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Federal Agencies Splurge $3.3 Billion on Office Furniture Amidst Pandemic Telework, Watchdog Report Reveals

ByAlki David

Oct 3, 2023

In a surprising revelation, a watchdog report obtained by the New York Post exposes that as federal employees predominantly worked from home during the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government spent a staggering $3.3 billion on new office furniture. The report, citing data from the Government Accountability Office and published by taxpayer watchdog group OpenTheBooks.com, sheds light on the expenditures between 2020 and 2022.

Despite the absence of employees due to widespread telework, federal agencies maintained pre-pandemic spending levels, averaging over $1 billion annually on upgraded furnishings. This revelation raises eyebrows, particularly as the report indicates that 17 out of 24 federal agencies are operating at a fraction of their building capacities, ranging from 9% to 49%.

The details are striking. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention allocated $237,960 for solar-powered picnic tables, while the U.S. embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, invested $120,000 in leather recliners from Ethan Allen. Even as the Environmental Protection Agency downsized and moved into a 300,000 square-foot office space in Philadelphia, they spent a whopping $6.5 million on new furniture.

A particularly glaring example comes from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which reportedly spent nearly $15 million, equivalent to $14,400 per employee, on new décor, drawing attention from OpenTheBooks Founder and CEO Adam Andrzejewski: “Yet for some reason, we’ve bankrolled another billion dollars in desks, chairs, couches, and more — while employees clock in from their own living rooms.”

This report surfaces amidst ongoing debates over government spending, with Congress passing eleventh-hour legislation to fund the government at current levels until Nov. 17. Notably, the Pentagon emerges as the leading spender on furniture, totaling $1.2 billion, with significant expenditures by other agencies, including the Department of Veteran Affairs, the Justice Department, the General Service Administration, the State Department, and the Department of Homeland Security.

By Alki David

Alki David — Publisher, Media Architect, SIN Network Creator - live, direct-to-public communication, media infrastructure, accountability journalism, and independent distribution. Born in Lagos, Nigeria; educated in the United Kingdom and Switzerland; attended the Royal College of Art. Early internet broadcaster — participated in real-time public coverage during the 1997 Mars landing era using experimental online transmission from Beverly Hills. Founder of FilmOn, one of the earliest global internet television networks offering live and on-demand broadcasting outside legacy gatekeepers. Publisher of SHOCKYA — reporting since 2010 on systemic corruption inside the entertainment business and its expansion into law, finance, and regulation. Creator of the SIN Network (ShockYA Integrated Network), a federated media and civic-information infrastructure spanning investigative journalism, live TV, documentary, and court-record reporting. Lived and worked for over 40 years inside global media hubs including Malibu, Beverly Hills, London, Hong Kong and Gstaad. Early encounter with Julian Assange during the first Hologram USA operations proved a formative turning point — exposing the realities of lawfare, information suppression, and concentrated media power. Principal complainant and driving force behind what court filings describe as the largest consolidated media–legal accountability action on record, now before the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court. Relocated to Antigua & Barbuda and entered sustained legal, civic, and informational confrontation over media power, safeguarding, and accountability at Commonwealth scale.