Espada Spent $1.2M On His Office in Six Months

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Espada Spent $1.2M On His Office in Six Months

It’s unclear how much or if any went to sushi at restaurants near his Mamaroneck, Westchester County, home, but former Sen. Pedro Espada, D-Bronx, spent a whopping $1.2 million on office expenses from April through September last year.

The bulk went to the large staff he accumulated as former Senate majority leader, but he also spent $102,826 on mailings as he sought unsuccessfully to win re-election. He lost a Democratic primary.

The spending by Espada, who is facing civil and criminal charges for allegedly embezzling millions of dollars from his Bronx health clinic, far outpaced others in the Senate, according to expenditure reports filed today by the Senate and the Assembly.

In the Senate, the next highest spender was Senate Democratic Leader John Sampson, D-Brooklyn, who spent $884,466 on his office and staff. ?

Overall, Senate spending under Democratic control was up 1.8 percent over the six-month period compared to the prior six months, to a total of $57 million. Republicans retook the majority in January and have cut staff and expenses, they said.

On the Assembly side, spending was down slightly, 1 percent, over the last six months, also about $57 million total.

Assemblyman Richard Gottfried, D-Manhattan, led the pack, spending $431,682 on his office. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, ranked four at $337,381, although another $308,000 was spent on the office of the “speaker of the assembly,” the records show.

Want to know how much your lawmaker spent over the past few years? Check out our Platinum Legislature series from last year.