NJSPBA FILES STATE ETHICS COMPLAINT OVER TREASURY SCHEME TO SMEAR HEALTH-BENEFITS FIDUCIARY AND SILENCE LABOR’S VOICE

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — New Jersey State Policemen’s Benevolent Association President Peter Andreyev announced today that the NJSPBA has filed a formal complaint with the State Ethics Commission, charging senior officials in the Department of the Treasury and Division of Pensions & Benefits with gross abuse of power, deceptive conduct, and illegal retaliation against a labor fiduciary.

According to the complaint, Treasury insiders secretly drafted and leaked a May 19, 2025, “policy report” branding the State Health Benefits Program for local governments a “death spiral”—without ever consulting, or even notifying, the Plan Design Committee (PDC), which state law empowers to make those decisions.

They then misrepresented the report to the press as if it carried the endorsement of the PDC and the State Health Benefits Commission, even though PDC members only saw the document after reporters began asking questions.

Worse still, the same officials threatened labor appointee Kevin Lyons, a sworn fiduciary on the PDC, with “ethics violations” if he dared to speak publicly or share data contradicting Treasury’s false narrative.

“This is a deliberate abuse of power that violates the Conflicts of Interest Law and the public trust,” Andreyev said. “The officials who leaked half-truths to the media then tried to gag the one fiduciary capable of exposing their mismanagement. That is retaliation—plain and simple.” He condemned the Treasury report as “a desperate attempt to hide years of botched contract enforcement, runaway drug pricing, and refusal to act on real cost-containment proposals—then blame labor when the bill comes due.”

Andreyev noted that police officers and other public servants pay premiums and accept plan changes in good faith, while Treasury’s response has been to smear watchdogs and push through cuts outside the law. He demanded a full Ethics Commission investigation and an immediate halt to any retaliation against Lyons or any other fiduciary who speaks up.

The NJSPBA’s filing asks the Ethics Commission to immediately open an investigation into Treasury, DPB, and any State Health Benefits Commission personnel involved; to issue emergency guidance reaffirming that Special State Officers have both the right and the duty to communicate with stakeholders and the public without fear of retribution; and to refer any findings of willful misconduct to the Attorney General for potential civil or criminal action.

“Thirty-thousand+ NJSPBA members and hundreds of thousands of public workers across New Jersey expect and deserve honesty and transparency, not backroom deals and political cover-ups,” Andreyev concluded.

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Key Charges in the Complaint

1. Misuse of Position (N.J.S.A. 52:13D-23(e)(5)) – Treasury and DPB officials exploited their offices to secure policy advantage, bypassing statutory governance bodies and creating the false impression of institutional consensus.
2. Interference & Retaliation (N.J.S.A. 52:13D-23(e)(7)) – Threats against Kevin Lyons were designed to take away his independence and stop legitimate oversight, in direct violation of the law.
3. Breach of Public Trust (N.J.S.A. 52:13D-12(a)) – Coordinated leaks and intimidation have no role in state government and undermine the fiduciary oversight owed to 800,000 public employees and retirees who rely on the SHBP.