Two public school teachers are suing the New Jersey Education Association, alleging the teachers’ union violated the law when it funneled $40 million to former union president Sean Spiller’s gubernatorial campaign this spring.

The suit, filed Tuesday in state Superior Court by Roselle teacher Marie Dupont and Hamilton teacher Ann Marie Pocklembo, alleges the union improperly used dues it said would not fund its political committees to fuel the independent expenditure groups that backed Spiller’s failed bid for the Democratic nod for governor.

“We are here today because the Fairness Center’s clients, two New Jersey public school teachers and a New Jersey policy nonprofit, believe the New Jersey Education Association should play by the rules and follow the law when it comes to its political spending,” Nathan McGrath, president of the Fairness Center, a nonprofit law firm that opposes public-sector unions, told reporters Tuesday.

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Separate complaints filed with the IRS and the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission by the New Jersey Policy Institute, which is backing the teachers’ suit, allege other violations of law.

The group asked the state election law commission to investigate whether the teachers’ union violated state campaign finance law by giving Spiller maxed-out contributions through its PAC and Protecting Our Democracy.

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