The 333 Aeron-brand chairs cost $522 each.
The Controlling Board, a panel of lawmakers that oversees state spending, voted 6-1 Monday against what normally would be a routine request. Board members say they were dissatisfied with an architect's explanation for why staff and faculty needed the expensive chairs.
A spokeswoman for the Oxford school didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.
Jay Hottinger, a Republican from Newark, was one of the lawmakers who opposed Miami's request. He reminded his colleagues on the panel that they were sitting in $2,000 leather chairs.
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