Silver Tops ‘Pork' Spending At $7 Million

ALBANY — Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver directed almost $7.5 million in pork-barrel spending this year to programs for the needy and for constituents needs, state records show.

That makes the Manhattan Democrat tops in the Assembly and Senate in dolling out $170 million in the so-called member item grants at the discretion of individual legislators and their leaders without public debate or vote.

In addition to the spending in his name alone, Mr. Silver was among several Democrats named as sponsors of grants totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars more.

The system heavily favors the majority parties, which control the cash.

Under the spending system long criticized by good-government groups, the Senate and Assembly each get to spend $85 million of taxpayers' money without the need for consensus or accountability that identifies which lawmakers directed money to which groups.