The Taxpayer-Funded Political Machine

The NJEA is a taxpayer-funded special interest.  The NJEA rigged the system so that over a hundred million of property tax dollars go directly to the NJEA every year without teachers ever seeing the money.  The NJEA then spends most of this money on politics at both the state and local levels. The modern NJEA is a political machine. Its Executive Office is dominated by political operatives and almost all its activities involve political action.  In politics, money is power, and the NJEA has more money than any other group. This taxpayer-funded special interest is now the most powerful political force in the state.

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Research Reports

New Jersey Teachers' Dues: Why are they the highest in the nation and what are they paying for?

New Jersey Teachers’ Dues: Why Are They The Highest In The Nation And What Are They Paying For?

New Jersey’s teachers are getting a raw deal, and most are not even aware of it. Most spend their energy and passion teaching our children and contributing to their communities, not worrying about where their dues money goes. But each year, most of their $1,362 of annual dues is spent far away from their local associations. If the facts about how this money is spent ever came to light, teachers would not be happy.

 

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NJEA New Jersey's political machine

NJEA: New Jersey’s Political Machine

The modern New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) is a taxpayer-funded political machine. Political organizing infuses the organization from top to bottom.

At the top, the NJEA Executive Office is now run by political operators: three-quarters of the Executive Office are political organizers. Almost all of the headquarters staff are engaged in some form of political activity. Even the human resources manager and the professional development staff have political roles to play.

 

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NJEA: The Taxpayer-Funded Special Interest

How has the New Jersey Education Association (NJEA) – a private, special interest – become the most powerful political force in the state?

By rigging the system to secure annual, automatic taxpayer funding. Since 1994, over $2.1 billion in taxpayer funding, reaching a record $129 million in 2018.

Decades ago, the NJEA used it political clout to lobby lawmakers to construct a funding system that guaranteed the annual flow of tens of millions of property tax dollars directly into its coffers. School districts collect the property taxes that pay teacher salaries and then withhold the teachers’ dues from their paychecks. Over 80 percent of these dues flow up to the NJEA. School districts and teachers are thus rendered mere pass-throughs for property tax dollars to flow directly into the NJEA’s treasury. The teachers never see the money.

 

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Issue Updates

NJ.COM: N.J. teachers need to be told the truth: Their pensions are in jeopardy | Opinion

Posted OnMay 5, 2021

N.J. teachers need to be told the truth: Their pensions are in jeopardy | Opinion By Michael Lilley A new report by the Brookings Institution made some news because of its rather optimistic take on the fate of America’s public pensions. Brookings is perhaps the premier left-of-center think tank in the nation and often takes pro-labor union…

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The Taxpayer-Funded Political Machine

DISCOURSE: Teachers Unions Are Bad for Teachers. Here’s Why

Posted OnApril 13, 2021

This report was originally published by Discourse Magazine, the online magazine of the Mercatus Center at George Mason University.  Please see the original report here. Teachers Unions Are Bad for Teachers. Here’s Why Rigid pay scales, high dues, lousy pension system: Membership has its privileges Mike Lilley The New Jersey Education Association, the state chapter…

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The Taxpayer-Funded Political Machine

EDUCATION WEEK’S RANKINGS: NEW JERSEY IS TOPS BECAUSE OF HIGH EDUCATION SPENDING THAT BENEFITS THE NJEA MORE THAN STUDENTS

Posted OnMarch 8, 2021

We Are #1… Because of Spending, Not Results! Let’s Shine Some Needed Sunlight on Education Week’s Annual State Rankings Each year, Education Week provides a report card assessing the quality of public education state-by-state. Last Fall, New Jersey topped Ed Week’s rankings. Whoo-Hooo! Congrats!  Kudos! Right? Unfortunately, Wrong. New Jersey took the top spot from…

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It’s Confirmed: NJ Teachers Pay the Highest Dues in the Nation – By Far

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Thanks to the sleuthing of the Education Intelligence Agency, we now know for certain that the NJEA’s member dues are the highest in the nation – by a long shot.  For the 2020-21 school year,…

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NJEA’s Beatty: Gov. Murphy Is Best in the Nation When It Comes to Collaborating with Public Unions – and This Year’s Budget Proves It

Posted July 6, 2021

Sunlight could not have said it better.  Supporting the NJEA’s early endorsement of Gov. Murphy, NJEA Vice President-elect Steve Beatty said: “There is no governor in the nation who has worked as closely and collaboratively…

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Does the NJEA Care About Learning Loss for Minority and Low-Income Students?

Posted June 21, 2021

Remote learning during the pandemic has indeed taken its toll on NJ students. The New Jersey Globe reported that based on interim tests 37% of NJ students were below grade level in language arts and…

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