Bart Kane
says library board
broke promises

The state librarian says
he met criteria for holding on
to his post

By Debra Barayuga
Star-Bulletin

Board of Education members say they aren't surprised about another lawsuit involving the library system, but they are surprised this lawsuit is coming from Bart Kane.

Kane's attorneys yesterday filed suit against the state Board of Education and seven board members who voted against the state librarian at his annual evaluation in February.

This is the library system's third major lawsuit in the past three years. Baker & Taylor last year sued the Hawaii State Library System for breach of contract after Kane terminated its $11.5 million-dollar contract.

Pending are hearings to determine whether the library's computer automation contract awarded to Ameritech Library Services in 1996 should continue or be terminated. The Supreme Court last August ruled in favor of Carl Corp., the losing bidder, saying that Kane had acted in "bad faith" by prematurely awarding the contract to Ameritech.

Yesterday, Kane's attorney Darolyn Lendio said board members failed to honor promises they had made to Kane in July.

The board had given him six months to clean up the legal problems resulting from termination of the outsourcing contract with Baker & Taylor, improve communications with his employees, give them an opportunity to provide input on decisions that affect their work and proceed with a book acquisition system.

The board said that if he met the four criteria, he would hold on to his job as state librarian, Lendio said.

Kane said he gave monthly, if not weekly, updates on his progress in those four areas from July to February and board members gave no indication they were dissatisfied with his progress or the direction he was taking.

Until the board announced its decision the night of his annual review, "I was confident the four things the BOE asked me to do were accomplished above and beyond," he said.

The 14-count suit includes among other claims that board members intentionally and maliciously sought Kane's termination, conspired to misrepresent their intent to retain him and defamed him by saying he was fired for poor work performance, hurting his chances for future employment.

Kane is seeking reinstatement to the post he held for 16 years and damages for harm to his reputation, integrity, physical and mental well-being, Lendio said. Kane has been forced to disclose to prospective employers the board's reason for firing him, the suit said.

The suit seeks damages against the seven board members who voted against retaining Kane after June 30: Chairwoman Karen Knudsen, former Public Libraries Committee Chairwoman Kelly King, Keith Sakata, Winston Sakurai, Noemi Pendleton, Ronald Nakano and John Mike Compton.

Most of the board members reached yesterday declined comment because of the lawsuit and referred questions to the attorney general, who could not be reached for comment.

King said, however, the state librarian never had a contract and served at the pleasure of the board.

"There was an agreement with some conditions, but it was always our understanding that his remaining was not limited to those conditions," King said.

Whether he met those conditions was subjective, King said. "It may be that other displeasure over his service outweighed those conditions."

When asked why he would want the job after all he has been through, Kane replied, "I enjoyed being state librarian for 16 years."

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State Sen. Tam targeted
by state librarian’s suit

Bart Kane says Tam breached fiduciary
duties and cost him thousands

By Debra Barayuga
Star-Bulletin

Bart Kane said state lawmaker Rod Tam, acting as an agent for MetLife Resources, cost him thousands of dollars by failing to properly advise him on a tax-sheltered annuity.

Kane, the state librarian, filed a lawsuit yesterday against Tam, saying the senator failed his fiduciary duties by not telling him the problems with withdrawing or borrowing money from the annuity Tam had sold him in July 1987.

Tam could not be reached for comment.

Kane took out a $28,000 residential loan in 1991, made repayments and made early withdrawals that resulted in substantial penalties by the IRS and state income tax payments amounting to $25,000 to $30,000 since 1995. Kane expects to pay this year as well.

Kane is seeking compensatory and punitive damages against Tam and MetLife.

Kane says he contacted MetLife in 1993 or 1994 requesting a review of his annuity, but because he received no response, assumed his instructions had been followed. He also requested Tam be removed as the agent in charge of his annuity.

Sylvia Mitchell, who turned down a sales offer by Tam, said others in state government also were approached by the lawmaker around the time Kane purchased his annuity.

She saw nothing improper about Tam's actions since he was not doing it on work time.

Kane has also questioned whether the Senate education chairman's relationship with onemr6 Rod

Tam of the five finalists for state librarian had anything to do with Tam leading the charge for his removal.

"Is it coincidence when Kane is complaining about Tam that Tam is at every meeting complaining about Kane?" said Darolyn Lendio, Kane's attorney.

Vernon Tam, a second cousin of the senator, denied Kane's allegation and said his application for state librarian was "above board."

His cousin had questioned his decision to run, asking him if he knew what he was getting into, Tam said. "It's the last thing my cousin wanted me to do because he didn't want to go after me."

As chairman of the Senate education committee, Rod Tam was a vocal critic of the Baker & Taylor contract and the increasing library employee and public dissatisfaction with Kane.