New Gandhi Spokesman

Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi has hired a new spokesman to replace Maryann Young, who departed in January to take over as the director of elections for Lackawanna County, Pa.

David Umansky, who began this week, has had a long career in public relations. According to his biography, Umansky began his professional life as a reporter for the Philadelphia Inquirer but has since served in the communications departments of The Smithsonian Institution and National Public Radio and advised General Electric and the United States Postal Service. See the last entry here for more.

Umansky enters as the fallout continues from the tax embezzlement scandal that was disclosed in November. Federal agents, who are still investigating, have said the amount of stolen money could reach $50 million over more than a decade. A recent audit by BDO Seidman criticized the financial controls in three city agencies--the tax office, the school system and the Medicaid program--and city officials have pledged to devote more attention and resources to fix the problems.