Just 10 cents of every dollar the National Education Association spent in 2025 was on representing teachers. Politics and contributions took nearly four times that amount.

Just 17% of the union’s spending in 2025 was on representing teachers. But it spent a record-breaking amount on politics and paid many staffers over $100K.

Just 15% to 26% of Illinois teachers union spending was on representing teachers in 2024. But public education employees can opt out of union membership and keep their hard-earned money.

A bill in Congress would hold the National Education Association accountable, forcing it to once more put students and educators first or risk losing its special status as a chartered organization.

NEA has lost nearly 400,000 members since its peak in 2009. It could be because just 9% of the union’s spending is on representing teachers – with the rest on politics, administration and other union leader priorities.

The Illinois Education Association is the largest statewide teachers union in Illinois. But less than 15% of its in spending in 2024 was on representing its members – which could be why nearly 5,000 education employees have left the union.

Sean Denney, director of government relations at the Illinois Education Association, makes four times more than the average family receiving an Invest in Kids tax credit scholarship. He can afford private school for his children but is trying to end that option for others.