Council staffers for years had been hiding taxpayer money behind phony organizations in order to dispense the money later.

Niblack will be paid $160,000, the same salary Keogh was making when he started.

Here’s the official statement.  read more »

Since the story about her aides channeling money into fake organizations broke, Christine Quinn has stressed that said aides were under direct orders for her not to do so. (She also says she knew about the practice of putting money aside, but not about the phantom organizations).  read more »