The New York State Senate spent almost $2 million on “office furniture” during the six-month period ending March 31, according to the most recent legislative expenditure reports now searchable on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website.

Meanwhile, the New York State Assembly paid more than $900,000 for “printing equipment” for its taxpayer-funded print shop in which it, like the State Senate, produces campaign-style mail pieces. Each house’s multi-million dollar operation pays for the design, paper, printing and postage with taxpayer funds.

The data also show:

• The Assembly paid four companies a total of $100,512 for “videoconferencing systems.”
• The Senate paid $10,820 to Albany Medical College for “physicals.”
• The Assembly paid $20,237 to Zuckerman Spaeder LLP, a law firm reportedly retained by the Assembly in response to inquiries by federal prosecutors in the Sheldon Silver case. It is not clear why the Assembly, which employs several attorneys, needed to hire outside counsel.
• The Senate paid $1,721 for “forklift maintenance.”

The Empire Center, based in Albany, is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan think tank dedicated to promoting policies to make New York a better place to live, work and do business.