ALBANY – The customary upward trajectory of spending on state government lobbying is showing signs of falling back in 2016.

Spending to influence government for the first six months of 2016 declined by $10.7 million—or about 8 percent—to $120.2 million from January to June, compared to the same period in 2015, the state Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) reported this week.