Union’s $40 Million Dues-Fueled PAC Spending Challenged by NJ Teachers, Think Tank

Teachers Sue NJEA Over Dues Diverted to PACs

In Dupont & Pocklembo v. NJEA & Spiller, Roselle teacher Dr. Marie Dupont and Hamilton Township teacher Ann Marie Pocklembo say that the NJEA’s membership card, which functions as a contract between the member and the union, told teachers that contributing to the union’s PAC is optional. Neither teacher elected to contribute to the PAC, but their money ended up in a union PAC supporting Spiller’s run for governor anyway.

Their lawsuit argues union officials steered tens of millions of dollars in mandatory dues to Garden State Forward, a political organization that NJEA officers created, controlled, and funded entirely with teachers’ dues. In connection with the 2025 gubernatorial campaign, Garden State Forward then passed over $40 million to Working New Jersey, a Super PAC run by union insiders, and another, now-shuttered organization called Protecting Our Democracy, both of which used the money to support Spiller’s gubernatorial campaign.

Teacher Seeks Transparency & Accountability from NJEA

Marie, an immigrant, mother of three, and teacher for nearly two decades, believes unions should reflect democratic values—open processes, transparency, and accountability. But instead, she saw a handful of insiders making unilateral decisions for 200,000 members.

“I chose not to support the union’s PAC. Then I found out that a handful of union insiders spent $40 million of teachers’ dues—including mine—on the union president’s political ambitions. That’s wrong, and I believe it’s illegal,” said Marie, who has since resigned her union membership in protest.

Union Silences Teacher for Speaking Out

Ann Marie, a Hamilton Township teacher for nearly 30 years, said she faced retaliation after objecting. When she posted concerns on Facebook, she said she was blocked from union pages and later told by union leaders to “be a team player.”

“I never agreed to bankroll a politician,” said Ann Marie. “It’s an obvious conflict of interest when the union president benefits from backroom deals to fund his own campaign with members’ money.”

(Ann Marie Pocklembo. Photo credit: Harvard Studio Photography.)

Union Allegedly Broke Membership Contract, Breached Fiduciary Duty

The teachers believe that NJEA officials pulled a bait-and-switch. When teachers join the NJEA, they sign materials functioning as a contract that present PAC contributions as optional and separate from their regular dues. Other membership materials reinforced this impression. But the union allegedly broke its contract by spending all teachers’ money on politics anyway, whether they liked it or not, and took measures that ended up hiding its dues-funded political spending from members.

The teachers further argue that NJEA breached its fiduciary duty to prioritize members’ best interests over their own. The union used members’ dues to personally benefit its president, violating its own conflict of interest rules. Since Spiller held decision-making positions at the union and the affiliated organizations that funneled members’ dues to back his campaign, the teachers believe he engaged in illegal self-dealing.

Their lawsuit, before New Jersey Superior Court, seeks a ruling that the union broke its contract, breached its fiduciary responsibility, and made misrepresentations.

Think Tank Asks Regulators to Hold Union Accountable

Separately, the New Jersey Policy Institute (NJPI), a nonprofit policy think tank, has filed complaints with the IRS and the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) requesting investigations into the union’s handling of its political spending.

NJPI’s IRS complaint alleges the union failed to disclose its giving to Garden State Forward as political activity on federal tax forms. Its ELEC complaint alleges the union exceeded New Jersey’s campaign contribution limits by using two apparently related or affiliated entities—NJEA PAC and Protecting Our Democracy, Inc.—to donate twice the maximum limit to Spiller’s campaign.

“We believe that the New Jersey Education Association used a web of organizations to fund its president’s run for governor and skirted federal tax law and state election law in the process. It’s time for the IRS and the state election commission to investigate and hold the union accountable,” said NJPI president Rosemary Becchi. “Everyone, including teachers’ unions, must play by the same rules when it comes to election law.”

The NJPI’s filings seek official investigations to determine if the union violated tax and election laws.