At the heart of the Rao Case is the State Health Benefits Plan (SHBP) fraud committed by the former mayor and councilors; William Hurlock, Robin Schlager, Peter Yacobellis, Lori Price Abrams, and David Cummings; and the retaliation by Spiller, Township Manager LaPolla and Robin Schlager against Ms. Rao.
| Name | Position | Employer | Premiums | Waiver Payments | Total |
| Sean Spiller | Mayor | NJEA | $21,896 | $27,991 | $49,887 |
| Peter Yacobellis | At-large | Out Montclair | $1,735 | $3,185 | $4,920 |
| William Hurlock | First Ward | Hurlock Law | $122,230 | $122,230 | |
| Robin Schlager | Second Ward | Montclair BOE | $28,750 | $28,750 | |
| Lori Price Abrams | Third Ward | Wakefern | $74,588 | $74,588 | |
| David Cummings | Fourth Ward | CBS Sports | $74,588 | $74,588 | |
| Total | $295,137 | $59,926 | $355,063 |
It is concerning that most of the council held full-time jobs with well-known companies that provide full benefit packages, during their tenure on the council, yet opted to avail themselves of the Township’s benefit plan and/or availed themselves of a waiver payment for opting out of coverage they were not eligible for. How could any of them, let alone Spiller, rationalize taking waiver payments knowing they were not employees?
The stipend Montclair councilors are paid is not compensation, but was reported on a W-2 form, ostensibly to make it appear they were eligible employees. In addition to the illegal SHBP coverage claimed, each of the councilors was enrolled in the State Pension Fund and annual contributions of $500 each were made on their behalf on top of the fraudulent health and dental insurance coverage.
The Montclair law department wrote a memo in August 2022 concluding that council members were ineligible to participate in the SHBP. Despite this the Council requested an outside legal opinion. The law firm, Genova Burns, invoiced the Township to research and draft a memo on this matter over the course of September 2022 involving many attempts to find a definition of full-time, 35 hours per week, that would cover the “largely volunteer” council member position. This was ultimately a fruitless exercise that cost the taxpayers of Montclair an additional $4,000. Obviously not a complex matter, yet the Township spent nearly two (2) years and over $1.750 million to cover up multiple frauds [Rao Case].
Montclair Progressive or Corrupt 